Koji Sato, president of Toyota Motor, apologized at a press conference in January
This is the only challenge Toyota has faced in recent months.
This week, the Japanese automaker suspended deliveries of some cars due to irregularities in certification tests of diesel engines developed through Toyota Industries.
An investigation found that Toyota Industries workers had rigged the strength tests.
The affected engines are used in 10 models sold worldwide, the Hiace van and the Land Cruiser gaming application vehicle, Toyota said.
Toyota must also settle a misconduct case by small car specialist Daihatsu, after it admitted to falsifying proof of protection going back more than three decades.
Late last year, Daihatsu’s headquarters was raided through Japan’s Ministry of Transport and vehicle shipments were suspended. Since then, the government has revoked the certification of three Daihatsu models.
Asked this week about the scandals at Toyota subsidiaries, chairman Koji Sato said he had felt pressured to lower prices in a fiercely competitive industry.
“We recognize that not only the other people at the checkpoint, but also the management, had no idea about the certification,” he said.
Separately, Toyota announced on Tuesday that it had sold a record 11. 2 million cars in 2023, cementing its position as the world’s best-selling automaker for the fourth year in a row.
Its closest rival, Germany’s Volkswagen, sold 9. 2 million cars last year.
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