Mitsubishi admits rigging fuel economy figures in Japan
Over 468,000 Nissan and 157,000 Mitsubishi Kei cars have been affected. Joining the long list of automotive scandals in the recent times is
By Shivank Bhatt
Over 468,000 Nissan and 157,000 Mitsubishi Kei cars have been affected.
Joining the long list of automotive scandals in the recent times is Mitsubishi as it admitted tampering fuel-economy figures of cars sold in Japan. The affected models include 157,000 Mitsubishi cars and 468,000 Nissan cars, which Mitsubishi produces for Nissan under a joint venture. Production and sales of these cars have been temporarily suspended while further investigations are on.
All the affected models, namely – Mitsubishi’s ek Wagon and ek Space and Nissan’s Dayz and Dayz Roox - belong to Japan’s famous Kei class of cars, which come fitted with sub-700cc engines. Inconsistencies in fuel-economy figures were brought to light by Nissan first, leading Mitsubishi to launch an internal investigation. Following that, the company discovered misconduct in the testing procedure, which was mainly done by falsifying tyre pressure data. This resulted in inflated fuel-economy figures of the cars. And since fuel economy is one of the key criteria before buying these small and peppy Kei cars, both the companies are hugely apologetic for the whole situation.
As soon as Mitsubishi admitted of “intentionally” rigging the fuel consumption ratings, its stocks plummeted by over 15 per cent, with a loss of close to $1.2 billion in stock market alone. As of now, the issue is limited to the Japanese market, or that's what Mitsubishi wants the world to believe.
