Toyota chief apologizes for cheating on testing at group company _ again

[Tragic Bronson]

Toyota chief apologizes for cheating on testing at group company — again

Toyota Chief Koji Sato has apologized to customers, suppliers and dealers for flawed testing at a group company, which follows similar problems in recent years.

apnews.com

TOKYO (AP) — Toyota chief Koji Sato apologized Monday to customers, suppliers and dealers for flawed testing at a group company, following a series of similar problems in recent years.

The apology came a day before Chairman Akio Toyoda is to announce a “global vision” for the Toyota Motor Corp. group.

The latest woes at Japan’s top automaker involve testing required for Japanese government approval at Toyota Industries Corp., which makes diesel engines.

False results were found for certification testing and other sampling inspections for engines which claimed the products met standards when they actually didn’t, according to Toyota.

“We will do our utmost to resume production as soon as possible,” Sato said at a hastily called news conference late Monday at Toyota’s Tokyo office.

“Management was not able to fully comprehend and keep track of the details of what was happening on the ground,” he said.

Skirting of required tests surfaced last year at Daihatsu Motor Corp., which makes small cars and is 100% owned by Toyota. That cheating, which came to light because of a whistleblower, spanned decades.

In 2022, Hino Motors, a truck maker that’s also part of the Toyota group, said it had systematically falsified emissions data dating back as far as 2003.

No major accidents have been reported in connection with any of the cheating, but the news has raised serious questions about oversight at the companies, as well as at Toyota.

Production has stopped for many Toyota group models until proper testing can be carried out, although people who already own the models can continue to drive them safely, according to the companies.

When asked about the root causes of the repeated scandals, Sato said better communication was needed among the companies, as well as a more thorough education about the importance of complying with rules.

He also acknowledged that workers were feeling pressure to cut corners in an intensely competitive industry. Toyota management needs to better understand what is happening on the ground as auto industry technology rapidly evolves, Sato said.

“We recognize that not only people at the testing site but also management did not have proper understanding of certification,” he said.

The latest problem affects 7,000 vehicles a month in Japan and 36,000 vehicles on a global level sold in Japan, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia, but not in North America. They include the Land Cruiser and Hilux sport utility vehicles, according to Toyota.

 

[Levi]

Call me a fanboy, I don’t care. I also did not care about VAG Dieselgate. Any international business does dirty stuff. Nothing new and it won’t change until governments stop the dirty stuff themselves in first place.

 

[ssun30]

So the inspections and certifications were falsified but the affected engines would actually pass real inspections?

 

[Falcon]

The investigation found that irregularities occurred during the horsepower output testing for the certification of three diesel engine models for automobiles that Toyota had commissioned to TICO. During certification testing, the horsepower output performance of engines was measured using ECUs with software that differed from that used for mass production so that results could measure to make values appear smoother with less variation. Ten vehicle models are using the affected engines globally, including six in Japan.

We have re-verified the mass-produced products manufactured at the plant and confirmed that the affected engines and vehicles meet engine performance output standards. Therefore, there is no need to stop using the affected engines or vehicles. However, we deeply apologize to our customers who have been supporting affected vehicles and waiting for a long time, and also to all other stakeholders for the significant inconvenience and concern that this has caused.

For added context.

EDIT: The investigation was issued internally and reported the irregularities they found. The ECU shipped with different software but it still passes all of Toyota's testing and doesn't affect performance, emissions, or safety so the vehicles are unaffected by it. They were very honest about it and even apologized for it.

 

[ssun30]

Pretty sure another round of purge is incoming.

 

[carguy420]

“Meet engine performance output standards”

Whatever the F those standards are lol.

Seriously, wtf is going on with Toyota's subsidiaries? Are they all basically one of those stereotypical Japanese companies with management that always gives out unreasonable goals and demands, and their R&D department being heavily pressured to reach those targets even if it meant they have to cheat.

What I'm most curious about now after all these cases is, is it all the fault of Toyota's subsidiaries or is Toyota themselves partly to blame for as well?

I know some of you here like to brush off and ignore anything negative that Toyota and their subsidiaries did, and pretend they can never do wrong.

