TOKYO – Japanese automaker Mitsubishi on Wednesday admitted it manipulated pollution data in more than 600,000 vehicles, after reports of misconduct sent its Tokyo-listed shares plummeting earlier in the day.
“We found that with respect to the fuel consumption testing data…(the company) conducted testing improperly to present better fuel consumption rates than the actual rates,” it said in a statement released as it started a press briefing in Tokyo.
Mitsubishi Motors shares dived 15 percent in Tokyo Wednesday in response to reports that the Japanese automaker conducted improper emissions tests, in the wake of a massive pollution-cheating scandal at Volkswagen.
After markets closed, the company said it would hold a press briefing at 5:00 pm local time (0800 GMT) to talk about “misconduct in fuel-efficiency tests on our vehicles”. It did not elaborate.
The maker of the Outlander sport utility vehicle said its president Tetsuro Aika would speak at the meeting in Tokyo.
Its shares plunged 15.16 percent to close at 733 yen ($6.73).
German auto giant Volkswagen has been hammered by a global scandal that erupted six months ago when it emerged that VW had installed emissions-cheating software into 11 million diesel engines worldwide.
