This article presents the full text of Chairman Akio Toyoda's press conference message and the detailed explanation by Customer First Promotion Group Chief Officer Shinji Miyamoto.
On June 3, Toyota Motor Corporation announced six cases involving seven models produced since 2014 (including discontinued models), where testing methods differed from the standards defined by national authorities.
*In all cases, internal verification confirmed that performance complied with regulatory requirements, meaning customers can continue to use the vehicles.
The cases came to light when Toyota investigated its model certification* applications, according to instructions received from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) on January 26 (the investigation is still ongoing).
*Model certification system: A system in which models that have been certified by conforming to standards and quality controls (consistency) as a result of various tests on actual vehicles are not required to have the vehicle presented at the time of new examinations. Mainly used when mass-producing passenger cars of the same model.
Based on the investigation’s findings, Toyota has decided to temporarily halt shipments and sales of three models currently produced in Japan (Corolla Fielder, Corolla Axio, and Yaris Cross), effective June 3. The company is working under MLIT’s guidance to swiftly remedy the situation.
Below, we share the full text of Chairman Akio Toyoda’s speech and Customer First Promotion Group Chief Officer Shinji Miyamoto's explanation of individual cases.
Chairman Toyoda – “Vehicles were mass-produced and sold without going through the correct certification processes”
Chairman Toyoda
On January 26 this year, we received instructions from Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism to conduct an investigation on type designation applications, which we followed.
The investigation is still ongoing, but it identified that seven models, including those that have already ended production since 2014, were tested using methods that differ from the standards defined by the national authorities, and we reported this to the Ministry on May 31.
This matter involves two companies, Toyota Motor Corporation and Toyota Motor East Japan.
As the person responsible for the Toyota Group, I would like to extend my sincere apologies to our customers, car enthusiasts, and all stakeholders for this issue, following Hino, Daihatsu, and Toyota Industries Corporation. I am truly sorry.
All the cases are related to certification.
The certification system in Japan verifies whether a product meets the established standards, mainly in the fields of safety and environment, using measurement methods in accordance with rules.
Vehicles can only be manufactured and sold after meeting certification test standards. The point of this issue is that the vehicles were mass-produced and sold without going through the correct certification processes.
Miyamoto from the Customer First Promotion Group will now explain the details.