Photo: Mitsubishi
Mitsubishi’s cheating scandal is apparently unfolding into something more that initially admitted.
We already know that the Japanese automaker had been manipulating fuel economy results since 1991, and that one of its employees requested it to stop, but now there’s more.
At first, only four models were claimed to have been affected by the cheating scheme, but it appears that eight more models, including the Pajero SUV, have been stated with intentionally incorrect fuel economy figures.
The news is not official yet, as it comes from an unnamed source quoted by Japanese newspaper Nikkei. The source is apparently familiar with the investigation made by Japan’s transport ministry, which is focusing on the company and its scandal, Automotive News reports.
At the moment, authorities are considering the possibility of making Mitsubishi remove the affected cars from the market, as well as revising its sales catalogs.
Just like in the case of U.S. customers that were affected by Volkswagen’s Dieselgate, Mitsubishi might have to compensate the owners of the cars the have been sold with intentionally erroneous fuel economy ratings.
For the moment, there is no compensation plan on the table, as this possibility was first presented by Nikkei, without any certainty from the company or those investigating it.
Both Mitsubishi and transport ministry officials refused to comment on the report published in Nikkei. If the story turns out to be correct, Mitsubishi’s problems are expected to reach an unprecedented level for Japan’s sixth-largest automaker, and the company could require financial assistance from the corporation with the same name.
Mitsubishi’s cheating scheme was discovered when its partners at Nissan tested the fuel economy of one of the rebadged kei cars they were sourcing from the three-diamond brand.
Eventually, Nissan acquired a 34% stake in Mitsubishi Motors, so the brand that gave us the Lancer Evolution should stand a chance of remaining on the market for many years to come, if its owners support it financially.
At first, only four models were claimed to have been affected by the cheating scheme, but it appears that eight more models, including the Pajero SUV, have been stated with intentionally incorrect fuel economy figures.
The news is not official yet, as it comes from an unnamed source quoted by Japanese newspaper Nikkei. The source is apparently familiar with the investigation made by Japan’s transport ministry, which is focusing on the company and its scandal, Automotive News reports.
At the moment, authorities are considering the possibility of making Mitsubishi remove the affected cars from the market, as well as revising its sales catalogs.
Just like in the case of U.S. customers that were affected by Volkswagen’s Dieselgate, Mitsubishi might have to compensate the owners of the cars the have been sold with intentionally erroneous fuel economy ratings.
For the moment, there is no compensation plan on the table, as this possibility was first presented by Nikkei, without any certainty from the company or those investigating it.
Both Mitsubishi and transport ministry officials refused to comment on the report published in Nikkei. If the story turns out to be correct, Mitsubishi’s problems are expected to reach an unprecedented level for Japan’s sixth-largest automaker, and the company could require financial assistance from the corporation with the same name.
Mitsubishi’s cheating scheme was discovered when its partners at Nissan tested the fuel economy of one of the rebadged kei cars they were sourcing from the three-diamond brand.
Eventually, Nissan acquired a 34% stake in Mitsubishi Motors, so the brand that gave us the Lancer Evolution should stand a chance of remaining on the market for many years to come, if its owners support it financially.
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