Toyota recalls and related issues: BusinessWeek-Media owes Toyota an apology
#376
Out of Warranty
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I've spent the better part of my professional career in corporate communications and I fail to see where TMC was "insincere". Short of having Akio Toyoda commit seppuku on the steps of their corporate headquarters, the "sincerity" of apologies is almost impossible to judge. At the same time, because there is significant liability here, it would be exceedingly foolish to offer abject apologies at this stage.
Toyota has done the proper thing in going right to work on discovering the problem so that it could be properly repaired. It would be far worse to issue an instant fix without understanding why and how the accelerator pedal failed - if that was the issue in the first place. That would almost assuredly produce a second set of failures, and produce an almost unrecoverable situation for the automaker.
Toyota did all that could be expected, shutting down production and issuing a recall, going so far as to warn owners of the consequences of driving their product. From a practical standpoint, there wasn't much else they could do. There is a ticklish legal problem here, and TMC doesn't dare publicly confess to failure, unless they want to face billions in class action suits. You know that's the next step here, and thousands of PI attorneys are already frothing at the mouth to get this issue into court.
Unless the public wants a pound of flesh from TMC execs, there isn't much more to be done from a practical standpoint. Those who believe the company should collectively throw itself upon its sword don't have to stand up before the company's stockholders and explain why they threw their money away.
If some self-styled third-world crisis management "expert" can come up with a way to show "sincerity" without gutting the company, I'm sure TMC would like to hear it.
Toyota has done the proper thing in going right to work on discovering the problem so that it could be properly repaired. It would be far worse to issue an instant fix without understanding why and how the accelerator pedal failed - if that was the issue in the first place. That would almost assuredly produce a second set of failures, and produce an almost unrecoverable situation for the automaker.
Toyota did all that could be expected, shutting down production and issuing a recall, going so far as to warn owners of the consequences of driving their product. From a practical standpoint, there wasn't much else they could do. There is a ticklish legal problem here, and TMC doesn't dare publicly confess to failure, unless they want to face billions in class action suits. You know that's the next step here, and thousands of PI attorneys are already frothing at the mouth to get this issue into court.
Unless the public wants a pound of flesh from TMC execs, there isn't much more to be done from a practical standpoint. Those who believe the company should collectively throw itself upon its sword don't have to stand up before the company's stockholders and explain why they threw their money away.
If some self-styled third-world crisis management "expert" can come up with a way to show "sincerity" without gutting the company, I'm sure TMC would like to hear it.
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#377
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Is this the article on Toyota admitting that they knew the Prius had brake problems? People were bashed on for raising the issue to Toyota because it seemed like they were trying to take advantage of Toyota. However, the Prius issue might actually be a legitimate case. I wonder if the owners had not said anything, would Toyota come out and admit the problem?
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#378
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CTS is quick to respond, but Toyota has really never called them out. This is Toyota's response:
Statement from Toyota on Supplier CTS
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America (TEMA) has been working closely with supplier CTS on a revised design that effectively remedies the problem associated with accelerator pedals. Pedals featuring the revised design are now in full production at CTS to support Toyota’s needs. Meanwhile, we are also working with them to test effective modifications to existing pedals in the field that will be rolled out as quickly as possible.
“We commend CTS for working diligently and collaboratively to find a solution to the potential problem and in developing a new design,” said Chris Nielsen, TEMA’s Vice President of Purchasing. “CTS is a long-term and valued supplier to us.”
Originally Posted by Toyota Motor Sales USA
Statement from Toyota on Supplier CTS
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America (TEMA) has been working closely with supplier CTS on a revised design that effectively remedies the problem associated with accelerator pedals. Pedals featuring the revised design are now in full production at CTS to support Toyota’s needs. Meanwhile, we are also working with them to test effective modifications to existing pedals in the field that will be rolled out as quickly as possible.
