The company importing Mitsubishi vehicles into the Republic has said it does not condone a more than 20-year cover-up of Mitsubishi vehicle defects by its manufacturers in Japan, writes Eithne Donnellan.
It followed the announcement that the president of Mitsubishi Motors in Japan, Mr Katsuhiko Kawasoe, had quit over the scandal, which came to light in July when the transport ministry, acting on a tip-off, found unreported customer complaints in a company locker room. These dated back to 1977.
Mr Pat Allen, director of services at MMC Commercials Ltd in Dublin, importers of Mitsubishi cars and jeeps, said yesterday his company would not condone any cover-up. "We are not a party to any cover-up and we certainly would not approve of any such action," he said.
When it emerged that Mitsubishi had not dealt properly with customer complaints, the company offered to check close to one million vehicles worldwide. MMC Commercials Ltd here initiated a recall of 580 Galant models made between March 1994 and August 1985 to check fuel tanks. Owners would be notified individually of the recall and any work necessary would be free.