Hino Motors Faces $1.6 Billion in Penalties for Emissions Fraud

Hino Motors will pay over $1.6 billion in fines and penalties after admitting to falsifying emissions data and violating U.S. environmental laws for more than a decade.

• By Robert Yaniz Jr.
• Jan 22, 2025

Hino Motors, a subsidiary of Toyota Motor Corporation, has agreed to plead guilty and pay more than $1.6 billion to settle criminal and civil allegations stemming from a long-running emissions fraud scheme. 

According to a recent release, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as well as other federal and state agencies uncovered the misconduct, which involved submitting falsified engine emissions and fuel consumption data to regulators from 2010 to 2019.

The scheme enabled Hino to import and sell over 110,000 diesel engines in the United States, primarily used in heavy-duty trucks, despite the engines not meeting emissions standards. The company also admitted to smuggling engines into the country. According to the plea agreement, Hino will pay a $521.76 million criminal fine and forfeit $1.087 billion. It will also serve a five-year probation period, during which it is barred from importing its diesel engines into the U.S.

“EPA and the American consumer rely on true and accurate data from engine manufacturers to protect our nation’s air quality. Hino’s actions directly undermined EPA’s program to protect the public from air pollution,” Acting EPA Administrator Jane Nishida said in a statement. “Today’s criminal charges and civil settlement demonstrates EPA’s commitment to hold companies like Hino Motors, Ltd. accountable for knowingly violating environmental laws and regulations that protect public health and the environment.”

As part of a broader settlement, Hino will pay $525 million in civil penalties. This includes $155 million for a mitigation program to offset excess emissions and $144.2 million for a recall program targeting non-compliant engines in heavy-duty trucks manufactured between 2017 and 2019. The settlement also includes $123.6 million for mitigation projects in California and $30.3 million to resolve claims under the California False Claims Act.

The EPA estimates the violations led to emissions exceeding regulatory limits for nitrogen oxides, particulate matter and greenhouse gases. The penalties include the second-largest criminal fine and fourth-largest civil penalty in the EPA’s history for mobile source violations.

The plea agreement is subject to court approval, and Hino — which released a detailed statement — has committed to implementing a compliance program to prevent future violations.

“This resolution is a significant milestone toward resolving legacy issues that we have worked hard to ensure are no longer a part of Hino’s operations or culture. We deeply apologize for the inconvenience caused to our customers and stakeholders. In order to prevent a recurrence of this kind of issue, we have implemented company-wide reforms, including meaningful improvements to our internal culture, oversight, and compliance practices,” Hino Motors President and CEO Satoshi Ogiso said in the statement. “We take this resolution seriously and will ensure that the field fix, the Environmental Mitigation Program, and further strengthening of our compliance system, which have been agreed as part of the resolutions, are implemented. We commit to moving forward as a company that can be of service to society.”