Toyota Industries Suspends Forklift Shipments Over Engine Performance Data Fraud

The Yomiuri Shimbun

13:24 JST, March 18, 2023

Toyota Industries Corp. has suspended forklift shipments due to the fraudulent substitution of performance test data in forklift engines, among other issues, the company said.

The Toyota Group company announced Friday that it will no longer ship one type of gasoline engine model and two different diesel engine models. The firm has sold about 160,000 such forklift units to date.

Toyota Industries plans to recall about 71,000 of these vehicles because they exceed emission limits. There are no driving or safety issues with the machines, the company said.

The firm has acknowledged engaging in such fraudulent practices as replacing parts during testing and presenting false measurement results. In 2021, the company voluntarily launched an investigation after becoming concerned about its test data. An investigative committee comprising external experts, including lawyers, was established Friday.

Toyota Industries President Akira Onishi and Chairman Tetsuro Toyoda will waive their monthly compensation for six months.

The Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Ministry and the Economy, Trade and Industry Ministry have each ordered a full investigation and will study measures to prevent recurrence. The transport ministry plans to conduct an on-site company inspection as early as next week.

“Following the certification fraud at Hino Motors last year, it is truly regrettable that a betrayal of trust has occurred at one of our group companies,” Toyota Motor Corp. said. “We are taking the matter very seriously.”