[Big Bang]

I'm pretty surprised there's no thread here on APH about the Toyota recall.

9 million Cars! Floor mat recall, Accelerator pedal recall, Anti-lock brake software recall, holy **** they're in deep trouble.

[chconline]

There has been significant amounts of topics with regards to the Toyota recall at various automotive blogs I frequent, and I agree with you that Toyota is really in deep waters right now. Both mainstream news coverage and online media has been very frequent and lots of things such as explicit coverups have been unveiled In the end, Toyota wants to beat GM, now they are the new GM.

[TL6MT]

Toyota is not doing enough testing and design with their products to beat GM. The build quality of their products is pretty ****ty lately and their recall problems have been there for many years. It wasnt until recently the CHP officer died in an ES that set all their problems off.

[chconline]

Here's an interesting article to read:

http://autos.yahoo.c...n-about-toyota/

Quote

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Despite a torrent of high-profile recalls that have tarnished Toyota's once stellar reputation, a study published Wednesday reveals that the automaker actually gets fewer customer complaints per car than the majority of its competitors.

Edmunds.com reviewed more than 200,000 complaints filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) over the last decade and found that Toyota ranked 17th among the top 20 automakers in the overall number of complaints per vehicle sold.

The results come amid a series of recalls totaling more than 8.1 million Toyotas worldwide, including 400,000 of the popular 2010 Prius hybrid for problems associated with sticking brake pedals, software glitches and faulty floormats.

The study was based on the percentage of complaints each automaker received versus the total number of vehicles they sold in the United States between 2001 and 2010.

As a result, British carmaker Land Rover had the highest proportion of complaints relative to the number of cars it sold. The company received 0.6% of the total complaints in the database, while its sales amounted to only 0.1% of all new cars sold in the United States.

Meanwhile, Toyota had 9.1% of all the complaints in the database. But the company was number 17 on the list because its sales made up 13.5% of the U.S. market.

According to the study, Toyota had fewer complaints than its American rivals. Ford was number 10 on the list, while General Motors came in at number 11.

The only automakers to receive fewer complaints than Toyota were Mercedes-Benz, Porsche and the Mercedes-made Smart Car.

Among the other automakers that ranked high on the list were Suzuki and Isuzu, which came in at numbers 2 and 3 respectively. German automaker Volkswagen came in at number 4.

The complaints lodged against Toyota ranged from minor problems with lighting to more serious issues such as sudden acceleration and difficulty steering. But the study did not rate the reported incidences for severity.

Edmunds.com said that it found some unreliable reports in the database, including one complaint indicating that 99 people had died in one vehicle as a result of an accident. It also said that about 10% of the complaints appeared to be duplicates.

Quality control: Not just Toyota's problem

While the issues raised by Toyota's recent recalls shouldn't be overlooked, quality control concerns are apparent across the entire automobile industry, said Jeremy Anwyl, Edmunds.com chief executive.

"A broader view shows that consumer complaints reflect an industry issue, not just a Toyota issue," said Anwyl. "It is no longer an option for car companies to dismiss consumer complaints, even if the event is difficult to replicate or diagnose."

Some automakers assume that customer complaints are the result of driver error and not necessarily a reflection of design problems, said Jeannine Fallon, an Edmunds.com analyst.

"It depends on the culture of the car company," she said. "But it's clear now that Toyota has not had very many conversations with NHTSA."

[shc-boomer]

Ouch, what can I say? This is what happens you grow a little too fast for your own good. Yes, you may have sold a lot of cars. But at what price? Reliability and the quality that used to be Toyota is just obviously not there.

[chconline]

Toyota has gone as far as going way too fast in their development cycles, that they actually had to slow them down. The problem with that is that they clearly aren't going through sufficient prototype testing.

[TL6MT]

They even made an Advertisement for that -

[chconline]

In latest news...

http://www.autoblog....ining-tacoma-u/

Also the recall from NHTSA as attached:

Quote

PRESS RELEASE

Report Date : February 15, 2010 at 11:58 AM
NHTSA Campaign ID number : 10V040000

Vehicle Make / Model: Model Year(s):
TOYOTA / CAMRY 2010
Manufacturer: TOYOTA MOTOR NORTH AMERICA, INC. Mfr's Report Date: FEB 09, 2010

NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID Number: 10V040000
N/A
NHTSA Action Number: N/A
Component: SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC
Potential Number of Units Affected: 7314

Summary:
TOYOTA IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2010 CAMRYS. THE LENGTH OF THE POWER STEERING PRESSURE HOSE ON VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH THE 4-CYLINDER (2AR-FE) ENGINE MAY BE INSUFFICIENT, SUCH THAT THE GAP BETWEEN THE CRIMP ON THE PRESSURE HOSE AND THE BRAKE TUBE FOR THE LEFT REAR BRAKE MAY BE INSUFFICIENT. UNDER THESE CIRCUMSTANCES THE BRAKE TUBE MAY INTERFERE WITH THE CRIMP AND MAY WEAR AND THEN PERFORATE.

Consequence:
A BRAKE TUBE PERFORATION MAY RESULT IN BRAKE FLUID LEAKAGE. A LEAK IN BRAKE FLUID MAY IMPACT BRAKING PERFORMANCE INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH.
Remedy:

TOYOTA WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND, IF NECESSARY, DEALERS WILL REPLACE OR ADJUST THE BRAKE TUBE FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN DURING MARCH 2010. OWNERS MAY CONTACT TOYOTA AT 1-800-331-4331.

Notes:
OWNERS MAY ALSO CONTACT THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION'S VEHICLE SAFETY HOTLINE AT 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), OR GO TO HTTP://WWW.SAFERCAR.GOV .

