Daihatsu will no longer supply cars and parts until January. In the meantime, Toyota’s subsidiary is trying to limit the consequences of a study released last week that showed that almost all Daihatsus had not been properly tested for crash safety.
In April it was announced that safety tests on Daihatsu cars had been manipulated. At that time it seemed to involve a limited number of models. But last week it became clear that Daihatsu has been cheating on testing since 1989.
Parent company Toyota immediately reported that Daihatsu cars will no longer be sold for the time being. Daihatsu itself apologized “deeply” for “betraying the trust of our customers and shareholders.” Japanese authorities also raided Daihatsu’s headquarters in Osaka last week.
What should happen next for Daihatsu is still very unclear. Toyota said it is not aware of any accidents or incidents related to the problem. But all 423 companies to which Daihatsu supplies directly will be compensated, a Daihatsu spokesperson told reporters on Monday.
The investigation focused on the airbags. This revealed that the airbags used during crash tests were different from the airbags installed in cars sold to consumers. Therefore, the test results of the Daihatsu Cast and Toyota Pixis models may not meet legal requirements.
The move to suspend Daihatsu deliveries will not only be noticeable at factories within the Toyota group, but possibly also at industry peers such as Mazda and Subaru. Daihatsu normally supplies parts and production services to a range of other car manufacturers. According to the spokesperson, Daihatsu will cooperate with the authorities and try to support the parties involved.
– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl