Fuji Heavy, Mitsubishi Fuso, Honda recalling vehicles

More crap from Japan's auto industry !!!

First, why the hell is Mitsubishi Fuso still in business ??? Are j consumers so blind and stupid or just actively practicing "nationalistic" spending habits as explained by outside sources when confronted with these illogical situations. In either case... wake up ! These products kill !

Second, why are these companies allowed to flood the markets with defective products for 3-4 years without any concern to the public. Fact is, these problems should have been discovered at the "design" stage... not out on the road ! Where's all the little math wiz's Japan supposedly produces each year ? Why can't they, and the mechanical engineers, do the simple math and find these defects before they are sold to consumers ?

Finally Honda ??? WTF ! With all the focus on CO2 gasses you'd expect them to be overly cautious of nitrogen oxide levels... but noooo ! Screw the consumer, screw the planet... just give us our money ! Yep, Japan Inc. alive and well !

westurn: you are expecting too much from the part-time workers. The fault lies in their wages and working conditions.

westurn, you ought to chill out. This kind of thing happens to all automotive manufacturers.

Actually some14... the fault lies in "the system" ! One that encourages deceptive practices and falsehoods. In short, admitting to these defects and shortcomings early on has huge consequences. It's better to just sit back, make yer profit, and wait a few years down the line to admit wrong doing. You then make a recall... most cars are about to be dumped for "shakken" reasons anyway. See how it works ? I've talked about this before. The problem with the J system is the penalties are so severe that they encourage half-truths and bold faced lies. These are further examples of the problem with Japan's industrial culture.

westurn: I fully agree with your explanation, but that's the way it is, and in broader sense this nation requires complete 'system over-haul' that they will not do it unless eligible voters wake up and ask them to do it. Till then 'shouganai'.

Typical Ossan response...

"This kind of thing happens to all automotive manufacturers."

Which makes it OK ??? You seem resigned to accept the lies and deceptive practices by Japanese auto manufacturers because "everybody does it" ??? I disagree ! Other nations employ more realistic and balanced approaches to how they punish firms for shoddy performance. Japan doesn't ! Japan goes for the throat with public humiliations, fines, and ongoing press coverage of boxes being removed, tabloid exposure. Other nations encourage employees to come forward with such acts against the populous... those people are even protected by specific "informant" laws. Japan doesn't ! Japan's culture of punishments and rewards is totally out of context with the rest of the planet. Workers are not encouraged to step forward and admit wrong doings by their companies. Subsequently, these acts will continue in Japan and anywhere Japanese companies operate... hell even Toyota in the US had exported the J style of hiding mechanical defects and things like sexism in the work place. Fortunately the US workers took control and put a stop to it. Japan Inc. still has soooo damn much to learn !

westurn,

calm down, poor quality is of course unacceptable, but instead of going on an anti-Japan rant, you should understand that every country produces some poor-quality cars, and most, if not all companies are guilty of late recalls.

Campers... we are not discussing whether or not recalls occur, they do. The problem is that Japanese companies are more prone to delayed, like 4-8 years, recalls because of Japans corporate culture that encourages it. In short, there are no good points to admitting fault in Japan ! Again other nations have active campaigns to encourage "whistle blowers"... Japan ??? I dare say no ! This is why you get soooo many scandals here in Japan. Auto's, food, medicine, the nation is overly corrupt due to it's policys, plain and simple. These three automotive companies making these recalls all on thesame day, same circumstances... you think that is a coincidence ??? Bwahahaha !

BTW...

"Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corp is recalling 68,141 Fuso trucks made between November 1994 and April this year, due to insufficient strength in parts that fix shafts to truck bodies. The company warns that the shafts, which transmit power to the rear wheels, could become unattached."

Anyone know the after-affects of such a "detachment" ??? again, this was designed way back in 1994 !!! Why the delay ??? Didn't MF go through a major investigation and corporate overhaul less than 5-7 years ago ??? Why didn't they admit this then ??? Why wasn't it found ??? Where are the consumer safety groups protesting ???

I say shut-em down !!! For good !

Far too much over-emotional claptrap being spouted here, let's look at the wording which makes little sense.

"Belts transmitting engine torque to dynamos could fall off, leading to stalling". What is this? Dynamos disappeared 40 years ago; do they mean that the drive belt to the alternator could come off?

" insufficient strength in parts that fix shafts to truck bodies. The company warns that the shafts, which transmit power to the rear wheels, could become unattached." Parts that fix shafts to truck bodies? What utter nonsense, they are talking about the driveshaft or propshaft running from the transmission to the rear axle.

3 radically different problems here...

Honda: software bug... yeah... so what... (maybe one day car will have a nightmarish update tuesday like in windows update...) Subaru: third party problem (if it's the belt herself) or is it the belt tensionner ? Stalling a kjidosha might not be too dangerous anyway.

AND AS USUAL Mitsubishi Fuso takes the cake: You can drop the transmission shaft !? This thing is not tied to the body but between the gearbox and the axle (or transfer case and axle in case of all wheel drive trucks). That's a 2-4 meter iron pipe that might get loose and start spinning like an unbalanced propeller under the truck... That's also quite low tech, something that you should check quite often, and most of all, something that anybody can see from outside the truck without having to open any access (mean really easy to inspect and really not that difficult to replace). It's like if they were trying to be evil on purpose... But god, the LanEvo X or even the new Galant Fortis looks incredibly good... If I was not brainwashed to only use hatchbacks I would buy one on the spot.

Westurn -- This situation is little, if any, different from that in the United States. It took a massive court judgment to get Ford to issue a "fix" for a design defect in the Pinto that caused it to explode when hit from the rear, even though the design problem and its $8 solution had been identified before the vehicle was released for public sale. Automakers everywhere are the same. They want to make the maximum profit, and that sometimes leads to design and/or manufacturing decisions that, in retrospect, turn out to have been ill-advised.

Taikan, like I said before, recalls and faulty designs do happen. Funny you had to go back to the 70's to find an example of an American auto comp. Ha-ha ! But seriously, here in the 2000's, why does it take Japanese automanufacturers so many years to find their design flaws and faulty workmenship ? And why does it happen so often ? What is it about Japans business culture of lies and deception that continues to run rampant through every industry in the nation today ? With food and Autos being at the forefront of the problem ? I say it's because the punishments are so severe that they do not allow for admission of errors... subsequently it is better to take chances with public safety, than face the wrath of METI ! The evidence is clear on this.

Japanese manufactures may not be perfect but they are by far the most reliable overall and that is a fact!