Honda Motor Co is to conduct at least the sixth round of major recalls involving its top-selling Fit compact in less than three years, as the Japanese automaker struggles to move past the quality woes that contributed to a change in chief executive officers.
The company is to recall more than 283,000 Fit cars and Vezel crossovers after reports of six fires related to a control systems flaw and two collisions linked to a power steering defect, Japan transport ministry official Yuichi Yamamoto said.
None of the incidents resulted in death or injury, he said.
Persistent recalls of the Fit and Vezel that first began in October 2013 were among quality woes that led former Honda president Takanobu Ito to abandon a global sales target before resigning the position. His successor Takahiro Hachigo has reshuffled top management and consolidated responsibility for product planning and evaluation, ceding more control back to the company’s overwhelmed research and development division.
Honda tried to introduce models optimized for disparate regions at a pace and scale that was beyond its means, Hachigo, 56, said in February.
The company announced sweeping management changes, including the resignations of chairman Fumihiko Ike and the chief executive officer’s second-in-command Tetsuo Iwamura.
Previous Fit and Vezel recalls in Japan include: October 2013, when Honda recalled 4,883 Fit cars over automatic transmission and control modules; December 2013, when the company extended the production period of the previous recall, boosting the number of cars affected to 36,100 units; February 2014, when the company recalled 81,353 Fit and Vezel vehicles over engine control units; July 2014, when the company extended the production period of the Fit and Vezel recall, raising the number of affected vehicles to 175,356; and October 2014, when the company recalled 321,501 Fit and Vezel vehicles over engine ignition coils and power supply circuits.
Honda’s quality problems with new product introductions have continued into this year. The automaker recalled the 2016 Civic in February after 2-liter engines seized up in quality-control checks and in the field, resulting in a fire and one reported injury.
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