Nissan Motor Co. said Wednesday that inspectors giving priority to meeting shipment schedule while having insufficient recognition of the importance of inspection were among the major reasons behind its data fabrication scandal revealed in July.
The Japanese automaker said in a report to the Transport Ministry that "due to prioritization of the need to meet production and shipment plans, the importance of inspections was not sufficiently recognized at plants."
The report also cited the insufficient number of final inspectors and their lack of training as well as the managers' lack of knowledge about the inspection rules as reasons for the improper inspections.
"The root of the problem lies in the morale of employees as well as in the management structure and ability," Nissan President Hiroto Saikawa told reporters after handing the report to the Transport Ministry.
But he refused to comment on whether he would step down to take responsibility, saying he would like to focus on countermeasures for the time being.
The company pledged to increase the number of inspectors while upgrading test equipment and improving the working environment to prevent such misconduct from recurring and restore trust of the clients.
On July 9, Nissan admitted fabrication of data involving car exhaust emissions tests at five of its domestic plants, affecting 1,171 vehicles.
The automaker said that data based on emissions and fuel economy tests had either been falsified, or the tests themselves had been conducted in inappropriate environments.
The report released on Wednesday said that the misconduct involved a total of 1,205 vehicles, up from 1,171 vehicles previously announced.
According to the report, besides data related to exhaust emissions and fuel economy, inspection data on other 11 items such as vehicle width and horn volume had also been revised or fabricated.
The scandal followed another misconduct of Nissan revealed last year as the second largest automaker in Japan was found to have routinely allowed safety checks on finished vehicles to be carried out by uncertified inspection staff, which led to the recalling of 1.2 million vehicles.
The incident, following a series of similar ones involving some major Japanese manufacturers such as Kobe Steel Ltd. and Mitsubishi Materials Corp., cast doubts over corporate governance in the manufacturing industry and beyond in Japan.
Industry experts said the scandals in the auto industry had also cast serious aspersions over Japan's once stellar reputation for high-quality and safe manufacturing standards.
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