Belgian dealer axes Brilliance BS6
The first reported dumping of the Brilliance BS6 has taken place in Belgium, where dealer Karel Cardoen has halted sales of the car in the wake of its horrifying crash test conducted by Germany's ADAC. In perhaps the understatement of the year, Automotive News Europe quotes Cardonen as saying, "We don't think this car is good to sell in Europe." The BS6, for those of you new to the story, is a Chinese luxury sedan and recent arrival into the European automobile market. It recently flunked the ADAC crash tests in spectacular fashion, and In the wake of that fiasco, the automaker said that it didn't feel the poor crash results would have a negative impact on sales.
So much for that. Cardoen's dealership was one of just three that were offering the car to European customers. The remaining two are both in Germany. Cardoen said he'll reconsider his position if the safety of the car improves.
[Source: Automotive News Europe (sub req'd)]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
srivendel 12:09PM (7/02/2007)
Good. Market forces at work. Poisoned pet food. Poisoned baby toys. Self-destructing cars. Maybe those Chinese Communists will realize that the free market isn't as stupid as they obviously assume it is.
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whalescomment 4:54PM (7/03/2007)
You are so stupid by making such a comment. Becuase for so long you bought so many delicate Chinese products and enjoying the saving for your bills in restraunts
srivendel 4:56PM (7/03/2007)
Be that as it may, I wouldn't buy one of their cars. Chinese engineering has a long way to go, Sparky.
Avinash machado 12:17PM (7/02/2007)
Even if they will not be sold in Europe, Brillance might still try to sell them in other countries where crash tests are not so strict. Mainly African countries and perhaps some Asian countries like Vietnam,Laos etc.
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l.i.dave 12:26PM (7/02/2007)
I am so tired of sub par Chinese goods. I hung a bird house up outside of my house last Spring and with in days it was breaking a part and came crashing to the ground the other day. Luckily even the birds were aware of the quality issues and choose not to nest inside.
When are the citizens of this country going to wake up, you get what you pay for! 89 cent toothpaste and discount tires are a bad idea.
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tooler 12:46PM (7/02/2007)
The BS6 really sucks! Hopefully they can learn the lesson.
BTW, can you get rid of 'made in China' in your life? Hardly you can. It is the way of world, you have better get along with it.
VenGenzt 12:36PM (7/02/2007)
Wal-Mart and hundreds of millions of North Americans could care less. People's wallets guide their souls and the Economy is a god.
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Mr. Oak 2:25PM (7/02/2007)
There are people that will buy a lesser product (cars for example), in order to be able say that they bought a "new" car.
I prefer to buy a higher quality used car than most of the "affordable" new cars that are on the market today.
Cars I would never own:
Ford: Focus on down.
GM: Cobalt on down
Toyota: Corolla on down
Kia: None
Chrysler: Avenger on down and the current Sebring.
Nissan: Sentra on down
Nothing below the Madza 6, but would buy a Speed3.
Hyundai. Nothing below the Sonata, not too hot on the Azeera(?).
I'm sure you get the picture. There is nothing wrong with picking up a good buy coming in off a lease.
Dennis 12:36PM (7/02/2007)
I remember seeing that crash picture in the original post about the BS6 and thinking, "What's the big deal? It doesn't look that bad for a car that was going 60mph." Then I read the post and found out the crash happened at 40mph. I never ever would have guessed.
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Bob-omb 12:39PM (7/02/2007)
Good. I'm glad people are paying attention to safety now more than ever. I mean look at just 10 years ago -- the Ford F150 and Chevy Venture of that time were honestly almost as bad as this crash test. Pretty inexcusable at the time, but that sort of thing just isn't tolerated today.
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Mallory 12:53PM (7/02/2007)
There are Chinese goods on our shelves because that's what American consumers want. If we truly wanted American made goods we would have them. It's really that simple. People cry about how there are no American made goods then go to their local Wal-Mart and buy the cheapest POS Chinese crap they can get. If you want to change things you can start today.
