₦airaland Forum

Some vehicles will give you the option of selecting the measurement unit. For instance, a Mercedes Benz or a BMW (Newer models though) on reset will ask you to select distance measurement unit (Km or Miles), temperature (F or C) and Radio Search selection (By Frequency or by Memory).

[quote author=George_D link=topic=431821.msg5918672#msg5918672 date=1271693425]eluala,
true talk! imagine if it was in naija that toyota had thier pedal issue, i'm sure the appologist board members and their mallam chairman would long have been 'settled' and we would never have heard anything about it at all!  [/quote]@George_D
Very well said. Imagine if I was a member of that committee; All I need from them is a 2013 Full Option Highlander, and we will be issueing a press statement.

But seriously, I think that Toyota thing is an over-hyped conspiracy against Japan / Toyota; more like a desperate move by a dying economy or industry to sell their failed brands by a sabotage against the world's No. 1. Thats just my own understanding of the whole thing and its very unfortunate, BUT from what I gather, its having no impact at all outside the Ford country.

indie22:
The kia rio models (made for the nigeria market and distributed by dana motors) do not come with airbags, they are instead ordered with seat belt pretensioners, this is obviously to minimize cost, i get a lot of schtik from customers, wondering, "in this age and time, a brand new car with no airbags"?

but what can i say?, since there is no regulatory body in nigeria for such things, major distributors are free to do as they please,

Its really unfair to the consumers, but you will be surprised to find out that a lot of consumers dont really mind the absence od airbags in the rio, its still our highest selling model funny enough.

Most people that buy "kia", do so because of only one factor: price! they are less expensive than a lot of other brands, kia consumers are not looking or buying luxury, all they want is a car that can get them from point a to b and will not give them the kind of problems a fairly used vehicle will, they are looking for fuel efficiency and cheap to maintain, that wat kia offers,

i drive a Rio funny enough, for me its an easy drive, dnt spend much on gas, gets me wherever i want to go, thats all i need in a car for now.

@Indie22
I really appreciate and respect your candid comments and truth. Its a fair enough arrangement that you educate intending buyers on what it is and they end up making their choice. Thats some integrity based packaging right there.

I know that in real life 70% of intending buyers will take a brand new Yaris without airbags for 1.5M than a 2004 Accord full option. This Im sure of because I know people who can afford original phones but will tell me that their Chinco handset will give them dual sim and TV - what they are missing out here is that the wattage and noise level from that earpiece they hold to their ears is not moderated or standardized in any way and it leads to tumours in the brain - thats why some of them hear their phones ringing in their heads - even when the phone is off (Im sure no one pays any attention to this).

So IF we are talking about airbags, there are lots of things without safety features like the airbag and we take for granted on a daily basis.

Clearly, just like Indie22 has stated; the Kia has its own uses and fits some people's budget for a "Brand new" vehicle. For me its all in what the buyer wants and most importantly what the buyer knows.

So, if the "Government" will ban those cars, they should also ban those unsafe phones, and those sunrise china wires that set houses on fire - and those bulbs that explode too (China as well)

@Akainzo
Good point you have right there. Like I said earlier, manufacturers tailor their products to suit on-ground requirements and regulations in place; I guess the US/Europe markets are what you can call up-scale markets for them.

In our our own case people need to know how important these features are in vehicles, they need to understand what those standards are and the different specifications accompanying each. I personally know that these same china things we complain about in Nigeria are available even in the US and Europe - we have people peddling fake products on eBay and they are really getting them sold out there.

If you walk into a car shop; you are bound to see and have different options; IF your safety is important to you, you simply pick the option that has the airbag system in place. Mr Maballac had the options to pick an auto trans with airbag OR a manual trans without airbag and he made his choice. IF everyone keeps dumping the no-airbag specs, they will simply have to get those airbags installed at their own expense or ship them back to wherever they came from.

I am impressed with the manufacturers who did not include the airbag systems AND did not write or paste the "AIRBAG" sign anyehere in the vehicles. That shows it was a legitimate factory roll-out based on requests and research. IF Nigerians themselves start turning down these specs, they simply stop making them that way. Its really up to us.

