Find out where relevant companies and associations stand on the issue of kill cord safety
Suzuki Marine
Do you think the current design of the kill cord could be improved upon and why?
The current design is robust, reliable, simple and visible. It is a tried and tested system and if checked, maintained and used correctly, provides a fail-safe system. There may well be better designs that haven’t been considered yet and advancements in outboard technology are certainly getting us closer to the possibility of having more workable alternatives.
Which of the six readers’ suggestions do you favour?
Your readers have come up with some excellent ideas and have rightly highlighted that they all have positives and negatives. We are strong believers in raising awareness of boat safety and training and would support an RYA/RNLI campaign around this.
Would you consider using one of these systems on your engines/boats?
The current kill cord system fitted to all Suzuki outboard motors provides a fail-safe system if checked, maintained and used correctly. Suzuki’s Marine R&D Centre in Japan is continuously looking into new ideas and technological developments in all areas of outboard design including safety and security.
Do you think customers would be prepared to pay more for a safer, more user-friendly solution?
It would be better to pose this question to your readership. However, safety could well be an important factor in a lot of our customers’ purchasing decisions and should a new system ever be adopted we would endeavour to keep any cost increases to a minimum.
How would you like to see things develop from here?
We would like to support a continued effort from the industry to increase training and raise awareness of boat safety alongside continued research into the alternative solutions. We will continue to do our bit by promoting safe boating practices.
