Toyota has been rocked by a string of scandals — but analysts are unfazed

Japan's largest carmaker Toyota has been in the spotlight recently, but for all the wrong reasons.

Goods and services from the land of the rising sun are known for their high standards and quality, as well as reliability. However, Japanese automakers have recently been under fire for falsifying test certification applications.

In 2023, two of the top three largest global auto brands were from Japan, according to Statista. Toyota took the crown with 10.7% market share, while Germany's Volkswagen came in second with a 6% market share. Japan's Honda Motor was the third largest brand, commanding 4.6%.

But for Toyota, the top automaker by market share in the world, the latest safety scandal is not the first time it's being investigated for false test data.

"Kaizen" is a Japanese philosophy — broadly translated as "continuous improvement"— that's been adopted by Toyota and touted as one of the company's core values.

However, its reputation has taken a hit, after a wide ranging investigation into Japanese auto firms by the country's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism revealed that five major Japanese carmakers — including Toyota — had used false data to apply for certification for their cars.

Irregularities in certification applications were discovered from Toyota, Mazda, Honda, Suzuki Motor and Yamaha Motor, the transport ministry said on June 3.

All five companies had submitted false test data, or in the case of Toyota and Mazda, falsified the vehicles used in crash tests.

Stocks of all five Japanese automakers plunged in the week following the revelations, with Toyota most notably losing 2.45 trillion yen ($15.62 billion) in market value last week alone.

In response to the scandals, Toyota chairman Akio Toyoda