 

[qtb007]

When evaluating engines in a test bench, there is a reprogrammable dummy ECU that tells the engine what to do in the bench. Sometimes it will have a durability test software for extreme temp and load testing conditions, sometimes it will have a specific program to aid in break-in, etc. These ECU programs have specific parameters adjusted to allow the engine to keep running through the testing. Then there is software for regulation performance testing. That software should more or less be the exact engine control program used in the vehicle. Performance results will vary based on the software selected.
Sounds to me that someone was using the wrong software when doing the mass production performance test confirmation. At a manufacturing facility, the manufacturing company is responsible for confirming that what they are building in mass production meets the rated performance and that has to be reported out to various regulatory bodies. This periodic performance testing confirms that the natural variance in the parts used to assemble the engines all come together to build engines that can make the rated power, fuel consumption, etc.

If the wrong software is selected for that performance testing, the test results are invalid and are thus, technically, falsified. The fact that the engines, when running the correct software, meet the performance requirements is why I think this was more of accidentally using the wrong software versus VW's issue where they wrote code that detected the EPA running cycle and altered fuel maps based on that. This was more likely due to ignorance rather than maleficence based on the fact that the engines also meet the standards when using the correct software.

17 years in manufacturing has taught me that the wrong programs will be selected at some point if there isn't a very strong process in place for software control, confirmation, and auditing. I've seen it time and time again where something outflows because an old program was loaded into confirmation equipment or some piece of hardware failed and wasn't put together correctly when repaired. Buttoning up that process and auditing that the robust process is being used is what Toyota is responsible for from a company perspective.

 

[Ian Schmidt]

I know some of you here like to brush off and ignore anything negative that Toyota and their subsidiaries did, and pretend they can never do wrong.

I don't pretend that, but this is also completely different from what (for example) VAG did. In this case, the engine passes certification with the stock ECU as shipped to customers, but the certification is technically invalid because they used a development ECU. No rules or regulations were avoided, so it's not even cheating, just carelessness.

 

[F1 Silver Arrows]

I don't pretend that, but this is also completely different from what (for example) VAG did. In this case, the engine passes certification with the stock ECU as shipped to customers, but the certification is technically invalid because they used a development ECU. No rules or regulations were avoided, so it's not even cheating, just carelessness.

But even then, their carelessness didn't negatively affect anybody. 🤣🤣

 

[ssun30]

Some very harsh words from Akio Toyoda. Heads will roll.

However, as the automobile industry developed and Toyota Group companies started to experience success, they lost sight of the values and priorities that should have been upheld. I am ashamed to admit that this is the case.

The first company to face such a situation was Toyota Motor Corporation itself. We pursued expansion of scale, prioritizing volume and profitability over the making of ever-better cars, and ultimately fell into the red for the first time in company history during the 2008 financial crisis. As a result, we caused inconvenience to many people who supported the automobile industry. Furthermore, due to global recalls, we lost the trust of our customers which is of the utmost importance to us.

I consider Toyota to have collapsed at that point.

With every ounce of myself and the help of our partners, we have finally rebuilt the company to the point where it can be called a carmaker again.

But it was not only Toyota that lost sight of its founding principles. I believe the same thing that happened to Toyota back then is currently happening to other Group companies. During the recalls in 2009, as the person responsible for Toyota, I made the decision to take full responsibility for our past, present, and future. 14 years have passed since then, and I still believe that I am responsible for the entire Toyota Group. What I must do right now is show the direction that the Group should proceed and create a place for the next generation to return to if they falter.

In other words, what I must do is set forth a vision for the Group.

This is a warning to the executives of other Toyota group companies. During his presidency he reduced the number of executives within Toyota Motor Corp from 79 to 14 and senior advisors from 67 to 0.

If we’re not careful, however, this genba-driven management style may swiftly revert to one where the central headquarters holds sway. I constantly fear that, after spending so much time and effort transforming Toyota, the company may relapse into its bureaucratic past. By the time everyone senses this, it will be too late.

I will never let Toyota return to its past bureaucratic ways. That is why I must continue to fight.

 

[Falcon]

TATAKAE

 

[F1 Silver Arrows]

This is a warning to the executives of other Toyota group companies. During his presidency he reduced the number of executives within Toyota Motor Corp from 79 to 14 and senior advisors from 67 to 0.
"If we’re not careful, however, this genba-driven management style may swiftly revert to one where the central headquarters holds sway. I constantly fear that, after spending so much time and effort transforming Toyota, the company may relapse into its bureaucratic past. By the time everyone senses this, it will be too late.

