TOKYO -- Nissan Motor submitted the final report of its internal investigation to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism on Wednesday about a series of scandals that recently rocked the company, revealing additional misconduct uncovered since July.
The report concludes that the company's "extremely low awareness" of the importance of inspection standards and rules led to a pattern of misconduct.
Staff did not follow proper procedures when measuring exhaust emissions, fuel economy and performance, nor were automobile fuel indicators examined -- a standard procedure during inspections.
Nissan said the misconduct involved 1,205 vehicles, up from 1,171 vehicles previously disclosed in July.
The Japanese automaker hopes to put to rest concerns over having its vehicle inspections performed by unqualified workers and falsifying results of exhaust emission inspections, among other issues. The report, based on hearings with employees, also outlines measures taken to prevent a recurrence of the issues.
President and CEO Hiroto Saikawa personally submitted the report to the ministry.
Nissan falsified data for spot exhaust gas checks before shipping new cars from five plants in Japan. The automaker conducted checks under different conditions than those listed as the actual test environment, and manipulated exhaust gas data.
Despite the large number vehicles affected by the misconduct, which spanned almost the entire Nissan lineup, the company said it does not need to issue recalls as all government safety standards were met.
After the falsified inspection results were revealed, Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism in July instructed Nissan to report the results of its internal investigation.
A number of Japanese automakers have recently been charged with failing to properly inspect vehicles. Subaru staff approved mileage and emissions tests that did not meet test standards. In August, Suzuki Motor, Mazda Motor and Yamaha Motor also were found to have approved vehicles that did not meet quality standards, including tests for exhaust.
