Nissan used unauthorized inspectors for weeks after revelation: sources

October 18, 2017

TOKYO- Nissan Motor Co.'s use of unauthorized workers in vehicle safety checks continued for weeks at one of its assembly plants after the problem came to light in mid-September, informed sources said Wednesday.

Some 3,800 vehicles were shipped from the Shonan Plant between Sept. 20 and Oct. 11 after final safety inspections involving unauthorized workers, the sources said.

Nissan has no plans to issue an additional recall for the vehicles which it claims meet safety standards, the sources said.

The plant, located in Hiratsuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, south of Tokyo, is run by Nissan Shatai Co., an affiliate of the Japanese automaker.

The latest revelations came after Nissan explained that remedial measures had been taken at each plant, underscoring once again the automaker's lax safety supervision.

According to Nissan, an in-house investigation found on Oct. 11 that two unauthorized workers were involved in performance checks of steering wheels at the Shonan Plant.

The unauthorized workers undertook the process of turning the steering wheels for the mechanical measurement of their performance, though final checks were made by qualified inspectors.

Nissan temporarily suspended shipments from the plant. The company reported the problem to the transport ministry on Thursday but did not make it public.

The plant resumed shipments on Monday after the automaker instructed it to make sure it follows proper inspections procedures.

Nissan's use of unauthorized inspectors was first revealed when the ministry conducted an unannounced investigation of the Shonan Plant on Sept. 18.

On Oct. 6, the automaker announced a recall of some 1.16 million units of 38 vehicle models after it was found that the problem affects all six assembly plants in Japan.

In addition, there were fraudulent cases in which seals from certified employees were used although checks were actually done by unqualified workers. Jiji Press