Owing to ongoing certification issues, Toyota stops dispatches of Innova Crysta, Fortuner and Hilux temporarily to dealerships
Before launching a vehicle, every manufacturer has to provide proper testing and certifications to concerned authorities to get their product type approved. Not just that, but said specifications should stay strong across the length of the vehicle’s production. Toyota seems to be having minor niggles in certification and hence temporarily halted dispatches of Fortuner, Crysta and Hilux to dealerships.
Toyota Stops dispatches Of Innova Crysta, Fortuner
The Japanese automotive juggernaut has been busy with damage control in the recent past. The fire around a major scandal that revolves around Daihatsu and its malpractices is still hot. Amidst that, Toyota Kirloskar Motor is now under the limelight as company has temporarily stopped dispatches of its popular Innova Crysta, Fortuner and Hilux to dealerships.
However, the recent buzz around Toyota Kirloskar Motor and Toyota Industries Corporation along with Toyota Motor Corporation is nowhere as bad as Daihatsu controversy. In India, Toyota Motor Corporation procures its diesel engines from Toyota Industries Corporation (TICO). The new heat around Toyota revolves around certification irregularities.
To investigate this, there was a special investigation committee commissioned, that submitted its report on Monday. According to this report, there were irregularities found in horsepower output certification testing for three diesel engines. All three of affected diesel engines were commissioned to TICO by Toyota. Globally, up to ten vehicles use these affected engines – including six vehicles in Japan, as per Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC). In India, Innova Crysta, Fortuner and Hilux use these engines and account for almost a third of the sales of Toyota Kirloskar Motors (TKM).
As per the report, horsepower output performance at certification testing procedures was measured out of car’s ECU with software. These figures differed from the ones used in mass production. This practice took place to establish fewer variations in measured values and make power and torque curves appear smoother.
What next?
Toyota mentioned that these irregularities did not indulge in over-claiming and over-stating on horsepower, torque or any other values related to powertrain. Also, Toyota reaffirmed that these irregularities don’t concern or impact affected vehicle’s safety or emissions in any way possible.
Bookings and orders for affected vehicles are still underway. Already dispatched vehicles to showrooms will be delivered to customers with transparent communication of this ongoing certification issue. Dispatch of new vehicles to dealerships will be temporarily suspended. The company is working with concerned authorities to fix this as well.
In a recent statement by TMC, the company has re-verified said powertrains that are mass-produced meet engine performance output standards. The company apologizes to their customers and encourages them to continue using affected engines or vehicles. Statement also suggested a strategic re-structuring of the company along with a drastic reform of corporate culture.
