On Tuesday, Mitsubishi said that it has been using these incorrect fuel economy testing methods for 25 years to purposefully boost fuel economy ratings.
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Mitsubishi said last week that the fuel efficiency of 625,000 of its vehicles had been exaggerated by up to 10 percent. The firm stated last week it had not been complying with Japanese screening standards since the year of 2002.
Mitsubishi president Tetsuro Aikawa told reporters this week an internal probe by the company continues, and that he is unsure why employees resorted to tampering with data. “I can not say sorry however assist”.
The misconduct has revived memories of a scandal more than 15 years ago in which Mitsubishi admitted to systematically covering up customer complaints for more than 20 years, bringing the company close to collapse.
The transport ministry announced earlier in the day that it had set up a task force to examine how other automakers submit fuel economy data.
The problem was discovered when Nissan pointed out inconsistencies in the ways that vehicles had been tested.
Mitsubishi released two diagrams explaining how road tests were manipulated. Affected models also include 157,000 eK-brand wagons and eK Space cars made by Mitsubishi. Mitsubishi Motors doesn’t know how many models have been tested improperly since 1991, Nakao said. The committee will investigate for three months, and Mitsubishi says it will disclose the verdict “in a timely manner”. The company said that these falsified tests affected at least 620,000 vehicles sold in Japan since 2013. Why that happened is unclear, according to officials.
A Mitsubishi Motors spokesman declined to comment.
Mileage fraud is a violation of Japan’s fuel efficiency law for autos because buyers are eligible for tax breaks if a vehicle model delivers good mileage.
A spokesman for Mitsubishi said: “We are not aware of any other vehicles affected or any in the United Kingdom but can not comment further until the investigation delivers its results”.
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Asked how the company plans to stay afloat, Mr Aikawa replied: “Until we get an idea of when this investigation will end, I can’t answer your question”.
