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Toyota cuts global production in April by 17%

TOKYO — Toyota is cutting its global production target in April to 750,000 vehicles, down 150,000 from an earlier plan, the automaker said on Thursday, as a semiconductor shortage and the COVID-19 pandemic bite into its plans. The news comes about a week after Toyota said it would scale back domestic production by up to 20% during the months of April, May and June to ease the strain on suppliers battling shortages of chips and other parts. "It is still difficult to foresee the situation several months ahead, and there is a possibility the current plan will be revised downward," the company said in a statement. Average monthly global production for the period from April to June would be about 800,000, Toyota added. Its global vehicle production will be down 10% in May and 5% in June from previous estimates at the beginning of the year, said Toyota executive Kazunari Kumakura. The shortages have led the automaker to repeatedly change its production plan, frustrating suppliers and prompting President Akio Toyoda to call the interval from April through June an "intentional cooling off" period. Apart from the persistent chips shortage, Toyota faces a number of challenges. Curbs against COVID-19 forced it to suspend a joint venture with China's FAW Group in the northeastern city of Changchun. The automaker also cited logistical hurdles for suspension at a plant in Russia amid political uncertainty sparked by the Ukraine invasion, which Russia calls a special operation. These factors were not reflected in the April-June global production plan, Kumakura said, adding that while Toyota had not yet suffered specific impacts from the Ukraine crisis, it would look into short- and long-term risks. Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Plants/Manufacturing Lexus Toyota coronavirus chip shortage

Japan plans real-world diesel emissions test after companies fail

Japan's transport ministry plans to start real-world diesel emissions tests after an experiment found four models from Toyota, Nissan, and Mitsubishi that produced more nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions than the nation's rules allow, according to The Japan Times. Regulators there usually only perform emissions checks in the lab. The VW diesel scandal has everyone double-checking their figures. Diesel versions of the Toyota Hiace van, Land Cruiser Prado, and Nissan X-Trail produced up to 10 times more NOx than allowed. The Mitsubishi Delica D:5 was up to five times over the limit, The Wall Street Journal reports. There was no evidence of defeat devices in the vehicles. Mazda performed well in the experiment, though. The CX-5 passed with nearly the same results on the road and in the lab. The Demio, better known as the Mazda2, did nearly as well with only slighter higher figures in the real world than in the controlled setting. The experimenters theorized the reason for the excessive emissions was that cold weather caused the engines' software to shut off the exhaust gas recirculation to prevent damage, according to the WSJ. However, this behavior also increased NOx production. Toyota, Nissan, and Mitsubishi don't have to worry about punishment from the transport ministry because this check was just an experiment. Their models already passed the mandated lab tests, which was the only requirement, according to The Japan Times. As governments begin greater real-world emissions tests, the results suggests diesels aren't very clean. A recent check in France found models from Ford, Renault, and Mercedes-Benz that didn't perform up to the standards. Regulators in India conducted similar evaluations and ordered VW to recall over 300,000 vehicles. Related Video:

Legal approach in $1.2 billion Toyota settlement could impact handling of GM recall cases

In the past, if an automaker did something wrong, they were usually prosecuted by the US government through something called the TREAD Act. Short for Transportation Recall Enhancement, Accountability and Documentation Act, it basically requires automakers to report recalls in other countries, along with any and all serious injuries or deaths, to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
Failing to report or attempting to conceal anything when there's been a death or serious injury constitutes a criminal liability. The idea is that this setup puts the onus on manufacturers to keep NHTSA apprised of safety related issues before they become a problem in the US, thereby allowing the regulator to better protect consumers.
In theory, it sounds like a relatively airtight set of rules for dealing with misbehaving automakers. That didn't stop the US Department of Justice from ignoring TREAD in its prosecution of Toyota's handling of the unintended acceleration recall, though. The result of this new approach, which charged Toyota with wire fraud, was a $1.2 billion settlement. Now, the wire-fraud approach could be used for the expected case between the US government and General Motors, based on the statements of Attorney General Eric Holder, who specifically mentioned "similarly situated companies" when discussing Toyota.