Buyers' eductation is the key right now, we can help ourselves by letting people know the vitals to look out for in buying new vehicles or even tokumbo vehicles.

Some tokumbo vehicle owners think they dont have airbag problems because they dont have the error light on; what they do not know is that the light has probably been disabled before he/she bought the vehicle.

I believe that we are the government and one of us might end up being in one of these agencies (FRSC for instance) that will be able to bring these issues to light OR at least ask his/her colleagues to include airbag check in their routine - But on the other hand how the hell will they know if it works or not?.

That government thing is very secondary, we can continue bucking it up to the "Government" all we want BUT the primary responsibility remains ours to educate ourselves on what to buy and what not to buy.

Once they notice no one is going for these unsafe vehicles, they simply move that scheme to Togo or Ivory Coast or something.

@Akainzo
^^^ End of Discussion

Its a shame BUT its the simple fact.

@Siena
I think it will be easier to break this thing down to you since you are Nigerian but just not resident here.

Companies have brand management and market research teams, whose job is to tailor their products and services to suit terrains, cultures and budgets; which explains why you have some cheap Nokia phones with torch-lights, Ibo and Hausa Languages in their manuals, and why you have some cheap quality LG TVs with Ibo, Hausa and Yoruba on their Menu languages - these products are by all standard below average BUT as far as they are concerned, Nigerians dont appreciate the E90s, the N96s and those high-ends - Not because me and you dont use them, BUT their bottom line figures shows low income from these models on the average, hence the flooding of the market with these substandard BUT "Nigerian" Phones and TVs, and its giving them the required chart curves and figures.

Coming to the cars - You need to have the right background that most brand new vehicle buyers are corporate organisations and they tend to change these after months or years to be competetive in their marketing and packaging by buying the latest. With this in mind, they have a tailored budget for these disposables and with some stingy OR prudent OR crooked procurement team; they generally tell the supplier on the average that they should supply brand new vehicles without the extras BUT it must be brand new.

The market research team therefore understands that 90% of their clientel for these new cars are corporate organisations and to meet their budget on the average they need to push the categorization of these models to exclude certain features - You and I really dont know the cost of these airbag systems BUT Im sure it will be quite a bit for them to exclude from the base models.

So its simply a case of our general request being made into a policy by manufacturers based on pricing issues and the accompanying deals over time.

IF the government will clamp down generally on all of these manufacturers, it will be a very good thing BUT we cannot have just one or two manufacturers stop it; it will only shift their market to the next idiot that will offer them those cars with the cheaper specs.

The other day, a guy was happy to get a Brand new Yaris for 1.5M - he doesnt care about the specs (as far as he is concerned If its CD player and leather that is the difference, he will buy locally and install - even with TV); tell him it doesnt have airbags and he will ask you if his surname is Schumaker - So what we need is to educate ourselves on the importance of their knowledge of the full specifications of a car before buying. Remember that those bank Corolla vehicles are very hot when to be auctioned.

So, like I said, its up to us to give them 0% market on such vehicles and they will be forced to rethink their strategies and include those basic features in the base models (especially the manual transmission models - for transportation) without necessarily substantially increasing the prices.

Those vehicles did not come with airbags and did not have airbag signs on them or written anywhere. I am confident they were rolled out from those factories and were not tampered with locally.

That level of tampering did not happen here so you can leave out our local dealers here. Maballack bought from Dana (now Kia Motors Nigera Limited). As far as I am concerned he bought those vehicles off the production line. And of course most service providers are not to be held strictly by what they have on their websites - Its a marketing thing and a business strategy to produce and provide services to suit a class of customers as long as there are no governmental restrictions. Its a global thing.

@Sbm4real
Do not change your engine.

He might be right to have changed his fuse box and some other things at the same time and not knowing what excactly solved the problem - this happens all the time.

We have discussed some issues here; for me you should start with basic and practical things - like your brainbox. Im sure of that for a start.

Fiver:
which also comes under the leadership!


its a total shame Nigerians look out for all the effizy (auto seat massager, auto head adjuster) in cars and pay little attention to safety, i can just see the dealers offering cars with no seatbelt!

wow so buying a new car in nigeria is  

@Fiver
This is where I dont want you to go at all.

