Toyota fined for failing to report, fix emissions defects

DETROIT — Toyota will pay $180 million to settle U.S. government allegations that it failed to report pollution control system defects in its vehicles for a decade.

The company also agreed in court to investigate emissions-related defects quickly and report them to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in a timely manner.

“Toyota’s actions undermined the EPA’s self-disclosure system and likely led to delayed or avoided emissions-related recalls,” Audrey Strauss, the acting U.S. Attorney in Manhattan said Thursday in a prepared statement.

The Japanese automaker’s actions brought financial benefits and excessive pollution, she said.

The company was accused in a government lawsuit of delays in filing 78 emissions defect reports as required by the Clean Air Act. The reports covered millions of vehicles, the statement said.

The lawsuit was filed Thursday and settled on the same day, according to the statement.