Daihatsu admits failure in crash safety tests for 2023 Perodua Axia, Toyota Vios: shipments suspended

Daihatsu has just confirmed that it had “failures” in specific crash safety tests performed for regulatory approval applications for four models. This includes the 2023 Perodua Axia, the Toyota Vios (designated as Yaris Ativ in Thailand and other markets), the Toyota Agya, and an as-yet-unreleased model.

The Toyota subsidiary acknowledged the action in a statement, adding that more than 88,000 affected vehicles were sold in Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Mexico so far. New shipments have been suspended.

“We deeply apologize for betraying the trust of our customers and other stakeholders, and causing great inconvenience and concern,” Daihatsu’s statement read. Toyota’s own statement is much harsher.

“Daihatsu’s misconduct is a matter of safety, which is the most important aspect of the vehicle. We consider this to be a completely unacceptable act that betrays the trust of our customers. Since this problem occurred with a Toyota brand passenger car, we believe the problem is not limited to Daihatsu,” said Akio Toyoda, President of the Toyota Board of Directors.

“We will start by conducting a detailed and thorough investigation of the facts to understand the situation, determine the real cause, and work to prevent a recurrence. We will also promptly inform the public of the facts that we learn through our investigations,” he added.

Daihatsu mentioned that “the inner lining of the front seat doors was improperly modified and violated the prescribed lateral crash testing procedures and methods.”

Based on Reuters, the door panels on affected vehicles have been modified with a “groove” to reduce the risk that the door panels could break due to sharp edges and cause injury when the side airbags are deployed. Modifications, i.e. notch, are not present in production vehicles.

With new shipments suspended, Daihatsu, together with Toyota, will “re-test (side-impact tests) in the presence of testing and certification bodies, and if confirmed that side impact performance complies with the regulations, we will continue to deliver.”

However, Daihatsu has assured that “at this time, customers using these models do not need to take any action to continue using them.”