After a lengthy and conclusive report from a UK-based automotive engineering company released in January of this year, it looked like Mitsubishi Philippines (MMPC) will finally be able to put the Sudden Unintended Acceleration (SUA) issue of the Montero Sport behind them; that is until the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) threw a curve ball today. The DTI just issued a preliminary order to MMPC to recall all of 2010-2015 Montero Sport SUVs equipped with automatic transmissions.
In a report published by Malaya Business Insight, the DTI’s Fair Trade Enforcement Bureau (FTEB) cited that the 2010-2015 Montero Sport is found to have a “defective pedal placement design” which the report says can lead to pedal misapplication triggering SUA. Thus, the DTI-FTEB is evoking Article 97 of the Consumer Act of the Philippines.
If the ruling is finalized, the DTI is ordering MMPC to do the following:
- Cease and desist from marketing and selling the Mitsubishi Montero Sport automatic transmission 2010-2015 models and report compliance of this directive within 15 working days from receipt of the order;
- MMPC will publish in a newspaper of general circulation a product recall order within 20 days after finality of the decision that it is recalling Mitsubishi automatic transmission 2010-2015 models;
- MMPC will refund owners of the vehicles subject of recall, including the 24 complainants in the case;
- And finally, MMPC will pay an administrative fine of P 300,000.
MMPC Official Statement on Montero Sport DTI-FTEB Ruling
“The directive of the Department of Trade and Industry-Fair Trade Enforcement Bureau to recall the Montero Sport is NOT yet final and executor. It is important that in the findings of the DTI-FTEB itself found that there is no basis for any claims of Sudden Unintended Acceleration in the Montero Sport.
Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corporation (MMPC) filed a Motion for Reconsideration against the regulatory ruling by the DTI-FTEB concerning the 2010-15 Montero Sport automatic.
Given our absolute commitment to customer safety, our principal Mitsubishi Motors Corporation, Japan commissioned Horiba Mira Ltd., a specialist automotive engineering company based in the UK to conduct tests on this alleged SUA claims. Horiba Mira found no technical issue with the 2010-15 Montero Sport automatic.
We remain confident of the technical integrity of these models, and will robustly defend the safety compliance of the vehicle concerned.
No safety-related concerns on SUA have been raised in any other market concerning the Montero Sport (2010-2015) automatic, of which 360,000 units have been sold around the world.
We will not commit further until the adjudication process is complete.”
More on this as it develops.
Source: Malaya Business Insight
This is silly.
ReplyDelete24 out of 360,000 isn't even a significant number, and yet they conclude "defect in the design".
You can design it any way you want - but there's really nothing to protect against human stupidity.
These SUA numbnuts just won't quit.
lol Hindi parin tapos yang kalokohan na yan?
ReplyDeleteMadalas ABS-CBN
ReplyDeleteMinsan GMA7 & TV5
Kung di Lang sa marawi for sure headline yan sa 2
ReplyDeleteBeen using 2015 montero (pajero sports) AT 4x4 here in Oman.. and haven't found any abnormalities.
ReplyDeleteIt's the best car i have driven so far.
Baka meron bumili ng fleet ng Montero Sport na gustong bawiin ang ipinambayad kaya pinipilit magkaroon ng defect kahit wala naman talaga.
ReplyDeleteKung totoo talagang defective yung design, e dapat sobrang taas na ng statistic ng accidents involving Montero. Dapat hindi name pumapayag yung insurance kasi high risk. Dapat e nung mga unang buwan pa lang since introduction, nag manifest na. Wala talagang sense e. Wala talagang sumasanib name masamang spirito sa makina, kahit ipadasal pa nila sa satanista.
ReplyDeleteMay something fishy talaga dito... Hindi talaga maka move on. May politiko siguro, o media na ayaw lagyan ni Mitsubishi. Mga g*go talaga.
well, that's what you get when you give a newbie driver the keys to an A/T Montero Sport. It's not actually much of a defect but more of an inconvenience because the accelerator pedal & the brake pedal are pretty much aligned the same. The accelerator is not placed low and the brakes not placed high enough so that the "newbie" driver would recognize the difference between the brakes and accelerator. And in most cases the brake pedals were fitted with very fat pedals and the floor mat is what "holds" the accelerator pedal which causes the accelerator to be "stuck". And in that case, it's not much of a defect but rather poor driver/owner choice for buying those cheap, flimsy, at times class-A floor mats which don't go with the couture of the driver side's floor. And there were cases where one of them was just a passanger and a so called "EXPERT" of the M/T transmission and when he "proudly" changed seats with his NEWBIE driver to "properly" park the supposed "SUA-ish" Montero Sport, he pretty much f-ed up and crashed the thing. And in that case it's not just Driver Error but also negative Pinoy PRIDE. Since he was an "EXPERT" with the M/T transmission he thought that A/T was the same even though he never tried A/T and used that moment as a "training course". I'm an M/T guy myself but when given a chance to try an A/T I would either decline or just be wary in driving because the habits I got from driving M/T can be a hindrance when driving A/T because of the lack of a clutch pedal, the fact that I have to be more lighter with my right foot and the lack of the obvious stick shift.
DeleteIt's not supposed to be a defect, a defect is like when a car has a type of brake where when you press the brakes on Monday, the brakes would only start to engage on the Friday and then really hold on Sunday. For those who don't understand I'm talking about "defective" brakes where you have to really pump the brakes so that the damn thing would hold.
DeleteI bought a Montero sports in July 2009 and enjoyed every moment since then. I clocked 262,000 kilometers and my Monty runs like new every time I press the accelerator. My kids love it too and take turns bringing my grand children to malls or to what have you on Sundays. I never had any problems with Monty's AT and love to shift on manual mode when the teen age mood strikes me in TPLEX otherwise drives on full auto in EDSA. It really takes some time to adopt AT if we are used to driving manual trannys for many years but the best technique is drive your Monty with your two hands on the steering and your right foot being able to recognize the accelerator pedal from the brake pedal. Practice in short distances until we are accustomed to it. You will find your Monty to be an able and never tiring partner whenever, whatever. One last tip, never give your keys to newbies. Have a nice day.
ReplyDelete