Japanese investigators raid Toyota headquarters. The company’s chairman publicly apologizes. Headlines blare that Toyota and other automakers have been cheating on safety tests and other certifications overseas. Should you be concerned?
What Has Happened so Far?
On Monday, the Associated Press reported, “Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda apologized Monday for massive cheating on certification tests for seven vehicle models as the automaker suspended production of three of them.”
United Press International says, “The company said the certifications involved data in pedestrian and occupant protection tests.”
Toyota admitted to using timers rather than crash sensors to set off airbags, knowingly using the wrong crash angles for pedestrian safety tests, submitting data from the wrong side of the car in some pedestrian crash tests, and similar incidents “where testing methods differed from the standards defined by national authorities.”
The suspect data, CNN says, came from “six different tests conducted in 2014, 2015, and 2020.”
Some of the tests would have resulted in unrealistically promising safety performance. Toyota’s tests didn’t meet specifications in a handful because they were more stringent than government requirements. In one test, for instance, Toyota crashed a heavier sled than required into the rear of a car to test its rear-impact performance.
They Test Themselves?
Most automakers are now worldwide businesses selling cars in dozens of countries. Many of those countries have their own separate safety, noise, and emissions laws. Companies routinely submit their vehicles to testing on every continent to meet many different rules.
In some cases, government agencies and private entities perform tests. In the U.S., for instance, the federal government and an insurance industry lab conduct crash tests.
Related: Car Safety Ratings and How They Work
In others, the companies can conduct the tests themselves and submit the results to governments.
Last year, Toyota was the top-volume car company, selling vehicles under multiple brands worldwide. The company builds many of the cars itself. Smaller companies owned by Toyota build others. In the U.S., Toyota sells vehicles under its brand and the Lexus luxury marque. It also sold cars under the Scion name from 2003 to 2016.
In a statement, Toyota said it certifies about 50 models per year and has submitted results of about 7,000 tests over ten years to various government authorities.
Is It Just Toyota?
The scandal has also spread to Mazda, Honda, and several automakers that don’t sell cars in the U.S., including Suzuki and Yamaha.
CNN notes that Mazda has suspended shipments of two cars “after finding that workers had modified engine control software test results.”
Mazda also found that test engineers used timers instead of crash sensors to set off airbags in crash testing of two models, the Atenza and Axela.
Honda reported that “it had found wrongdoing in noise and output tests over a period of more than eight years to October 2017 on some two dozen models that are no longer being produced.”
Why Is This Happening Now?
In every case so far, the automakers have admitted wrongdoing, not been caught by outside inspectors. Why are they all owning up to test fraud at once?
The Japanese government is following up on an older scandal.
Last April, Toyota subsidiary Daihatsu admitted cheating on some crash tests. A whistleblower revealed that engineers had cut a door panel before testing so that it wouldn’t break in a way that stabbed a test dummy’s leg. Toyota apologized and promised to investigate.
The Japanese government then launched a deeper investigation of the company’s testing practices. That probe appears to have caused other automakers to examine their testing practices for irregularities and come clean before the Japanese government forces them to.
What Cars Are Involved?
Toyota and Lexus
Only one of the Toyota models involved has ever been sold in the U.S.
Toyota has halted production of three models – the Corolla Fielder, Axio, and Yaris Cross, over alleged test fraud. None of those are available here.
The company says it also discovered problems with testing of four discontinued models, the Crown, Isis, Sienta, and Lexus RX.
Toyota currently sells a Crown sedan in the U.S., but it says the test problems occurred with an older model the company did not sell in the States.
The RX, however, has long been America’s best-selling luxury vehicle. Toyota admits to some fraud in RX testing, but it’s not particularly alarming. The company says that in 2015, an RX engine did not achieve as much power as advertised in testing. Engineers reprogrammed an engine control unit to ensure the test vehicle met the posted horsepower figure. They did not similarly reprogram the RX models they later sold to Americans.
Mazda
Mazda says it found irregularities with testing of its RF roadster, Mazda2, Atenza, and Axela models, none of which have ever been sold stateside.
Honda
Honda hasn’t yet issued a detailed statement. The Japan Times reports, “In an evening news conference, Honda officials apologized for conducting tests improperly and not repeating tests for different vehicle models.”
Honda has admitted to fraudulent results of noise and engine power tests, all prior to 2017 and no longer produced.
What Does It Mean for American Drivers?
The U.S. government and a consortium of American insurance companies each perform their crash tests. None of the automakers say they did anything to change the results of American tests. If you own a Toyota, Honda, or Mazda vehicle bought in the U.S., it has passed independent crash testing the companies didn’t affect.
Moreover, almost none of the models involved in the Japanese scandal have ever been sold in the U.S.
The sole exception we know of so far is the Lexus RX. In a 2015 test, the engine of an RX failed to meet its advertised horsepower rating until engineers fiddled with computer code. If you own an RX of that vintage, it may have left the sales lot with less horsepower than advertised.
However, most engines lose horsepower over time. There are likely no 2015 RX SUVs on the road that still produce the advertised horsepower.
Toyota insists that the cars are safe. In a press conference Monday, Chairman Toyoda said, “There are no performance issues that contravene laws and regulations.”
What Happens Next?
Toyota acknowledges that its internal investigations are “still ongoing.” More revelations could still come.
CNN notes that investigators from the Japanese government “descended on the headquarters of Toyota on Tuesday” and expect to be there for several days.
Similar revelations from Mazda and Honda may mean investigators also probe their operations.
Even if they find nothing else, the news may shake perceptions of Japanese automakers worldwide.
Satoru Aoyama, a senior director at Fitch Ratings, told the New York Times, “There has long been a perception of the superior manufacturing and quality of Japanese products, and with these instances of fraud appearing again and again, perceptions may be beginning to change.”