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Billy 1:14PM (7/02/2007)
Read the previous posts, folks, Ford F-150 and other American cars were recently / still are as bad as this. Just horrifying.
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Brian Dreggors 1:42PM (7/02/2007)
What current American car is this bad? None.
What recent American car was this bad? None. For as bad as the old F-150 and U-body vans were, they did not collapse like this. I also don't see how out-of-production vehicles from another era somehow justify a brand-new Chinese vehicle from being so woefully constructed.
What is most frightening is that there are ignorant people in this country who can't wait to pay $10,000 for a "brand-new" midsize car from China rather than spending the same $10,000 for a LeSabre or another certified used car of similar size that would actually survive an unfortunate accident.
Billy 2:13PM (7/02/2007)
I only wish it were so long ago. Check this out, it's as bad. Don't know the year, maybe it is long ago but I'm afraid it isn't.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=24SDvxQX-Yw
Victor 2:16PM (7/02/2007)
This test shows that the chinese are behind..but not THAT far behind
IIHS Ford F-150 (Heritage)
http://www.iihs.org/ratings/rating.aspx?id=7
http://www.iihs.org/ratings/image.ashx?rh=7&id=1
http://www.iihs.org/ratings/image.ashx?rh=7&id=4
IIHS Chrysler Neon(95-99)
http://www.iihs.org/ratings/rating.aspx?id=84
http://www.iihs.org/ratings/image.ashx?rh=84&id=1
IIHS Dodge Neon (2000-05)
http://www.iihs.org/ratings/rating.aspx?id=119
http://www.iihs.org/ratings/image.ashx?rh=119&id=1
Mid 90s Japanese cars weren't too much better
IIHS MItsubishi Galant (94-98)
http://www.iihs.org/ratings/rating.aspx?id=39
http://www.iihs.org/ratings/controls/image.ashx?rh=39&id=1&s=120
And of all people, the Europeans shouldn't be laughing.
EURO-NCAP BMW 3-Series (1997)
http://www.euroncap.com/tests/bmw_3_series_1997/15.aspx
http://www.euroncap.com//carimages/15.jpg
EURO-NCAP MB C-class (1997)
http://www.euroncap.com/tests/mercedes_benz_c_class_1997/18.aspx
http://www.euroncap.com//carimages/18.jpg
Biff Baxter 1:46PM (7/02/2007)
Congrats Bob and Billy - It took less than a page of comments before you tried to drag the domestics into a discussion about crap Chinese cars.
I cab remember the days when a Toyondazdassan would rust inside of a year. Was that Ford's fault, too?
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Bob-omb 11:52PM (7/02/2007)
Biff, grow up. Way to miss my point completely.
chaz 2:45PM (7/02/2007)
Few of you bloggers are old enough to remember Toyota & Nissan's aborted entry into the US market in 1958. They failed very early, the companies withdrew - and returned with improved vehicles. China's future export market success or failure will depend on their egos.
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Billy 2:16PM (7/02/2007)
Biff, I had no intent to drag domestics into this. Just this is the third or so post on this. Read the past posts, I was shocked to find certain domestic crash tests that looked as bad. I mean, I wouldn't have trusted Chinese imports to begin with, but I wouldn't expect this from a domestic / Euro / Jap carmaker.
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Mr. Oak 2:41PM (7/02/2007)
I disagree. Corporate greed is what bringing the chinese low-grade goods over here. WalMart gets this crap for a song and marks it up a ton.
The funny thing is, though I work for one of the largest banks in the US, on Wall Street, I am very much opposed to what Wall Street has done to the industrial base of the US.
The jobs are not going overseas because Americans are incapable of doing the job. Hell, I've seen people being told to train the plane load of Indian workers how to do their job, so that it can be shipped overseas. They ones that refused, were escorted out of the building by security.
We stand where we are now, victims of that runaway beast known as Capitalism. I sure you've heard the saying "too much of a good thing".
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