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INDUSTRY OBSERVATION

To Yield or Not?

If you really want to witness the true standard of driving in South Africa, park yourself near a traffic circle and enjoy the automotive equivalent of 'The Nightmare on Elm Street'. Evidently, a firm grasp of the concept of 'yield' doesn't generally seem to exist in SA.

It is my firm belief that a traffic circle is designed such that vehicles rotate in single file at any one time. I was at a traffic circle recently when one poor driver entered the circle to find that somebody with a little less patience was circling adjacent to his vehicle! If the law-abiding driver hadn't yielded, there would have been a collision, for sure.
Whether it is through ignorance or contempt, motorists are failing to use traffic circles properly. Law enforcers need to recognise this gaping hole in our 'traffic calming' policy and make an example of a few offenders, forthwith!

Righteous pirates
The debate about the quality of 'alternate' parts (aka grey imports) still rages. It is common knowledge that I am personally very outspoken about the issue. I would like to firmly state and re-emphasise that there should never be any compromise on safety and quality. In other words when it comes to driveline components and items such as brake linings, windscreens etc. the highest quality and thereby safety compliance must prevail.
What I will say though, is that there is currently a manufacturer of American vehicles sold locally that chooses to retail a mirror arm (yes mirror arm, not the mirror or brackets), for R6341.85 excluding VAT, no discount! By way of a clue, part number is FFA2253457000.

To this kind of extortion, I have one request. Can either the people who make this alternate part, if it exists, contact me or would all those very competent alternate part retailers brief their friends in China to come up with a solution- quickly!

There is a huge difference between acceptable pricing of components with safety-critical value and non-safety critical, low stress components. To overprice a component with the singular function of supporting a mirror some distance from the cab is interesting in itself. Not hard to smell a rat here. Mirrors are frequently damaged, especially on commercial vehicles where the mirror arms suffer damage too.

Cash cow
So, my thinking is this - mirrors are required by law and mirrors need arms. While the manufacturer may not overprice the mirror, they build an insane margin into the 'peripheral component', the mirror arm. Bingo! A quiet little 'cash-cow' is born.

We know that retailers often market 'loss leader' products to entice customers; do we call this the 'profit leader'? ?

There is a huge difference
between acceptable pricing of 
components with safety critical 
value and non-safety critical low
stress components