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Eco-Phony

Published on June 6, 2017, at 8:04 a.m.
by Kala Brumbaugh.

Bad decision-making and “greenwashing” seem to have reared their ugly heads for another foreign automaker. Oh, boy.

Mitsubishi, the Japanese automaker, announced in late April that it had been lying about its fuel efficiency tests for a quarter century. The company initially declared that it had lied about fuel economy tests for hundreds of thousands of vehicles. However, it wasn’t until a week later that the extent of these deceptions came to light.

Courtesy of https://commons.wikimedia.org/
Courtesy of https://commons.wikimedia.org/

The news about the scandal has cut the company’s market value in half and is a costly mistake for the automaker. Not to mention, the company has estimated costs and fines of $450 million.

This news comes just nine months after the release of the Volkswagen Group’s emissions scandal. The scandal broke in September 2015 that the company had been significantly lying about its “carbon footprint.” The cars sent into the market were releasing 40 times the legal amount of nitrogen oxide. The company has reported record losses the past year, paid $18 billion in expenses and fines, and is still trying to repair its damaged reputation.

Courtesy of https://en.wikipedia.org
Courtesy of https://en.wikipedia.org

Small scandals can be detrimental to a company, but falsifying information about its emissions levels for 25 years has utterly rocked Mitsubishi to its core. Scandals like these call into question the ethics and leadership in these companies and send consumers running to more reliable and transparent competitors.

Lying on tests that regulate the “carbon footprint” is especially distasteful at a time when sustainability and global warming are hot topics.

At times, companies like Mitsubishi can bounce back from taking a financial hit, but regaining the trust of your consumers and repairing your damaged reputation make for a harder and lengthier recovery.

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