In their latest idea, Subaru took the initiative to reduce the excess airbag materials during production by making it a reusable shopping bag. By doing this, Subaru is impacting the environment in a positive manner and minimising manufacturing waste.
Subaru has joined forces with a Japanese supplier, Toyoda Gosei, to deal with manufacturing waste and reuse it so as to reduce the discarding of such items.
Established in 1949, Toyoda Gosei is part of the Toyota Group. They produce parts for a variety of car brands such as weatherstripping, fuel tank components, LEDs, dashboards, consoles, and obviously, airbags.
Since Toyota owns 20% of Subaru, it makes sense why Subaru has tied up with them to do this. The BRZ, 86, Solterra and bZ4X are cars that Toyota has collaborated with Subaru on.
The airbags produced are made out of flame-resistant nylon that is also unaffected by toxic gases. These bags, being in the interior of cars for decades on end, are designed to last long and to hold their strength.
Regarding the material, the bags can be folded and stored in small squares when it’s not being used. To hold the folded bags in place, a small elastic band is given. The bag is priced at ¥2,500 in Japan, which roughly translates to Rs. 1700. Right now, the bag is only available in Japan.
The airbag bags manufactured are white in colour, but to signify Subaru, it comes with stripes on the sides of the bag, that are either blue or pinkish-red. These colours are personal to Subaru as blue is their trademark colour and the pinkish-red is the colour of their STI Performance Brand.
Subaru and Toyoda Gosei’s idea of manufacturing these bags is a great step forward in reducing environmental waste. With such a reputed company taking such a major step, we can only hope to see other brands following in their footsteps.
