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- Mazda: Miata And Mazda6 At Center Of Debacle
- Honda: Falsifying Noise Tests
- Suzuki: A Single Model With Falsified Stopping Distances
- Self-Reported Infractions Have Far-Reaching Consequences
Key Takeaways
- Four Japanese automakers have pled guilty to irregularities in vehicle testing and homologation procedures.
- Toyota, Honda, Mazda, and Suzuki provided the data after an investigation from the Japanese government over self-certification irregularities.
- Mazda manipulated data for crash tests and emissions on specific models, with MX-5 Miata RF halted as a result.
- 22 Honda models were impacted by irregular noise level testing.
- American models unaffected due to America-specific homologation and testing.
Four Japanese automakers - Toyota, Honda, Mazda, and Suzuki - have been implicated in fraudulent certification and homologation practices by the Japanese Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. This follows an investigation launched in the wake of Daihatsu and Hino (both Toyota subsidiaries) being found guilty of cheating on emissions tests. The Ministry alleges that irregularities were found in data supplied by these automakers for safety and emissions testing, data that was manipulated by these OEMs. In light of this, Mazda and Toyota have been ordered to halt the deliveries of certain vehicles ahead of an on-site investigation at the headquarters of each. Among the affected models is the Mazda MX-5 Miata RF.
Toyota's Involvement: Fraudulent Pedestrian & Occupant Safety Data
Toyota
Toyota is a Japanese automaker founded in 1937 that has developed a reputation for reliability across a multitude of segments, from sports cars and family sedans to pickup trucks and off-roaders. Famous models from the brand include the Hilux, Land Cruiser, Camry, Crown, and Corolla, the latter being the world's best-selling vehicle nameplate, with more than 50 million Corolla-badged vehicles being sold since it was first introduced. Toyota typically competes in the mainstream market, but is also famous for launching Lexus as a luxury sub-brand to take on Mercedes-Benz.
- Founded
- August 28, 1937
- Founder
- Kiichiro Toyoda
- Headquarters
- Aichi, Japan
- Owned By
- Publicly Traded
- Current CEO
- Koji Sato
In Japan, much like in the USA, mass production and sale of vehicles can only begin once they have been homologated, which includes passing a variety of crash safety tests. But in Japan, the manufacturers are responsible for conducting these and submitting the results. Toyota submitted falsified data for three models still in production and a further four discontinued models. In one instance, the automaker measured collision damage on only one side of the vehicle's hood instead of both as prescribed by Japanese legislation. In other tests, it apparently used stricter variants of the testing protocols not approved by the Japanese government. In all instances, Toyota said there are no safety concerns or reasons why customers should stop driving their vehicles.
"We mass-produced and sold the car without going through the correct certification process."
- Akio Toyoda, Toyota Chairman
Of the seven identified models involved in the investigation, three are still sold in Japan and a stop-sale has been ordered on these models. None of these models is sold in the USA, but one of the out-of-production models was the Lexus RX. However, as Japanese and US regulations differ, we believe there was no impact on the RX sold stateside.
Affected Toyota Models | |
|---|---|
Still In Production | Out Of Production |
Corolla Fielder | Crown |
Corolla Axio | Isis |
Yaris Cross | Sienta |
Lexus RX | |
Briefing the press this morning, Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda was frank in his assessment that cars were sold without going through the proper verification processes but admitted that Toyota had complied with providing all necessary data to the Ministry. Shinji Miyamoto, the Chief Officer of Toyota's Customer First Promotion Group, explained that testing should've been conducted on models that were equipped with specific timer-ignited airbags but that Toyota used development data instead of retested data to get the cars to market.
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Mazda: Miata And Mazda6 At Center Of Debacle
Mazda
Mazda is a Japanese automaker founded in 1920 as the Toyo Cork Kogyo Co and only started producing vehicles in 1931 when it made the Mazda-Go auto rickshaw. The Japanese automaker's first official car arrived in May 1960 when the Mazda R360 launched, starting Mazda as we know it today, although the Mazda name was only adopted in 1984. Mazda has a rich history in motorsport, including the honor of being the only manufacturer to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans with a car not powered by a reciprocating engine.
- Founded
- January 30, 1920 (as Toyo Cork Kogyo Co)
- Founder
- Jujiro Matsuda
- Headquarters
- Hiroshima, Japan
- Owned By
- Publicly Traded
- Current CEO
- Masahiro Moro
Mazda identified two areas in which it fell foul of Japanese regulations. The first was the irregular processing of crash test data in which an external device triggered a timed activation of the airbag instead of the actual impact during crash testing. Three models were affected by this test procedure, all of which are no longer in production. However, Mazda says the models have since been re-evaluated and are all safe for use.
