Japan’s third largest steel maker Kobe Steel has admitted inspections data for metals used in a variety of vehicles was faked.
The issue dates back to 2011 and involves vehicles including cars, bullet trains, aircraft, AP reports.
Kobe Steel’s president, Hiroya Kawasaki, issued a formal apology, admitting that “trust in our company has dropped to zero”.
It has promised a report on the cause of the problem within a month.
However, it is unclear whether any of the products created with the steel are actually faulty.
“Verification and inspection to date have not recognised specific problems casting doubts on the safety of the nonconforming products,” Kobe Steel says.
Toyota, Nissan and Boeing are some of the manufacturers which have confirmed they are inspecting products with steel provided by Kobe Steel.
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