Nissan Resumes Output in Japan

Nissan Motor Co. resumed vehicle production at five domestic assembly plants earlier today after revamping its final safety inspection process.

Japan’s transport ministry discovered in September that Nissan was using noncertified technicians to conduct the government-mandated reviews. Nissan idled production on Oct. 19 after it found that the phony inspections continued after the carmaker declared the problem solved.

The scandal prompted Nissan to recall 1.2 million vehicles sold in Japan within the past three years to re-inspect them. The inspections are not required for exported vehicles.

On Monday Nissan reported that an independent investigation found the company showed test questions to candidates for certification and failed to train them for the required number of hours.

The ministry said today that Nissan had provided it with an “inaccurate” explanation of the procedural problem. The agency also warned it would “respond harshly” if certain undisclosed facts are confirmed. In the meantime, Nissan has relocated the final inspections away from other inspection lines and will conduct weekly reviews of the process.