The second test Mazda flouted regulations on related to emissions, in which Mazda engineers tested two models with software that did not match that of the cars delivered to customers, with ignition timing modified to pass the tests. Both models have had production and export paused until such time as they are fully investigated and re-examined.
Affected Mazda Models | |
|---|---|
Models Subject To Irregular Crash Testing | Models With Incorrect Emissions Software |
Mazda6/Atenza | MX-5 Miata RF |
Axela | Mazda2 |
"We deeply regret any inconvenience this incident may cause to our customers, business partners, dealers, and all other stakeholders associated with Mazda. We consider this case as an important matter and are committed to preventing it from happening again in the future under management responsibility."
- Mazda statement
It seems the American spec MX-5 RF is not impacted by this, as a Mazda USA representative issued CarBuzz the following statement:
Mazda North America was informed of the irregular regulatory test results found during the Japan Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism investigation. We can confirm that the actions taken that resulted in the irregularities were due to incorrect interpretations of the testing procedures, and there was no deliberate intent to falsify test results. It is also our understanding that these activities were solely related to vehicles produced and sold in the Japanese market. Vehicles produced in Japan for the North American market are not affected as they have different regulatory testing requirements, which are all in compliance. Globally, Mazda prides itself on its integrity, and is committed to reviewing and re-establishing our testing governance to ensure all vehicles are in compliance with all certification regulations.
Honda: Falsifying Noise Tests
Honda
Japanese automaker Honda rose from the ashes of WWII and set about its business as a manufacturer of motorcycles initially, only launching its first car, the T360 kei truck, in 1963. Founder Soichiro Honda targeted the American market as the most important nut to crack, leading to generations of iconic nameplates like the Civic and Accord being among America's best-selling passenger cars. Today, Hondas are renowned for their safety, practicality, and reliability, with a sprinkling of performance from models like the Civic Type R.
- Founded
- 24 September 1948
- Founder
- Soichiro Honda
- Headquarters
- Hamamatsu, Japan
- Owned By
- Publicly Traded
- Current CEO
- Toshihiro Mibe
Honda discovered two irregularities, neither of which seems severe, but a total of 22 vehicles were affected. While several of these nameplates were sold in America, American models are certified under different regulations and are thus not impacted by the issues faced in the Japanese market. All the models are now out of production. In one instance, irregular outputs of either the electric motors or combustion engine of a vehicle was considered a standard deviation (eight models affected), and Honda published incorrect ratings for the electric motor output. The larger irregularity impacted 22 vehicles, in which Honda used incorrect weight figures while testing noise levels, which may have impacted whether a car passed or failed. Honda's irregularities spanned 2009-2017.
Affected Honda Models | |
|---|---|
Models Subject To Incorrect Output Ratings | Models Subject To Incorrect Sound Level Testing |
Fit | Inspire |
Shuttle | Fit |
Freed | CR-Z |
Vezel | ACTY |
Jade | Vamos/Vamos Hobio |
Grace | Step Wagon/Step Wagon Spada |
Odyssey | Legend |
Acura NSX | Accord/Accord Tourer/Accord Hybrid |
Fit Shuttle | |
Insight Exclusive | |
CR-V | |
Freed | |
N-Box | |
N-One | |
Odyssey | |
N-WGN | |
Vezel | |
Grace | |
S660 | |
Shuttle | |
Acura NSX | |
Jade | |
Suzuki: A Single Model With Falsified Stopping Distances
Suzuki's errors were on a far smaller scale, limited to the Suzuki Alto LCV produced from 2014 to 2017. Stopping distances measured in actual testing were longer than those Suzuki submitted, resulting from less pressure on the brake pedal than required when testing. Instead of re-running the test, Suzuki adjusted the numbers.
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Self-Reported Infractions Have Far-Reaching Consequences
Important to note is that all the models listed here were reported by the automakers themselves after the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism requested a deep-dive into homologation testing by all automakers. On the one hand, it can be seen as noble that automakers would own up to cheating before any third party goes digging. On the other, it appears to be an industry-wide problem that automakers have not followed regulations.
From here, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism will conduct on-site investigations at all involved automakers where authorities will reassess whether the affected models are/were safe for sale. For models currently on sale, production and distribution have been halted, and where found unsafe, consumers will be notified.
While automaker compliance with the investigation will earn them some leeway, and as such are unlikely to face the same consequences as Volkswagen executives did over Dieselgate, it's expected that all of them will face heavy fines from the Japanese government.
