Toyota's commercial truck company will pay $1.6 billion for faking emissions tests

Source: NPR

January 16, 2025 1:57 PM ET



Hino Motors, a subsidiary of Toyota that manufactures commercial trucks, has agreed to plead guilty to a federal charge of a multi-year criminal conspiracy to fraudulently evade state and federal emissions standards. It's part of an umbrella settlement that also resolves civil claims brought by federal regulators and the state of California.

The company is paying a total of $1.6 billion in fines and penalties, including the second-largest criminal fine the Environmental Protection Agency has ever leveled for vehicle-based Clean Air Act violations. According to complaints filed by regulators, the fraud involved more than 100,000 heavy-duty diesel trucks and off-road diesel engines.

The vehicles did not pass state and federal emissions standards — but Hino submitted false data claiming they did. Those vehicles are still safe to use, but Hino will offer free voluntary repairs for some vehicles, which California regulators say will not affect fuel economy or vehicle operation. There will not be any vehicle buy-backs.

As part of the settlement, Hino will also pay criminal fines and civil fees, pay more than $150 million to replace engines on ships and trains with cleaner versions, and fund hybrid and zero-emission buses and trucks in California. Those remedies are meant to balance out the excess pollution caused by the company's evasion of emissions standards. The company is also on probation for 5 years, during which it can't import any diesel engines to the U.S.

Read more: https://www.npr.org/2025/01/16/nx-s1-5262576/hino-toyota-trucks-emissions-fraud