PERUSAHAAN Otomobil Kedua Sdn Bhd (Perodua) has reportedly been given the green light to resume operations amid the raging Daihatsu Motor Co, Ltd safety scandal.
According to a report by Reuters, a Daihatsu spokesperson said the company, which is fully owned by Toyota Motor Corporation, had resumed production of Perodua models after it received regulatory clearance.
Perodua is partly owned by UMW Toyota Sdn Bhd (UMWT) and, by extension, Daihatsu's local original equipment manufacturer (OEM) partner.
Other than their official statements soon after news of the Daihatsu safety scandal broke out late last month, there have been no further details from Perodua and Toyota.
At the time, Perodua president and chief executive officer Datuk Seri Zainal Abidin Ahmad said the carmaker was conducting a detailed assessment on the matter and was in discussions with the authorities.
"We sincerely apologise to our valued customers and the general public for any alarm this announcement may bring. We intend to reach out and assure our valued customers.
"We will share the outcome of the discussions with the public in due course," the statement read.
Similarly, UMWT said the company was dedicated to maintaining the highest standards and quality in its vehicles.
To that end, president Datuk Ravindran K said the company was working closely with regulatory authorities to promptly and transparently address safety issues that affect its Vios, Rush, and Veloz models.
"Rest assured, we are actively working to ensure that all our vehicles in Malaysia strictly adhere to the relevant regulations and rules," he said in a statement. "Our dedication to customer satisfaction has always been and remains our top priority."
Although there have been no further updates at the time of writing, it is assumed that UMWT's affected models have also been given the clear for production.
The Reuters report also said Daihatsu's subsidiary in Indonesia, PT Astra Daihatsu Motor, resumed shipments last month.
To recap, Daihatsu announced on April 28 last year that local authorities flagged "procedural irregularities" when conducting safety tests on its vehicles in Japan.
The carmaker admitted to falsifying crash test results for four of its models, involving 88,000 vehicles made in Thailand and Malaysia in 2022 and last year.
Daihatsu then followed up the announcement with the establishment of a third-party investigative committee consisting of lawyers and technical personnel.
The company announced in May it was halting production in Japan of two hybrid vehicle models because of similar "irregularities". This included the Toyota Raize sport utility vehicle (SUV), manufactured on behalf of its parent company.
Last month, the third-party committee report found that the company had been manipulating safety tests since at least 1989.
In total, 64 models were affected, including almost two dozen sold under the Toyota brand.
Daihatsu recently announced that it would suspend all domestic production and halt shipments of its vehicles until further notice.
A spokesperson was quoted as saying production would be suspended through this month.
"We have not been able to assess as to exactly when our domestic production can resume," he said.
In Japan, Daihatsu said it would compensate 423 domestic suppliers with which it had direct business relations.
It would compensate suppliers based on past business volumes and is working to assess the impact of the stoppage on its supplier network.
The suspension is estimated to have affected more than 8,000 companies and 9,000 factory workers across Japan.
