Daihatsu’s president and chairman are both getting the boot as part of a desperate attempt by parent company Toyota to save the smaller firm’s reputation and limit any negative publicity for Toyota itself. The reorganization at the top comes after it was discovered that the company faked collision data, putting the safety of thousands of drivers at risk.
Both the current president, Soichiro Okudaira, who had worked for Toyota for almost 40 years before getting the Daihatsu gig in 2017, and chairman Sunao Matsubayashi, have agreed to resign as part of the shakeup. Matsubayashi won’t be replaced, Toyota says, while Okudaira’s seat will be taken by Masahiro Inoue, currently boss of firm’s Latin America and Caribbean operations.
According to comments by Toyota Chief Executive Koji Sato and reported by Reuters, the changes are not part of any punishment meted out in retaliation for the Daihatsu’s safety scandal, but do you really buy that? Sounds like slapped wrists all around, to us.
Related: Toyota And Daihatsu Cheated To Pass Safety Tests, Investigation Finds
But perhaps the new crew will be better suited to helping Daihatsu get a handle on its R&D processes and concentrate on its minicar business. Auto News reports that Toyota wants to outsource some of its overseas operations to partner companies to allow the core business to grow without getting overstretched.
“The rapid expansion of the company caused distortion that was not properly absorbed by the company,” said Inoue, who starts his new job on March 1, according to Auto News. “I aim to rebuild Daihatsu.”
The scandal broke when an independent investigation revealed that Daihatsu had faked the side collision data on 64 different models, not all of which wore the company’s own badges. Vehicles manufactured on behalf of Subaru and Mazda were also affected, as were Toyota’s Yaris Ativ and Agya.