Honda Sold 22 Models in Japan with Improper Certification, Including the NSX

There were issues with another mid-engine model, the S660 kei car.

By: Adrian Padeanu

Updated: Jun 4, 2024 at 3:07am ET

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Made public in 2023, the scandal at Toyota and its Daihatsu subsidiary about improper crash tests is having a snowball effect. Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism has ordered domestic automakers to run internal investigations and double-check whether their cars have been properly tested based on regulations.

After Toyota halted sales of three vehicles in Japan where the Mazda MX-5 Miata RF is also on a hiatus, Honda has now admitted to misstatements of test results. However, the 20+ affected models have gone out of production, either entirely or have been replaced by facelifted/next-generation cars. The ones that caught our attention were the NSX and the S660.

Honda S660 (JDM)

The hybrid supercar produced for the local market between August 2016 and December 2019 was sold to customers despite “inappropriate incidents in noise testing." It was the same story with the diminutive S660 sports car manufactured from March 2015 until December 2019.

"In the test report, the weight of the vehicle tested was listed as a value within the specified range, which was different from the actual weight of the vehicle tested. However, by setting the vehicle weight to a condition stricter than the legal requirement, it was interpreted that the noise performance could be guaranteed and the man-hours for re-testing would not be increased."

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As if that wasn't bad enough, the JDM-spec NSX shows up again on the "blacklist" for the cars built from July 2016 until October 2022. Honda admits that "the output and torque values of the test results were rewritten and entered in the test report (false entries)."

Honda CR-Z (JDM)

Beyond the NSX and S660, the full list has 20 additional models, including the quirky CR-Z hatchback with deviations in the noise tests. The affected cars were assembled between February 2010 and September 2013.