Toyota says Yaris model safe in Thailand after safety concerns

BANGKOK (Reuters) – Japanese carmaker Toyota Motor (NYSE:) Corp has stopped sales of its Yaris ATIV but the vehicle is safe, and the company urges all parties involved to cooperate on inspections and investigations, senior officials said on Monday.

Speaking at a press conference in Bangkok, Toyota’s CEO for Asia, Masahiko Maeda, CEO Asia Region, said the vehicles customers were using were safe and the vehicle was a quality car. Maeda said there were problems with pressures at the factory and time pressure to produce the car.

Toyota affiliate Daihatsu had rigged part of the door in side-collision safety tests for some 88,000 small cars, most of which were sold under the Toyota brand, the companies said last week.