Daihatsu back on track

Daihatsu, Toyota’s small-car division, will resume full operations at all its assembly factories in Japan in May.

The news comes four months after it suspended domestic manufacturing in late December due to concerns over safety-test rigging.

The carmaker will restart production of its Copen mini-vehicle at its factory in Ikeda, Osaka, which is the last of its four assembly factories in the country to remain mothballed.

Its factories in Kyoto, Shiga and Oita prefectures have already resumed operations, and the Oita plant is expected to ramp up production on May 6.

Japan’s transport ministry lifted its shipment ban on many Daihatsu models in March and confirmed in its re-examination the vehicles meet safety standards.

In December, the brand admitted to safety-test rigging on most of its line-up, which a third-party investigation found dated back to 1989. The panel blamed “an extremely tight and rigid development schedule” for the misconduct.

Daihatsu says Toyota will oversee development and safety approval for some of the models Daihatsu has been handling, while the latter will focus on its kei-class business.