September 06, 2019
Over the past 11 years, more than one-third of all those who lost their lives in road accidents in Iran died in SAIPA’s cheapest model, the Pride.
Traffic Police Chief General Kamal Hadianfar told the Iranian Students News Agency (ISNA), “A review of traffic accidents’ data from the past 11 years shows that 34 percent of the victims were passengers and or drivers of the Pride.” Unfortunately, he didn’t say what percentage of cars on the road are Prides.
Hadianfar noted that the police force, Industries Ministry and SAIPA managers have held talks over phasing out production of the Pride, which has been long been labeled as unsafe, a fuel guzzler and a polluter.
“At the start of the next year, the Traffic Police will not issue license plates for the Pride,” he said.
This is not the first time officials have pledged to phase out the substandard car, the cheapest among Iranian-made vehicles.
SAIPA has sold over 7 million Prides since production started in 1993 in Iran. The Pride is based on a Kia Motors hatchback from the 1980s. The South Korean firm ended production of the car in 2000.