“We commend CTS for working diligently and collaboratively to find a solution to the potential problem and in developing a new design,” said Chris Nielsen, TEMA’s Vice President of Purchasing. “CTS is a long-term and valued supplier to us.”
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#379
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im being to believe more and more that this is more media hype than a real problem. All opposing parties involved have a vested interest in bashing Toyota: Transportation Secretary, UAW, the White House, Congressman Waxman. The DoT apparently flew to Japan to convince execs to recall? How come no one flew to Detroit in a hurry when GM/Ford had much more widespread recalls.
There's no hard evidence in these few hundred anecdotal cases out of 10s of millions of vehicles that there was a major defect. SUA cases are difficult to determine what went wrong. Now all these people crashing their Toyota's come out of the woodwork for a class action. To make it worse Toyota is coming out and apologizing basically admitting error even if it hasnt even been proven it was at fault.
This isn't your usual recall. I smell a LOT of BS
There's no hard evidence in these few hundred anecdotal cases out of 10s of millions of vehicles that there was a major defect. SUA cases are difficult to determine what went wrong. Now all these people crashing their Toyota's come out of the woodwork for a class action. To make it worse Toyota is coming out and apologizing basically admitting error even if it hasnt even been proven it was at fault.
This isn't your usual recall. I smell a LOT of BS
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#380
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Toyota to recall 270,000 Prius in Japan and U.S.
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6133U820100204
Toyota will soon file with Japan's Transport Ministry and the U.S. Department of Transportation for the recall following consumer complaints about insufficient braking on the 2010 model year Prius, the newspaper said, without citing sources.
Toyota representatives in the United States were not immediately available for comment.
The move comes after U.S. safety regulators opened a formal probe on Thursday into problems with the brakes of the Prius, the latest jolt to an automaker already reeling from massive recalls of its most popular vehicles, including the Camry.
The latest recall covers the third-generation Prius, which was launched in May, the Nikkei said. It covers about 176,000 vehicles in Japan and around 100,000 in the United States sold between May and December last year, the Nikkei said.
Toyota representatives in the United States were not immediately available for comment.
The move comes after U.S. safety regulators opened a formal probe on Thursday into problems with the brakes of the Prius, the latest jolt to an automaker already reeling from massive recalls of its most popular vehicles, including the Camry.
The latest recall covers the third-generation Prius, which was launched in May, the Nikkei said. It covers about 176,000 vehicles in Japan and around 100,000 in the United States sold between May and December last year, the Nikkei said.
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#381
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For what it's worth, this is one of those times where it's nice to sit back and know that you drive a Lexus, and one that was manufactured at Tahara none the less.
I'm not knocking anyone who owns a Toyota but when you buy a Lexus you just expect more overall and when it was built at Tahara you know you're getting what you paid for.
I'm not knocking anyone who owns a Toyota but when you buy a Lexus you just expect more overall and when it was built at Tahara you know you're getting what you paid for.
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#382
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This op-ed piece speculates on the fallout from the upcoming Congressional hearings on the Toyota recalls:
Rivals fear fallout from Toyota woes
BY TOM WALSH - DETROIT FREE PRESS COLUMNIST
As Toyota's troubles take on the scale of a huge mushroom cloud, executives of the Detroit Three and other auto companies are quietly worrying that dangerous fallout from the Toyota crisis could be heading their way.
Looming large on the horizon are congressional hearings, the first of which is next week, into Toyota's response to reports of unintended acceleration in some of its vehicles.
Congress doesn't hold high-profile hearings and then do nothing.
It often takes action -- with the precision of a sledgehammer, rather than a scalpel.
Remember the TREAD Act -- for Transportation Recall Enhancement, Accountability and Documentation -- enacted in October 2000 at the height of the furor over tire failure in Ford Explorers equipped with Firestone tires?
As a response to the Ford-Firestone brouhaha, Congress ordered a host of new regulations and reporting requirements for all vehicle and tire manufacturers, including tire-pressure monitoring systems for all new cars and trucks.