I will never let Toyota return to its past bureaucratic ways. That is why I must continue to fight."

What a f*cking legend.

 

[carguy420]

Exactly the kind of response I expected from here 🙄


Anyways, I really hope Mr Toyoda and Mr Sato are able to keep Toyota's subsidiaries in line, because clearly these subsidiaries are still managed by really toxic and out of touch people that probably should've been fired long ago.

 

[qtb007]

Exactly the kind of response I expected from here 🙄


Anyways, I really hope Mr Toyoda and Mr Sato are able to keep Toyota's subsidiaries in line, because clearly these subsidiaries are still managed by really toxic and out of touch people that probably should've been fired long ago.

I'm happy to take feedback of why my take on what happened isn't correct.

 

[Tragic Bronson]

Toyota replaces Daihatsu chief after safety scandal

Masahiro Inoue, the CEO of Toyota Latin America, will replace Soichiro Okudaira effective March 1.

www.japantimes.co.jp

Toyota Motor has chosen Masahiro Inoue to restore leadership at Daihatsu Motor after the unit became entangled in a vehicle certification scandal.

Inoue, the CEO of Toyota Latin America, will replace Soichiro Okudaira effective March 1, the companies said in a joint statement Tuesday.

Daihatsu’s top posts would be replaced and its operations abroad would folded into Toyota’s oversight, Toyota CEO Koji Sato said Tuesday. A new leadership structure for Daihatsu will be announced in April, Inoue said.

Daihatsu Chairman Sunao Matsubayashi will step down, and his position left vacant.

"For Daihatsu to be reborn as the company it was meant to be, this is what we believe is necessary,” Sato told reporters.

An internal probe followed by a government raid of Daihatsu’s headquarters led to a weekslong suspension of domestic production, and a revocation of certification for several models. The manufacturer supplies cars and other automobile parts to Toyota, Mazda Motor and Subaru. In 2016, the carmaker became a wholly owned subsidiary of Toyota, which has promised to step in should Daihatsu struggle to compensate customers, suppliers and business partners.

Daihatsu said Tuesday it will remove itself from the Commercial Japan Partnership Technologies, or CJPT, a strategic manufacturing alliance with Toyota and Suzuki Motor.

Production of 10 models will resume Feb. 26, Okudaira said Friday after submitting a report to Transport Minister Tetsuo Saito that outlines proposed countermeasures to prevent such conduct in the future. These included increased staffing and production time, as well as training for managerial and executive staff in an effort to improve transparency.

In January, an internal investigation revealed that another unit, Toyota Industries, was found to have manipulated power output figures for some of its diesel engines. Akio Toyoda, chairman of the Toyota group, said the entire organization needs to "return to basics” to overcome these scandals.

Last week, Toyota raised its full-year guidance for the fiscal year ending in March, following a banner year boosted by record sales and strong demand for hybrid cars around the world.

 

[ssun30]

https://global.toyota/en/newsroom/corporate/40627134.html?padid=ag478_from_popular

According to their restructuring plan, Daihatsu is essentially dismantled. The Toyota-Daihatsu emerging-market compact car company is dissolved. All business operations, resource management, and product planning/certification are now done by Toyota. Daihatsu is commisioned by Toyota to do product development only. Daihatsu's only autonomy now is developing kei-cars (which is a rapidly shrinking segment in Japan) for the domestic market. Most of Daihatsu's current international models will not be renewed after current generation, so I suspect the Daihatsu brand will also be gradually phased out globally as well.

On the bright side, the cancellation of majority of Daihatsu's upcoming releases meant these projects are now transferred to Toyota. So we will have the rebirth of the Starlet supermini car with a Rally 4-homologated GR version. The Vision Copen FR sports car is rumored to become the new S-FR. Both will be sharing a de-stroked and simplified G16E-GTS engine that makes at least 150PS and weigh around 1 ton.

 

[carguy420]

Daihatsu should've been completely wiped from the global market long ago. Right now, the Daihatsu developed Toyota models are very similarly priced (at least in my country) to the cars made by other car manufacturers that are closer in level to Toyota than Daihatsu, but thanks to post-2000s Daihatsu's penchant for mediocrity, the powertrains and crash worthiness of these cars quite often are at least half a step to a step below their competitors.