Safety alert over ‘weak metal’ parts in UK cars
SOME of the biggest Britishbased car-makers last night launched an urgent probe into the safety of their vehicles over fears that crucial body parts may be faulty.
Nissan and Toyota said they were investigating concerns that metal imported from one of Japan’s largest companies may be too weak. There are fears new high-speed trains could also be affected.
The probes come after a scandal engulfing Japan’s Kobe Steel. The firm admitted staff had been caught falsifying data on certificates about aluminium and copper standards. It is feared thousands of tonnes of the metals may have been classed as stronger than they really were.
Kobe is one of the world’s biggest metals exporters and its products are sold to car, plane and rail makers.
The firm admitted that products used by about 200 compa- nies were certified with false data. About 4 per cent of the aluminium and copper products it shipped from September 2016 to August 2017 were falsely labelled as meeting customers’ requested specifications.
The misconduct involved dozens of staff and possibly stretched back ten years.
Yesterday Nissan, which makes thousands of cars at its Sunderland plant, said it used aluminium from Kobe Steel in some vehicles’ hoods and doors.
They would not confirm how many or which cars were affected. A spokesman said: ‘We are working to quickly assess any potential impact on vehicle functionality.’
Toyota, based in Derbyshire, said it was considering long-term measures to tackle the ‘grave issue’, adding: ‘Our priority ... is the safety of our customers and we are rapidly working to identify if any of our vehicle models may potentially be affected, and via which components.’
Hitachi has been building high speed trains for the east and west coast mainlines using Kobe’s products. The firm insisted the metal used on the trains due to start running on the Great Western Railway ‘is the required strength and has passed all tests’.
Kobe bosses said that, to date, inspections had not found ‘specific problems casting doubts on the safety of the non-conforming products’.
They added: ‘In the event that doubts arise [on safety] ... the company will quickly take appropriate action. The company deeply regrets this incident ... [We] will report again as further progress of the investigation is made.’ The Department for Transport did not comment.