You can bet that lawyers and lobbyists for General Motors, Ford, Chrysler, Nissan, BMW and other automakers are working nonstop to contain the impact of whatever Congress might enact to either punish Toyota or to attempt to prevent a future recurrence of the gas pedal problems.
Execs should rehearse
Meanwhile, Toyota's attorneys and spinmeisters better be relentlessly rehearsing with whatever executive or executives who will surely be sweating bullets when facing questions from Congress next week.
Word is that Toyota's top U.S. official, Yoshimi Inaba, will testify about the recalls, a decision that may well be second-guessed if he doesn't do well.
Toyota would certainly take some grief if it sends only American executives to face Congress on behalf of a foreign-owned automakers. But veterans of the Ford-Firestone crisis can recount tales of nasty xenophobic feedback stemming from public appearances by Ford's then-CEO Jacques Nasser, a man of Lebanese descent with an Australian accent.
Danger lurks at every turn in the Toyota crisis, as Ray LaHood, the U.S. Transportation secretary, is discovering, too.
Peppered with questions about how well -- or not -- the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has handled the Toyota recalls, a flustered LaHood has been all over the map with his responses. He has talked tough about holding Toyota's "feet to the fire," yet also complimented the company for stopping sales and production of eight models. He advised the public Wednesday to "stop driving" recalled Toyota models, but said soon afterward that he had misspoken.
No doubt, the Toyota crisis creates opportunities for the Detroit-based automakers to bring some long-lost customers back to their showrooms.
But there's also dangerous potential fallout for all in this story, with lots of twists and turns to come.
http://www.freep.com/article/2010020...om-Toyota-woes
Rivals fear fallout from Toyota woes
BY TOM WALSH - DETROIT FREE PRESS COLUMNIST
As Toyota's troubles take on the scale of a huge mushroom cloud, executives of the Detroit Three and other auto companies are quietly worrying that dangerous fallout from the Toyota crisis could be heading their way.
Looming large on the horizon are congressional hearings, the first of which is next week, into Toyota's response to reports of unintended acceleration in some of its vehicles.
Congress doesn't hold high-profile hearings and then do nothing.
It often takes action -- with the precision of a sledgehammer, rather than a scalpel.
Remember the TREAD Act -- for Transportation Recall Enhancement, Accountability and Documentation -- enacted in October 2000 at the height of the furor over tire failure in Ford Explorers equipped with Firestone tires?
As a response to the Ford-Firestone brouhaha, Congress ordered a host of new regulations and reporting requirements for all vehicle and tire manufacturers, including tire-pressure monitoring systems for all new cars and trucks.
You can bet that lawyers and lobbyists for General Motors, Ford, Chrysler, Nissan, BMW and other automakers are working nonstop to contain the impact of whatever Congress might enact to either punish Toyota or to attempt to prevent a future recurrence of the gas pedal problems.
Execs should rehearse
Meanwhile, Toyota's attorneys and spinmeisters better be relentlessly rehearsing with whatever executive or executives who will surely be sweating bullets when facing questions from Congress next week.
Word is that Toyota's top U.S. official, Yoshimi Inaba, will testify about the recalls, a decision that may well be second-guessed if he doesn't do well.
Toyota would certainly take some grief if it sends only American executives to face Congress on behalf of a foreign-owned automakers. But veterans of the Ford-Firestone crisis can recount tales of nasty xenophobic feedback stemming from public appearances by Ford's then-CEO Jacques Nasser, a man of Lebanese descent with an Australian accent.
Danger lurks at every turn in the Toyota crisis, as Ray LaHood, the U.S. Transportation secretary, is discovering, too.
Peppered with questions about how well -- or not -- the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has handled the Toyota recalls, a flustered LaHood has been all over the map with his responses. He has talked tough about holding Toyota's "feet to the fire," yet also complimented the company for stopping sales and production of eight models. He advised the public Wednesday to "stop driving" recalled Toyota models, but said soon afterward that he had misspoken.
