Mitsubishi Motors overstated fuel economy on eight more models, says Nikkei

By REUTERS | 30 August 2016


TOKYO: Mitsubishi Motors Corp overstated the fuel economy on eight of its vehicle models, in addition to four others the embattled Japanese automaker admitted to earlier this year, the Nikkei newspaper reported today.

Japan's transport ministry, which had been investigating the fuel economy on Mitsubishi models including the Pajero SUV, would report its findings as early as today, the Nikkei said, citing an unnamed source.

The Nikkei said the company would likely withdraw the affected vehicles from the market to revise its catalogues, a process which could take about two to three weeks. Compensation to customers was a possibility, it added.

Both Mitsubishi and the transport ministry declined to comment on the report. Shares in the automaker slipped 0.8 percent in early trade.

Japan's sixth-largest automaker has been struggling to recover after admitting in April that it had falsified the fuel economy on two of its minivehicle models, along with two similar models produced for Nissan Motor Co.

The scandal led to a suspension of sales for nearly three months, and prompted a slump in Mitsubishi's market value. The company sought financial assistance from Nissan, which agreed to buy a controlling one-third stake for US$2.2 billion.

An internal investigation has uncovered poor communication, slack governance and pressure on resource-starved engineers at the root of Mitsubishi's problems.

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