Promising full transparency, Chairman Toyoda explains why no recall / stop sales of Toyota Vios in Malaysia
Hans · May 8, 2023 05:30 PM
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Procedural irregularity in applying for UN R95 certification - only 539 units of Toyota Vios in Malaysia are affected, versus 75,750 units (including Yaris hatchback) in Thailand
Re-test done by external agency appointed by Belgian government with production car parts - UN R95 standard is still met, no recall necessary
Pause of deliveries in Thailand only because Thai authorities want to witness the re-test, while Malaysian authorities are satisfied with results of the first re-test
When Daihatsu admitted on 28-April that there was a ‘procedural irregularity’ in obtaining the United Nations Regulations No. 95 (UNECE R95) regulatory approval for side-impact protection for the AC100 generation 2023 Toyota Vios, a model developed by Daihatsu under contract for Toyota, Chairman Akio Toyoda promised full transparency on the matter.
Today, Chairman Toyoda is in Thailand, the country most affected by the issue, to host a press conference on the matter.
Deliveries of the Toyota Yaris Ativ, as the Vios is known there, has been suspended since the matter came to light.
Chairman Toyoda explained that a re-test with production car parts has since been completed, done by external agency Vincotte, appointed by the Belgian government.
The results is unchanged and the external body recommended that the UN R95 certificate issued previously is still valid, so no recall is necessary.
Why unchanged despite the different part used? Because UN R95 side-impact testing is a government-mandated test, so the result is only either pass or fail. There is no NCAP-like (which is not compulsory) points scoring.
Previously, Daihatsu admitted that it had submitted results UN R95 test conducted using a different part. This alternative design is supposed to minimize risk of the plastic inner door panel breaking into sharp pieces when subjected to a side impact.
A re-test with the production car part showed that the outcome still meets UN R95 requirements, so the certification issued previously is still valid.
However, representatives of the Thailand government and road transport agency want to participate in a witness re-test, so deliveries of the Yaris Ativ in Thailand is suspended until this is completed.
Re-test with production car part show that it still meets UN R95 requirements
In Malaysia, since the certification is still valid and there is no stop-sales order by the government, UMW Toyota Motor is legally compelled to fulfill the bookings made by customers.
This also applies to the D74A Perodua Axia, another affected model.
R95 is just one of many certificates of conformity that a manufacturer must submit to JPJ before VTA is approved
As for the difference in response between the governments of Thailand and Malaysia, a spokesperson for Toyota Motor Thailand explained, “This is a certification procedural issue as per the laws and regulations in each country in which we operate.”
It should also be noted that since production of the AC100 generation 2023 Toyota Vios started much later than Thailand, only 539 cars produced at Toyota’s Bukit Raja plant were affected, versus 75,750 units in Thailand.
Remember that re-test has shown that there is no meaningful difference in the safety of the 539 units, so their certification remains valid.
Toyota's CEO for the Asia region Masahiko Maeda said that work pressure faced by the development team at Daihatsu was what lead to the problem.
"If development had been carried out under appropriate conditions, this kind of problem would of course not have happened," Maeda said.
"I think the fact that it still happened, means there was some kind of pressure at the development site," Maeda told Reuters.
Over 15 years of experience in automotive, from product planning, to market research, to print and digital media. Garages a 6-cylinder manual RWD but buses to work.
