Philippines Investigate Mitsubishi Vehicles for accidents due to unintended acceleration

The Philippines Department of Trade and Industry will investigate the increasing cases of "sudden and unintended acceleration" in Mitsubishi Motors Corp.'s Montero Sport vehicles.

According to The Japan Times, DTI formed a panel that will probe which could lead to a product recall or a sales ban. The order, issued Wednesday by Undersecretary Victorio Mario Dimagiba, will investigate the sudden and unintended acceleration cases of the vehicles from 2010 to 2015.

Consumers have been complaining about how the Montero Sport usually accelerate without the driver's input. This case is called Sudden Unintended Acceleration (SUA).

According to Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corp. Vice President Froilan Dytianquin, "We've done a series of tests in 2011 including by our principals in Japan and found nothing wrong with the Montero Sport."

The Inquirer reported that Dytianquin said the vehicles are still safe for use. He said the company welcomes DTI's investigation and that it will report the results of the investigations on Friday. He said they have contacted the owner of one of the cars involved in the accidents. However, he said the company stands firm that its Montero Sport vehicles have no defects. They have tested and investigated some 97 cases and found that there were nothing wrong with the cars in terms of electronics and mechanical aspects. He even said that MMC Japan was involved in conducting the investigation.

In a report by the Business World, DTI's move to probe the accidents is prompted by the House Resolution No. 2531, which partly blames DTI for its negligence to conduct safety inspections. The resolution was filed by Bayan Muna Representative Neri J. Colmenares.

Colmenares cited cases of sudden and unintended acceleration in Montero Sport vehicles that involved a former mayor and a couple whose car flipped over. He said, the negligence of DTI to look into the safety of commercial vehicles made it easier for companies like Mitsubishi to dismiss and deny these incidents and simply blame the victims.