Japan to establish task force to look into car emission testing

[TOKYO] Japan will set up a task force to look into concrete measures to prevent irregularities in vehicle testing after Mitsubishi Motors Corp admitted it falsified fuel-economy data to get better ratings for some of its models.

Mitsubishi Motors' manipulation of fuel-efficiency tests is "extremely serious," Transport Minister Keiichi Ishii told reporters after a cabinet meeting Tuesday in Tokyo. The ministry has given the automaker until Wednesday to report the findings of an internal investigation of the faked test data.

Carmakers are bracing for increased scrutiny of the way they label and advertise fuel efficiency and tailpipe pollutants after revelations in September that Volkswagen AG cheated on diesel emissions.

Since then, government fraud investigators have raided French manufacturer PSA Group as part of broader checks into vehicle emissions, while Daimler AG said it initiated an internal probe into its certification process at the behest of the US Department of Justice.

Mitsubishi Motors is scheduled to report its fiscal fourth-quarter results on Wednesday. The company is considering delaying its profit forecast for this fiscal year as it needs more time to measure the costs related to its disclosure of falsified data, according to a person familiar with the matter.

BLOOMBERG