Subaru Admits Inspection Failings, in Another Blow to Japan’s Carmakers

Subaru Admits Inspection Failings, in Another Blow to Japan’s Carmakers
Subaru, which is one of Japan’s smaller carmakers, with production of about 1 million vehicles a year, said
that 245 workers in Japan were authorized to conduct final vehicle inspections.
It said a much smaller group of employees — between four and 17 at any given time — who were studying to be inspectors
but had not yet qualified, would also certify vehicles, contrary to government guidelines.
Subaru said it had allowed unqualified workers to perform quality checks on cars produced for the Japanese market.
Automotive manufacturers and their suppliers perform multiple safety tests during development and production, and serious
but hard-to-find faults — say, unstable chemicals inside an airbag inflater, which are believed to have caused the Takata hazard — are unlikely to be spotted by a limited, mostly external once-over.
Cars made for export are not subject to the same rules,
because governments outside Japan do not require final vehicle inspections to be carried out by workers with special training and qualifications.
Nissan, for instance — a particularly foreign-focused producer — sells 90 percent of its cars outside Japan.
The revelation, which follows a similar admission from Nissan, comes at a time when Japan’s automobile industry — normally known for its precise engineering
and exacting quality standards — is under unusually intense scrutiny.