The automaker said design flaws in parts for its large vehicles had been systematically concealed instead of subjected to recalls, resulting in a series of accidents, one of them fatal.

The cover-ups were carried out between 1996 and 2000, when Mitsubishi Fuso, as it is now known, was the truck and bus division of Mitsubishi Motors Corp., company officials said.

In October 2002, a 39-year-old trucker was killed when his The-Great model truck smashed into a building, the transport ministry said.

Mitsubishi Fuso said there were design flaws in the clutch housing of the The-Great that could result in brake hose damage.

Mitsubishi Fuso, 65 percent owned by DaimlerChrysler AG, said the defective clutch housing has caused 70 accidents. The automaker said it will recall the trucks.

It has also come under fire for MMC's failure to recall large vehicles after structural flaws were found in wheel hubs. The flaw caused wheels to come off, causing a number of accidents, including a fatality in January 2002, when a woman was hit by a wheel.

The Japan Times Weekly: May 29, 2004
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