Mitsubishi Falsified Fuel Economy Data Since 1991

After Nakao made the announcement on Tuesday morning, Mitsubishi Motors Corporation shares took a 10 percent dive. Since the MPGgate scandal erupted on April 20, Mitsubishi shares have lost 50 percent of their value in the stock market. Without a shadow of a doubt, this is a messy situation for a carmaker that’s not as powerful or as well-to-do as Volkswagen Group.

Tetsuro Aikawa, the head honcho of Mitsubishi Motors Corporation, has told the media that an inquiry is continuing into the matter. This suggests that more irregularities will be discovered by the so-called Special Investigation Committee in the next three months, as highlighted in the press release below.

Whatever the outcome, the problem at hand is best described by Keiichi Ishii, the Transport Minister of Japan: “extremely serious.” As in Mitsubishi could bite the dust in the near future if investors have had enough of this scandal. The Mitsubishi Group has bailed out Mitsubishi Motors Corporation on two occasions in the past, but the third time around may not happen because enough is enough.

To boot, additional tens of thousands of sub-standard cars will prove to be a burden for an already burdened Mitsubishi Motors, a company that has rigged the fuel economy on 625,000 kei cars sold under the Mitsubishi and Nissan brands. According to Japanese media, Mitsubishi has submitted misleading fuel economy data on a plethora of other models, including the i-MiEV electric car, Pajero, Outlander, and RVR.

As if the problems in its domestic market weren’t bad enough for business, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has also asked Mitsubishi Motors for more information on this sensible subject.