Originally Posted by SubLGT
Originally Posted by KGMtech
...Likely due to improper heat treatment of the springs, or improper metallurgy in materials. Could have been discovered in a regular audit, or reaction to spike in warranty claims...
Quality control in Japan is in a decline:
Quote
A Japanese maker of materials used in airplanes and car parts has admitted that one of its subsidiaries falsified quality-assurance data, the latest in a string of Japanese industrial giants to mislead customers.
https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo...er-companies-faking-product-quality-data
The way I'm seeing it is that Japanese industry is going for reducing weight without sacrificing quality or durability. How they get there would take a large conversation. One example, Mazda designed the connecting rods on their SkyActiv engines so that they ended up lighter and thinner yet they are stronger than the previous rods.
The Japanese are not alone on this. Everyone is going to lighter body stamping using higher tensile steel and alloys. Interior materials are becoming lighter despite the fact that the move is towards soft touch materials.
Even with all the technology today that manufacturers use to determine if a part will stand up, there is a weak link somewhere. Maybe it's in the programming? This is beyond my scope.