The front line was exhausted by a storm of complaints: “Give us back our money” and “Buy back our cars…” Daihatsu “management must fulfill its responsibility” after the fraud was discovered.

The customers keep blaming us, and the work site is getting exhausted. Some customers attack us with harsh words. Of course, there are also those who gently encourage us. ……”

One female employee who works at a Daihatsu Motor Co. dealership where the large-scale fraud in the certification test was discovered lamented, “Every day, we are bombarded with complaints from Daihatsu and Toyota Motor Corporation. While the media has been reporting daily on Daihatsu and Toyota management holding press conferences and apologizing, it is actually the staff at the dealerships who have to bear the brunt of the intense complaints from customers.

The phone has been ringing off the hook since this morning. They say, ‘Take back the car you’ve had for five years at the price you paid for it! Or something like that. Even for cars other than those that have been found to be fraudulent, they make outrageous demands simply because they are Daihatsu cars. Cancellations of other models are also very common. Some of them would come directly to the store without any notice and say, “We’ll leave this car with you, so just pay for it now and buy it back! We’re going to leave this car here, so pay for it now!

Of course, we will sincerely deal with customers who are inconvenienced by the company’s misconduct. However, the company has not yet indicated its policy on how to deal with customers. I wish they would come up with a clear response plan as soon as possible. …… Anyway, it’s a big mess at the site.”

When automobile manufacturers manufacture and sell new vehicles, they are required to undergo various tests and meet prescribed safety standards set by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism and the United Nations. Passing these tests is called “certification.

Daihatsu was found to have obtained these certifications for many of its models in an unfair manner, and it is said that this started in 1989. In other words, some of the models had been certified more than 30 years ago.

According to the investigation report by the third-party committee,

According to the investigation report by the third-party committee, “The total number of fraudulent acts identified by the committee as similar cases is 174 (28 cases of fraudulent processing and adjustment, 143 cases of false statements, and 3 cases of manipulation of original data), the oldest of which was found to be a fraud in 1989. The oldest fraudulent act was recognized in 1989. The overall trend is that the number of fraudulent acts has increased in the period since 2002.

The report also states, “The overall trend is that the number of fraudulent acts has been increasing in the period since 2002. Toyota, the parent company of Toyota Motor Corporation, issued a release in response to the fraud. The parent company, Toyota, also issued a release stating that, “Since 2001, Daihatsu has been increasing the number of vehicles it supplies on an OEM basis (original equipment manufacturing), mainly compact cars, and it is possible that Daihatsu’s request to develop these vehicles was placing a significant burden on Daihatsu.

Daihatsu became a consolidated subsidiary of Toyota in 1998. Daihatsu became a wholly owned subsidiary in 2004. If, as the release states, Daihatsu increased its requests for OEM and other services from 2001, it would not be unrelated to the fact that the number of fraud cases has increased since 2002.

Did the increase in orders from the parent company compel the company to engage in fraud? However, a mechanic living in western Japan who has worked for Daihatsu dealers for more than 20 years reveals, “Toyota is not the only cause.

A mechanic living in western Japan who has worked at Daihatsu dealerships for more than 20 years says, “Toyota is not the only cause! But I don’t think that’s the only reason. But I don’t think that’s the only reason, because we have been faking it since long before we became a part of Toyota and long before we started producing OEM products. I believe that for a long time, there has been an environment in the development department where such fraudulent activities were conducted and where it was impossible to speak up to the higher-ups. Also, in recent years, quality has been declining due to severe cost reductions, In recent years, we have also been concerned about the decline in quality due to severe cost cutting. There have been many cases where defects seem to have been caused by cost cutting.

As a major automaker, Daihatsu has been guilty of a long history of cheating. What should the owners of the affected models do? While it is understandable to feel angry, shouting at the dealers will not solve the problem. In addition to the internal investigation, TÜV Rheinland Japan (TRJ), an international third-party certification organization, has verified that there are no problems. In order to further confirm safety, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) will suspend sales of all vehicles and conduct a thorough safety certification, and shipments will resume only after the safety verification is completed. It would be wise to wait for the dealers to contact us.

Daihatsu is expected to take prompt and sincere action.

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