No doubt, the Toyota crisis creates opportunities for the Detroit-based automakers to bring some long-lost customers back to their showrooms.
But there's also dangerous potential fallout for all in this story, with lots of twists and turns to come.
http://www.freep.com/article/2010020...om-Toyota-woes
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#383
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Turns out that Ford Fusion and Mercury Milan Hybrids have brake issues similar to the 3rd-gen Prius. For more (including a video):
http://www.autoblog.com/2010/02/04/r...on-hybrid-mod/
http://www.autoblog.com/2010/02/04/r...on-hybrid-mod/
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#384
Lexus Test Driver
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I'm a member of some domestic forums and the ignorance and hatred toward Toyota (and other Japanese automakers) is even more astonishing now that these recalls have come up.
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#385
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Turns out that Ford Fusion and Mercury Milan Hybrids have brake issues similar to the 3rd-gen Prius. For more (including a video):
http://www.autoblog.com/2010/02/04/r...on-hybrid-mod/
http://www.autoblog.com/2010/02/04/r...on-hybrid-mod/
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#386
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I am still amazed at how much coverage the media is giving this. It seems like it gets worse and worse by the minute. This easily the most negative press Toyota has probably had in its history. I am sure they will be able to regain consumer confidence relatively quickly though.
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#387
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so on one hand you have analysts claiming Toyota quality went down because they are letting suppliers design parts, and on the other hand CTS says they did not design it.
So how can both be true?
And why did FORD RECALL VANS IN CHINA THAT HAVE CTS PEDALS?
http://www.calgaryherald.com/Ford+ha...550/story.html
Is Toyota designing FORD pedals these days? :-)
So how can both be true?
And why did FORD RECALL VANS IN CHINA THAT HAVE CTS PEDALS?
http://www.calgaryherald.com/Ford+ha...550/story.html
Is Toyota designing FORD pedals these days? :-)
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#388
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I could not believe that CNN.com was running this as its headline story: ![Egads!](https://www.clublexus.com/forums/images/smilies/pat.gif)
![](https://www.clublexus.com/forums/attachments/hs-250h-model/163668d1265344648-toyota-recalling-the-2010-prius-for-brake-system-issues-hs250h-next-lexuscnn.jpg)
http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapc...ex.html?hpt=T2
"List of problems" - that's very misleading.
Talk about rampant sensationalism, innuendo, and outright inaccuracy! Exposed some of their careless reporting here:
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/5200422-post4.html
![Egads!](https://www.clublexus.com/forums/images/smilies/pat.gif)
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http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapc...ex.html?hpt=T2
"List of problems" - that's very misleading.
Talk about rampant sensationalism, innuendo, and outright inaccuracy! Exposed some of their careless reporting here:
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/5200422-post4.html
I am still amazed at how much coverage the media is giving this. It seems like it gets worse and worse by the minute. This easily the most negative press Toyota has probably had in its history. I am sure they will be able to regain consumer confidence relatively quickly though.
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#389
Lexus Champion
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i understand the importance of getting your new Toyota back in the dealership to get the issue fixed, but the news is just totally murdering the image of Toyota cars until there's nothing let. Talk about forcing the rise of domestic cars. Pushing domestic cars back on the streets. Why didn't the news ever mentioned about Chevy's exploding gas tanks or the recommended tires on ford cars that had tire blow outs? This just sounds like a witch hunt to blame on Toyota.
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#390
Lexus Champion
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i understand the importance of getting your new Toyota back in the dealership to get the issue fixed, but the news is just totally murdering the image of Toyota cars until there's nothing let. Talk about forcing the rise of domestic cars. Pushing domestic cars back on the streets. Why didn't the news ever mentioned about Chevy's exploding gas tanks or the recommended tires on ford cars that had tire blow outs? This just sounds like a witch hunt to blame on Toyota.
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