China Launches Year-Long Campaign to Improve Vehicle Quality and Reliability
Four Chinese ministries have launched a nationwide, one-year special action to standardize vehicle production and enhance quality. The initiative will address issues such as product corrosion and suspension failures.
China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Ministry of Public Security, Ministry of Ecology and Environment, and the State Administration for Market Regulation have jointly announced a year-long special action to improve the production consistency and quality of road motor vehicle products across the country. The campaign officially commenced today.
The initiative aims to tackle critical issues related to vehicle reliability and durability, specifically targeting problems like product corrosion and suspension fractures. The inspection effort will cover four key areas: production consistency, reliability, durability, and the validation of new technologies. Enhanced scrutiny will be placed on the safety capabilities of intelligent connected vehicles, as well as the design, development, and production capacities of manufacturers.
Under the umbrella of production consistency, checks will verify that the technical specifications of mass-produced vehicles align with official product announcements and relevant national standards. The scope also includes evaluating manufacturers' management of component suppliers, encompassing procurement standards and incoming goods inspection. Furthermore, the campaign will assess manufacturers' overall capacity to ensure production consistency, from personnel and equipment to material sourcing, production processes, and management systems.
Regarding reliability and durability, inspections will delve into the testing and verification processes for vehicle products, key systems, and components. This includes assessing whether manufacturing process standards for both vehicle and component manufacturers adequately guarantee product reliability. The durability aspect will examine vehicle design lifetimes and development cycles, with a focus on material selection, anti-corrosion treatments, and structural protection to identify and rectify issues like product corrosion and suspension failures.
Finally, the validation of new technologies, including advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) and autonomous driving functions, will be thoroughly examined. The action will scrutinize risk assessments for new designs concerning user habits and potential operational hazards, ensuring marketing claims are substantiated. It will also evaluate risks associated with new materials and structures, data security, and artificial intelligence safety in connected vehicles, ensuring robust logging for incident investigations.