The Government’s Wrong Way Of Supporting Automakers

The instruction of retiring a car in order to import another one was a good idea and it could confront the emission. This law made the importers to have a cars worn out’s certification to import.

This law didn’t execute properly but it could decrease the emission. In recent years, local automakers had to obey this law and retire an automobile to produce a car with 8.5L/100Km fuel consumption. However, they just became an exception with different reasons.

It is good to know that imported vehicles with "euro 5” and "euro 6” standards have 7 percent share of the market, but local vehicles with "euro 4” or lower standards have the rest 93 percent of it. As the local automakers are not following the law of retiring a worn out car means the government is denying a big part of the market.

"The limitations for importing cars will prevent the local automakers from developing and it will increase the price as the result.” Mahdi dafar, the secretary of Iran’s vehicle importers association said to khodrocar reporter. "Laws have selective enforcement in the field of auto industry. In the case of adding standards, local automakers will be an exception with different reasons, but those laws are mandatory for imported cars instead.

"It is interesting to mention that an imported car with "euro 6” standard have to retire 8 worn out cars, but local vehicles with "euro 3” or lower standards are exempted.” He added.” Also, these kind of laws and limitations will reduce the investment security and will disappoint the local investor.”

"We are giving the local market to two major French automakers. In addition, these limitations and laws will make the active companies to leave Iran, so French automakers will be more powerful.” Dadfar continued. "The official of Iran’s auto industry and the ministry of industry, mine and trade said that French automakers are investing in Iran, so they can’t leave their partners, if sanctions come back again, but they are not investing yet and I am sure that they are the first companies who leave Iran if sanctions return.”

The government is supporting employment and domestic production by helping automakers, but the manufacturers have to consider to compete with major foreign companies and be more independence.

Khodrocar translator: Amin Zamani