Mitsubishi Pledges New Priority on Safety

TOKYO October 18, 2004; The AP reported that Mitsubishi Motors Corp. pledged to make safety its top priority as company employees bowed their heads in a moment of silence Tuesday on the anniversary of a fatal accident linked to a vehicle defect.

Tuesday's vigil was in honor of a 39-year-old driver who died after the brakes in his Mitsubishi truck failed due to a defect in the clutch system on Oct. 19, 2002.

Mitsubishi has been struggling to recover from a series of massive recalls for defective wheels, clutch systems and dozens of other flaws that led to two deadly accidents and triggered concerns about the company's safety record.

In the other accident on January 10, 2002, a defective hub caused a wheel to fly off a Mitsubishi truck, fatally crushing a 29-year-old woman and injuring her two sons.

The company and its truck-making affiliate, Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corp., said they would officially mark the anniversaries of the two deaths as days to renew their pledge to safety.

The companies said they would refrain from making advertisements on those days, Mitsubishi Motors said in a statement.

Several former Mitsubishi officials have been criminally charged in the two accidents.