Buying a new car in Nigeria is as you have anywhere in the world. When I priced a 2009 Landcruiser for instance I was told they have three trims (models) ranging from 13M, 13.7M and 14.5M

This tells you that there is a difference in these trims and you will need to sit with the brochures (free of charge) read up and decide on what you are spending on. I cant imagine someone buying a "Bank" type Corolla for instance for 2.5M brand new and tell someone else who bought a standard model for 4M that they are driving the same brand and model of cars.

The pricing is very essential and should make intending buyers think about what makes one trim more expensive than the other.

And let me add to it that Fashola is a very effective guy.

He only needs minds like ours to bring issues like this to him, so he can take actions at his own level of governance. Its only a pity that the case will directly be handled by guess who;

1. Ministry of transport (Federal)
2. Road Safety (Federal)

And of course, you and I know that Maballack only needs to have a one-on-one conversation with his cheque book and the officers in charge and we will all be smiling again.

@Fiver
Endorsing the service is one thing, the other thing is to set a standard and specifications of the vehicles in use. I am not aware that Fashola is directly linked to any of the cab services; I had always thought the Transport Commission handles the permits and scrutinization.

Its a mess all the same sir!

Very true.

maballack:
I noticed it when i was about purchasing the kia rio, bt noticed that ont he corolla as called bank corolla since, , and no option given on a kia rio had any airbag, bought under Dana , and d ones with airbag  is like what they call full option as that comes with an auto gear and window winds
"imagine full option means airbag and auto gear and window winds, isnt that pathetic, well after purchase dint forget to put a tracker and a comprehensive insurance , because what is available in market is what am making best use of, and poitn of correction the lives of customers even in a fitted vehicle is d driver not the car and equipments , it can only make an accident look mild but stil dependent on the driver and driving, that i dint reciprocate on in employing drivers but , no one is perfect and anything can happen, thats life

@Maballack
I must commend your sincerity; I really appreciate and respect you for this.

I know for a fact that transport feasibility only makes sense with Manual gear transmissions due to maintenability and general reliability. From what you are saying, its clear that those models are factory specifications requested by local distributors and dealers NOT LOCALLY TAMPERED WITH. (Im still thinking someone must have said "it doesnt matter" to manual trans. spec without airbags though

Logistics and procurement  people in banks using those Corolla models should be arrested for crimes to humanity, and for everyone's sake, Nigerian government should ban these unsafe specs.

And to think a freak banned importation of vehicles over 10 years BUT allowed importation of unsafe "Brand new" vehicles - Its just sickening.

@Siena
They end up in branded boxes to be sold to us here in Nigeria. Its terribly unfortunate that these kind of things actually take place. We need him to kindly let us know some details that will help us know IF a major official  distributor by any means CAN be involved in selling these coffins.

I just need that person to help us out here by answering these questions:

1. Did you know that those "moving coffins" were without airbags when you bought them?
2. Did they give you other options of another model with airbags, OR those were the only models available?
3. Where did you buy them from?
4. How on earth would you roll out a cab service with those coffins knowing fully well the consequences and the risks they pose to your customers? I have an idea how much you would spend equipping each with a tracker, and thats more important to you than the lives of your customers?

We need these answers Mr. Maballack, because this is not supposed to end here.

@Maballak
Thanks for that comment, very educative.

To help us know more;

1. Did you know that those "moving coffins" were without airbags when you bought them?
2. Did they give you other options of another model with airbags, OR those were the only models available?
3. Where did you buy them from?
4. How on earth would you roll out a cab service with those coffins knowing fully well the consequences and the risks they pose to your customers? I have an idea how much you would spend equipping each with a tracker, and thats more important to you than the lives of your customers?

Fiver:
saddest comment on here!!! sometime we nigerians cant shake off 'status mentality' everywhere we go no matter how educated we seems to be


Can anyone say how much exactly would the dealer/buyer be saving from have a car with no airbag, i doubt its upto N10,000!!

Going the extra mile to remove a standard  equipment from these cars is a bit weird to me (wont that be more expensive?)

