TEHRAN, Sept. 4-Iran's Standard and Industrial Research Institute (ISIRI) is opposed to the import of second-hand vehicles and will not confirm their compliance with national standards, a senior ISIRI official said here on Saturday.
ISIRI director general for import and export affairs, Asadollah Sayyad, told ISNA that the institute will not be able to test all the used cars imported by travelers bringing in their personal belongings.
He stressed that car importers must make sure that their vehicles meet national standards before importing them.
"Cars complying with 51 percent of standards set by the ISIRI will be authorized for import," he said, stressing that BMW and Toyota have so far managed to obtain car import licenses.
He said the institute is currently examining the import of five new BMW models.
Following remarks by a senior Commerce Ministry official that Iranian expatriates can bring in their belongings including their used cars, the first deputy head of the giant carmaker Iran Khodro said the initiative will 'suppress the national automotive industry'.
Mojtaba Shivapour told ISNA last week that the import of used cars will seriously harm the automotive industry.
"Given the great number of Iranian nationals living abroad, it is expected that the Commerce Ministry's decision would lead to the import of more than 400,000 used cars," he said, adding that the import of used cars will make the country dependent on foreign-made auto parts for the next 30 years.
He stressed that the import of used cars will put the future of the national auto part industry at stake, saying manyindustrial units will be shut down as a result.
Shivapour further noted that the initiative will also cause damage to the employment sector and discourage foreign investments in the automotive sector. "The import of used cars will turn Iran into a large car scrap yard," he said.
© Iran Daily 2004
