Japenese car brands Toyota, Mazda, and Yamaha have temporarily halted shipments of six models due to irregularities in safety tests.
On Monday, Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism announced that four automakers and a motorcycle manufacturer admitted to these irregularities. Honda and Suzuki also reported misconduct, adding to the list of affected companies.
The ministry responded to prior issues at Daihatsu Motor and Toyota Industries by instructing 85 industry companies to investigate their model certification applications for irregularities.
The ministry labeled these irregularities as actions that erode user trust and destabilize the national automotive certification system.
The ministry plans to inspect Toyota on Tuesday, followed by inspections of the other four companies.
According to the ministry, Toyota, Mazda, and Yamaha confirmed cheating in the production of currently manufactured vehicles.
Consequently, the ministry mandated the suspension of shipments for specific models until they meet quality standards. Toyota announced the suspension of domestic shipments and sales of the Corolla Fielder, Corolla Axio, and Yaris Cross on Monday.
The company cited “inadequate data in pedestrian and occupant protection tests” for these models’ certification applications. Additionally, Toyota identified errors in crash tests and other test methods for four discontinued models: the Crown, Isis, Sienta, and RX.
Despite the irregularities, Toyota assured that the affected vehicles do not violate performance laws and regulations. Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda apologized to customers, car enthusiasts, and stakeholders at a news conference on Monday. He explained that Toyota used data collected under stricter conditions than required, leading to mismatches in certification applications. Toyota aims to submit a comprehensive report to the ministry by the end of the month.
The disclosure of irregularities followed similar admissions from Hino Motors, Daihatsu Motor, and Toyota Industries.
Chairman Toyoda acknowledged the need for improvement within Toyota, highlighting the company’s commitment to enhancing safety test processes.
In 2023, Daihatsu admitted to widespread cheating in product testing, resulting in a temporary shutdown of all its factories in Japan. Toyota Industries and Hino reported engine certification misconduct in January and March 2022, respectively.
Mazda reported irregularities in five models, including two still in production. Yamaha identified irregularities in three models, one of which remains in production. Honda and Suzuki reported issues in 22 and one models, respectively, none of which are currently in production.
Mazda discovered irregular processing in crash tests for three discontinued models, confirming through internal verification and re-tests that these models meet legal occupant protection standards in frontal collisions. Honda, Yamaha, and Suzuki also assured customers that their vehicles do not have performance issues.