Japan Toyota's Fraudulent Certification, Our Government Also Investigates Defects

Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and Korea Automobile Testing & Research Institute Investigate Defects in Japanese Imported Cars

On the 20th, the South Korean government announced that it is investigating whether there are defects related to the quality certification fraud issue involving Japan's Toyota Motor Corporation. Although the car models involved in the problem in Japan were not directly imported, it was revealed that some models using the problematic parts were imported.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and the Korea Transportation Safety Authority recently conducted a full survey on whether 38 models from five manufacturers, including Toyota, which had issues locally, were imported and sold domestically. The investigation found that none of the same vehicle types were imported into South Korea.

However, it was identified that the Lexus RX, a luxury brand sports utility vehicle (SUV) from Toyota, used the same engine as the fraudulently certified parts involved in the issue. According to local media, the Lexus RX was found to have fraudulent conduct during engine output tests for vehicles manufactured between 2015 and 2022.

Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda is apologizing for the certification issue at a press conference on the 3rd.
[Photo by Yonhap News, EPA]

It was also confirmed that Yamaha motorcycles Tmax and YZF-R3 included mufflers with certification issues. As of June this year, 6,749 Lexus RX vehicles are registered domestically. Tmax has 1,910 units registered, and YZF-R3 has 1,318 units registered.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and the Automobile Safety Research Institute under the Korea Transportation Safety Authority confirmed the use of fraudulently certified parts and began an investigation on the 14th targeting three models, which is currently ongoing. Lexus RX450h and RX450hL are the two models under investigation.

Although not fraudulently certified, a defect investigation will also be conducted in advance on the engine output and other aspects of the Lexus RX models currently imported and sold domestically for consumer safety. The models subject to this are the Lexus RX350h, RX450h+, and RX500h, which have been sold since last year.

Lexus RX450h

Since the investigation has just begun, it is difficult to prematurely conclude whether there are defects. In Japan, vehicles must obtain certification in advance according to standards set by authorities during the development stage. In contrast, South Korea operates a self-certification system where manufacturers produce vehicles by adhering to standards independently.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport stated, "We are continuously monitoring the trends of measures taken in Japan and their impact on Japanese imported cars in South Korea," adding, "If the investigation into manufacturing defects finds that the targeted vehicles do not meet safety standards, strict measures such as recalls and fines will be imposed according to relevant laws."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.