Its a very sad comment indeed. There is a reason why the Kia or Geely will cost brand new $15,000.00 and a Mercedes will cost brand new $90,000.00. The reason for the price difference is the sophistication and durability, which translates to reliability and safety from re-inforcements and quality materials used.

I was in a Redcab (Suzuki SX4) - EVERYTHING inside is just cheap plastic. There is no way on earth you can compare that 2010 plastic for safety of one's family with even a 1992 Model Honda Accord. The problem, like Fiver rightly mentioned is this false mentality about "brand new".

Personally, with 6M, I would lobby for a Naija used 07 S Class or a Naija used 04 G Wagon than a brand new 2010 Kia SUV (I mean the new one - not the sportage)

@Fiver
That standard equipment will cost more than 30k for the tokumbo, and the crooked dealer is not looking at one unit; he is concentrating on the volume. The same way a "business"man will ask Chinese companies to make DVD and VCD players that will only last 2 weeks.

Our best bet is to expose these things and educate ourselves on these little things that amount to live threatening risks.

In the past - in those days, when you insert a car key and turn it to position 1; you notice all the lights will come on, then they go off when you actually turn on the ignition (Except you have some specific errors).

How come these days in most tokumbo vehicles, there are some parts of the dash where there should be lights but it is always dark - I found from a dealer that when a vehicle comes in and they try their little effort to sort some problems and the lights are still on, they simply remove the instrument cluster and disable (or remove) the corresponding LED for that error and sell it as error free - NOW, THATS VERY DANGEROUS. Remember, that one of those lights might be airbag error light

Thats why I would advise intending buyers to buy vehicles with a computer layout instrument cluster message board (LCD), than those with LEDs iluminating partitioned messages.

Once you have confirmed no leakage - Check, fix or change your Brainbox

Siena
We know those cars come with airbags. Ive been to their office in VI and all the cars and SUV models I saw there had those.

The issue is what happened and how we can possibly attribute this to some local dealers or carelessness of drivers. Its really very essential we give up all tips here to avoid these kind of things IF it was an in-motion accident.

Fhemmmy
Differenciating these models, especially the base model from standard brings up a very grey area - and IF its up to the Nigerian dealers to define what a base model is; then it outrightly becomes an issue of cost AND NOT of effectiveness and relevance.

Another very important thing we all need to look into is this;

1. For some vehicles - the Airbag thing is actually switchable - on/off
2. We should not neglect that airbag light - truth is that most of us take it for granted (I personally wont pay as much attention to it as I would an ESP error - Its a big shame)

We really need to educate ourselves on the importance of these factors - they are at times the difference between life and death - or very serious injuries. Do you even know that there is a tool for erasing the Airbag light? - shouldnt that be criminal?  

That still looks like the vehicle was stationary to me. What could be lower than the bonnet of that vehicle to impact it with such damage and affect the passanger side?

I think actual details of owner, circumstance (pre-impact) of the accident will help clarify issues. Those sensors will work IF there was a battery, and IF they actually existed in the vehicle.

I personally dont think we have enough details to knock Kia Motors Nigeria, [b]because the vehicle might also have had Airbag error lights on for months without the owner paying any attention to it. [/b]Afterall I know a lot of people reading these thread have those light on in some of their vehicles. This only teaches us not to ignore those.

Another possibility is that we do not know IF there was a battery in the vehicle in the first place. It could have broken down by the road side and probably a bad battery or a dead alternator or wiring problem leading to overheating in one of our everyday hold-up, leaving the vehicle on the road at a very dangerous corner.

Again

From the pictures we have here, IT IS NOT a head-on collission -if it were that headlamp wont be there, and the bonnet will be folded up completely. Also with the tyre still there, it looks more like the vehicle was stationary and then hit from the side - hence the tyre removed from the wheel and still intact; just like a vulcaniser hitting the tubeless off the sealant/wheel.

@Aare 1

What IF (just one quick one to all); what IF that vehicle was stationary, parked, engine off and a vehicle ran into it?

What IF it was on a very low (regular) speed, and some heavy vehicle ran into it - would that also deploy the airbag?

Did the circumstance of the accident meet the preset conditions for airbag deployment??

I think we need to clarify these first.

