Photo/Illutration Toyota Motor Corp. Chairman Akio Toyoda answers questions at a news conference in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward on June 3. (Ken Komiya)

Toyota Motor Corp. and four other leading Japanese automotive companies are now part of an ongoing scandal over vehicle type certification tests.

The widespread deviation from law within the nation's vehicle industry is dire enough to damage the reputation of the entire Japanese manufacturing industry.

The five companies concerned--namely, Toyota, Honda Motor Co., Mazda Motor Corp., Suzuki Motor Corp. and Yamaha Motor Co.--must humbly acknowledge their wrongdoing and swiftly start investigating the causes to prevent any future recurrence.

In December 2021, transport ministry officials searched the Daihatsu Motor Co. headquarters following an admission of widespread falsification of vehicle safety tests.

This was followed by a transport ministry directive for Toyota and the four other companies to conduct in-house investigations, which revealed irregularities with respect to 38 vehicle types. Of the latter, shipments have been suspended for six models.

All five companies deny safety-related violations. However, vehicle type certification tests do away with vehicle-by-vehicle tests on the presumption of the automakers' integrity, thereby rendering mass production of vehicles possible.

In that sense, their misconduct went right to the core of the issue of professional integrity. There is no way the companies can escape a thorough scrutiny involving third-party examiners, not to mention the need to clarify managerial responsibilities.

Toyota was submitting test data that had been falsified by tampering with engine-control computers, as well as using test results of one of the right and left sides as those of both sides in pedestrian safety tests.

The Toyota group was already being affected by vehicle type certification test violations committed by Daihatsu and Hino Motors Ltd. when Chairman Akio Toyoda told a news conference in late January that there was no further misconduct including car bodies "as far as I know."

It has been two years since the scandal involving Hino came to light. So, why was it that no problems were found until Toyota received the transport ministry directive to conduct an in-house investigation?

The chairman did not give a full explanation at his news conference on June 3. The board's responsibility is grave if the top Toyota executives made light of the problem because it was caused by a subsidiary. 

Actually, the misconduct discovered at Toyota is quite similar to what had occurred at Daihatsu.

While apologizing for his company's wrongdoing, Toyoda noted he felt like saying, "Et tu, Brute? (You too, Brutus?)"

The "this is none of my business" type of remark came across as quite inappropriate for a corporate leader whose company remained hugely profitable while it continued betraying the trust of consumers.

At the news conference, a Toyota executive in charge explained that Toyota had been applying much more stringent conditions than necessary to some of the vehicle type confirmation tests that turned out to have been rigged.

Stressing "pride" in the company's attitude toward product development, the executive rationalized, "(because we focused so sharply on product development) we were perhaps a bit less focused on the nature of the tests."

But Toyota was in no position to make excuses, as the company was resorting to unlawful computer manipulation to cover up shortfalls in engine output test results.

Toyoda said he thinks "there is a gap" between the reality and the current vehicle type certification system, raising questions about the testing procedures.

We certainly believe in discussing changes that are needed, but that is no reason for not following the current rules.

The transport ministry must closely examine the wrongdoing and strictly punish the offenders. The ministry also needs to re-examine how to supervise carmakers that allowed many irregularities to go unchecked.

--The Asahi Shimbun, June 5

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