Airbags Takata: the CEO of Citroën praises the success of the recall campaigns

Ah, the Takata airbags! What a spectacle that is almost comical, yet tragic. It feels like a Beckett play where the protagonists are the cars and their ghostly airbags. Takata airbags caused more problems than they solved, much like that pub meal that promises a feast but turns into tasteless beige mush. Yet, on the other end of the line, yes, the CEO of Citroën is bellowing to celebrate a so-called success in the recall campaigns – a nice term for saying that notoriously dangerous vehicles need to come back home, like a lost child in the park.

A resounding success, really?

In a recent interview on TF1, the lord of French cars, Xavier Chardon, claimed that 90% of C3 models have been recalled. Yes, you heard that right, 90%. But what about the remaining 10%? Are they still living their lives at full speed, in a universe where airbags explode like poorly timed fireworks during a national celebration? Never mind, the holy cross of numbers is here to reassure us!

• 90% of Citroën C3 recalled, they say.
• 70% of Citroën, DS, and Opel vehicles addressed – a figure that would even make a pigeon jump on a branch!
• An army of 40,000 courtesy cars ready to help customers: but who ultimately wants a car loan when the anxiety of airbags hangs in the air like the smell of betrayed fish?

The Minister of Transport to the rescue

As if that were not enough, the Ministry of Transport has taken matters into its own hands. Almost 1.2 million vehicles repaired! But beware, the red alert is triggered: starting January 1st, all vehicles equipped with faulty Takata airbags will fail their technical inspection. The registrations of the unfortunate owners will alas be suspended as soon as a risky deployment is detected. A good way to get motorists talking, isn't it?

• Technical inspection: an extra pressure.
• Owners must act, otherwise there’s no road for you.
• It’s like being invited to a wedding without knowing you are actually the best man and that you have to organize everything.

Passenger safety at stake

Let us take a moment to condemn what seems to be a lack of concern: automotive safety. Takata airbags are those odd cushions that should protect our precious brains in the event of a crash, but which, in reality, have decided to do more harm than good, like a failed magician. The trend is thus to recall, recall, and recall again, while dancing around the issue like a cat around a bowl of cream.

• Passenger safety: priority number one!
• Product recalls: a necessity to improve vehicle reliability.
• Airbag defects: a poison for the automotive industry.

Citroën must pinch the last customers

Chardon, in his great wisdom, insists that the imperative is to attract these remaining 10% into the workshops for their safety – and not for the acknowledgment it might bring them. This calls for a whole range of marketing: almost a mix of customer solicitation and a desperate appeal to prevent the National Assembly from voting against them. The bells ring, the charm works. But who wants to drive with reasoning that, in essence, aims only to avoid another deadly airbag incident?

And the moral here? Recall campaigns are a necessary evil, though amusing to examine from the perspective of human tragedy. Citroën pretends to lead the dance, but who knows how many customers will sleep on their laurels, naively waiting for another recall campaign while their safety might well depend on a pub conversation that goes with their last pint of stout? Modern automobiles, my friends, are a rollercoaster of twists and turns – and not always on the good side of drama!

Source: www.autoplus.fr

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