From the pictures we have here, IT IS NOT a head-on collission -if it were that headlamp wont be there, and the bonnet will be folded up completely. Also with the tyre still there, it looks more like the vehicle was stationary and then hit from the side - hence the tyre removed from the wheel and still intact; just like a vulcaniser hitting the tubeless off the sealant/wheel.

This thread is very good eductaion for car owners and intending buyers.

If anyone is buying a brand new - Its a good move to walk into an authorised manufacturers' dealer and be very clear on the model AND specs. one is buying. One has to be sure if its the Luxury, Standard, Base or even Taxi specification being displayed or priced.

My feel is that - at the authorised dealership; chances are low of getting these tampered vehicles. Car dealership is a business where even with the papers, any grey area can lead to some funny sales - for instance, a base model might be sold with airbag BUT without some other accessory or part that is also essential to normal/standard driving - the ultimate protection is to research more on threads like this one and find out little things that one must confirm to be available on whatever specs one's budget can cover.

Also, we all need to understand that its possible to buy a tokumbo full option vehicle without airbags - when parts are stolen at the ports or removed for sale by local dealers; common parts removed in high-end full options vehicle usually includes the airbag sensors and wiring, auxilliary fan, ESP block. This simply shows that some of our local dealers strip down some actual brand new imported vehicles that are standard spec. models and make them "basic" by their own standards - hence incidents like this very unfortunate one here. Its not a joke with loss of lives.

@Fhemmmy
Personally, I would advise that IF one wants to buy a brand new Kia vehicle, one should go to Kia Motors Nigeria - One must not expect the best from anything else. Your point is very true about the very vital need to educate people - its actually the difference between buying a good vehicle and buying a lemon - and for that kind of money? its simply criminal.

Sincerely speaking, IF one can budget for or afford a brand new Range Rover (for instance) - it will be insane to walk into a dealer's shop with 15M; It will be appropriate to at least go on to the manufacturer's website and find out as much as possible who one can buy from in Nigeria and IF Coscharis pops up, then Coscharis it is. Same thing goes for any other brand. Anything apart from this is not real.

I beleive to a large extent that anyone can put up anything for sale (really), BUT its the buyer who should be very careful not to fall into the wrong hands. So If you dont want to get a rotten apple, get it from the tree.

This safety compromise is a very dangerous one.

Its bad enough that Kia is a very weak and fragile brand - now they dont even care about safety? Its not fair at all.

My point though is this;

@Aare 1
Kia Nigeria in VI has models up to 6M - They have this new SUV for 6M, and something to counter the Suzuki SX4, looks nice - Are you saying that Kia Motors Nigeria is selling those brand new vehicles, with Airbag written on the dashboard and there is actually no airbag or airbag deployment?? - It is actually criminal and I dont imagine it is true.

@Fhemmmy
I know that there are some dealers and car lots that sell that same Rio "brand new" for a fraction of the price of the new one - could this have come from one of them or are you stuck sure its from Kia Motors dealership?

Im not a Kia fan by any means (though they have some nice designs that are clones of the real things - For me they are like disposables with expiry dates) BUT we all know that just like with other brands like Honda and Toyota, some dealers have ways of getting the "Brand New" of these vehicles, which are of cause arranged stripped down models of the real thing (Just like Siena rightly put it). I would like us to differentiate these facts and confirm IF Kia Motors Nigeria (VI for instance) sold that brand or sells the likes.

I wont knock Kia Motors Nigeria for that vehicle because I do not know if they sold it and because I am aware that road side dealers arrange the same vehicles and label them brand new for a fraction of the price of the new ones from Kia Motors' lot.

There is a Kia Rep/Marketer on nairaland (Indie22 I think)- It will be very interesting to know IF this is from them. I doubt that for real because Ive been to their VI office (Kia Motors) and most of their models there were with Airbags - they even have some rare models there.

I wonder where this came from.

Its a good business - lots of income; especially when you offer high-end diagnostics for brands like Mercedes, BMW, Range Rover, Bentley, etc. You will invest a bit on equipment though.

Make sure you buy a Toyota you really like, so you dont freak out on expensive parts when it starts its own problems.

Why not get a BMW, or a mercedes? A trial at that might blow you away