Heraldo de Madrid - Japan begins on-site inspection to Toyota unit Daihatsu

NYSE - LSE

CMSC	-0.09%	21.29	$
BCC	-0.03%	78.75	$
CMSD	0%	21.18	$
JRI	-0.4%	12.35	$
RELX	0.66%	36.54	$
VOD	1%	16.04	$
GSK	1.08%	50.82	$
RBGPF	0.11%	70.77	$
BCE	0.26%	23.46	$
BP	-0.45%	42.15	$
AZN	-1.12%	162.7	$
RIO	-1.43%	103.3	$
BTI	-0.27%	56.13	$
NGG	-0.1%	79.35	$
RYCEF	-1.22%	20.5	$

Japan begins on-site inspection to Toyota unit Daihatsu

ECONOMY 21.12.2023

Japan begins on-site inspection to Toyota unit Daihatsu / Photo: STR - JIJI Press/AFP

Japanese officials on Thursday started an on-site inspection at the headquarters of Toyota subsidiary Daihatsu, the transport ministry said, after an investigation found it had rigged safety tests and was forced to suspend all shipments of its vehicles.

Text size:

The independent probe found the malpractice dated back to 1989 and led Toyota to express its "sincere apologies" and pledge to carry out "a fundamental reform".

The panel was set up earlier this year to probe a safety scandal that emerged in April.

The investigation "found new irregularities in 174 items within 25 test categories" in addition to wrongdoing previously detected in April and May involving door parts and side-collision tests, Toyota said after the report was released.

On Wednesday, Daihatsu submitted a report to the transport ministry -- having already provided one in May -- saying new irregularities had been detected in an internal probe, and announced the suspensions.

"We began on-site inspection to find out if the report submitted by Daihatsu (on Wednesday) is true and if there is any other wrongdoing," transport ministry official Nobuhito Kiuchi told AFP.

"Before issuing administrative orders (as punishment), we have to find out facts around the issue," he said, noting that the on-site inspection will continue until at least early next year.

Footage from Japanese broadcasters showed more than a dozen officials entering Daihatsu's Ikeda headquarters in Osaka prefecture.

Founded in 1907 to manufacture internal combustion engines, Daihatsu launched its first three-wheeled vehicle in 1931, before being taken over by Toyota in 1967.

News of the suspension, which also included several models made under the Toyota name, sent shares in the auto titan tumbling almost four percent in Tokyo on Thursday.

The losses were also spurred by news that the world's biggest carmaker was recalling around a million Toyota and Lexus vehicles in the United States, citing concerns about their airbag systems.

F.Cabrera--HdM

Featured

Apple Raises TV Streaming Price to $14.99 a Month

Apple increased the monthly and annual price of its TV streaming service and lifted the cost of the individual Apple One bundle.

Pennsylvania Coal-Waste Power Subsidies Rise as Solar Remains a Smaller Source

Pennsylvania continues to direct substantial public support to power plants that burn waste coal, a practice credited with removing polluting mine piles but criticized for high subsidies, greenhouse-gas emissions and a state energy mix in which waste coal still generates more electricity than solar.

Nepal warns of climate threat after deadly floods

Nepal's foreign minister warned on Saturday of the growing threat from climate change in the Himalayas, as China offered water and satellite data after devastating floods on their shared border killed hundreds.

Rescuers claw through mud as missing toll from Nepal, China flood nears 3,000

Rescuers in Nepal and China were battling on Saturday to locate thousands of people missing days after a deadly, tsunami-like wall of water and debris swept through the Himalayan region, engulfing entire villages.