Toyota apologizes for cheating on vehicle testing and halts production of three models

By YURI KAGEYAMA
AP Business Writer

TOKYO (AP) — Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda has apologized for massive cheating on certification tests for seven vehicle models. The faulty testing at Japan’s top automaker involved the use of inadequate or outdated data in collision tests and incorrect testing of airbag inflation and rear-seat damage in crashes. Emissions tests also were found to be falsified. Toyota stopped production Monday of the three models made in Japan, the Corolla Fielder, Corolla Axio and Yaris Cross. The faulty tests, also found on discontinued models, do not affect the safety of the vehicles already on roads. The latest problems don’t pertain to Toyota’s overseas production.