All major Japanese automakers except Honda Motor Co. used components containing asbestos to build 1.64 million cars, trucks, motorcycles and other vehicles between 1996 and last month, the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association said Tuesday.
But there is no risk of the carcinogenic material entering the air and harming humans, because the asbestos was kneaded into resin or sealed for use in gaskets, packing and resin materials in the motor vehicles, which also included buses, fire engines and tractors, it said.
The companies are Toyota Motor Corp., Suzuki Motor Corp., Isuzu Motors Ltd., Nissan Motor Co., Nissan Diesel Motor Ltd., Hino Motors Ltd., Mitsubishi Motors Corp., Mitsubishi Fuso Truck & Bus Corp. and Yamaha Motor Co.