[shc-boomer]

Ouch, well since your image is taking a hit might as well recall it all at once.

[Big Bang]

When it rains, it pours... Toyota is trying their best not to blame their Customers when most Sudden Acceleration complaints are due to stupid drivers. Still won't buy a Toyota though.

[chconline]

Here's a good article to read. Quite a long one, but definitely worth it:

Quote

Toyota Motor Corp, the world's most dominant and profitable automaker, was not accustomed to outsiders telling it what to do, let alone some obscure bureaucrat from the United States, whose own car industry was on taxpayer-funded life support.

But in the middle of December, on a cloudy day in the middle of the Japanese archipelago's main island, Ron Medford, the acting head of the U.S. agency that regulates auto safety, was reading Toyota executives the riot act.

Medford had been quietly dispatched by the Obama administration to deliver a firm message: Toyota, he told them, had better get its act together, according to U.S. regulators.

By the time Medford arrived in Japan, Toyota was working through a recall that would involve over 5 million vehicles in the United States. The problem was mundane but potentially lethal: floor mats were trapping the accelerator pedal.

U.S. safety regulators had tied five deaths to accidents where that seemed to be the cause, and there were growing doubts about whether the Toyota floormat and pedal design -- a relatively cheap fix -- was the only flaw that needed to be addressed.

Over the prior seven years, the number of U.S. consumer complaints about unintended acceleration in Toyota cars had been steadily climbing, hitting 400 reported cases for the 2007 model year, according to an analysis of National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) data.

But five previous investigations into Toyota opened by NHTSA under the Bush administration had hit a dead end, with no action taken. Two safety probes resulted in relatively cheap floormat recalls by Toyota in 2007 and early 2009. Neither attracted much notice.

[continued]

http://www.reuters.c...E61851220100209

[shc-boomer]

Wow, that was a long read. Very informative though.

[Big Bang]

Seems like Toyota chief will not be attending US hearings and will do some "quality Reforms".

Conceding that breakneck expansion led to Toyota Motor Corp.'s current recall crisis, President Akio Toyoda outlined reforms meant to get quality back on track, including more active use of the car's so-called black box crash data recorder.

Toyoda, grandson of the carmaker's founder, also indicated he won't sit before Congressional hearings into the quality lapses that have triggered recalls of more than 8.5 million vehicles since last fall.

Yoshimi Inaba, the head of Toyota's U.S. operations, is best suited to testify before the lawmakers because he is most familiar with the local U.S. market, Toyoda said.

“Mr. Inaba and our executives in North America have my highest level of trust, and I am sure they are well equipped to respond,” Toyoda, 53, said a news conference today. “I will focus on internal reform to improve quality and support Inaba from our headquarters.”

Toyoda said that he still plans to visit the United States to rally workers, dealers and suppliers. The details and timing of the trip are still being worked out, he said.

Toyoda is under pressure to visit the United States, historically Toyota's most profitable market, in the wake of a recall emergency that began last fall in the United States and has snowballed to a global level. Among the recalls were two massive actions to address unintended acceleration in Toyota and Lexus cars and another to fix an antilock braking glitch in the Prius.

Inaba is to testify Feb. 24 before the House Oversight Committee. The hearing comes amid a fresh investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration into whether Toyota acted too slowly in announcing its recalls or failed to include enough vehicles.

A congressional Republican spokesman said today the House Oversight Committee will ask "all the right questions" of Toyota.

"I would think given the tremendous scrutiny Mr. Toyoda and his company are under, he would have seized the opportunity to personally appear and use the hearing as a forum to move forward," Kurt Bardella, spokesman for U.S. Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., the ranking member of the House Oversight Committee, said in an e-mail.

"Obviously, Mr. Toyoda is not as eager to give Congress and the American people answers as we first thought. It's telling that the only way he'll come before the Oversight Committee is by formal invitation."

Reform rollout

In Tokyo, Toyoda outlined several new measures meant to improve quality. The automaker will:

• Appoint a chief quality officer for each geographic region;

• Expand the network of local technical offices to conduct on-site troubleshooting;

• Install brake-override systems on all future models worldwide;

• Make better use of the onboard data event recorders to analyze accidents.

The overhaul builds on more general improvements outlined by Toyoda earlier this month. Toyoda said then he would chair a newly created a Special Committee for Global Quality.

The regional chief quality officers will sit on that committee and be responsible for rounding up customer feedback so the company can react more quickly when problems arise.

The global committee will hold its first meeting March 30.

Toyota will also equip all models worldwide with a brake-override system that will cut power to the engine if there is a conflicting signal between the gas pedal and brake. It had already announced that all new cars in North America would be getting the technology.

Finally, Toyota said it will more actively use the data collected in vehicle event data recorders. These devices are similar to the black boxes on aircraft and record information, such as vehicle and engine speed, in the seconds immediately before a crash.

“By reading the data, we will be able to identify causes more quickly,” Shinichi Sasaki, executive vice president in charge of quality, said at the press conference.

“I think this will result in substantial improvement in our analytical capability.”

Too big, too fast

President Toyoda said setting up new technical offices, beginning with the United States, will enable field engineers to assess customer complaints quickly and nip problems in the bud. The goal is to be able to conduct on-site inspections within 24 hours of any reported malfunction.

Also on tap: “Customer First” training centers to inculcate local workers in “The Toyota Way.''

Toyoda said human resource training hasn't kept pace with the carmaker's explosive growth over the past decade. In fact, the world's largest automaker lost sight of matching production to actual demand, a keystone tenet of the company's business strategy, he said.

“With the rapid expansion of production, perhaps we weren't able to develop appropriate engineering skills and human resources,” Toyoda said. “The basic rule of the Toyota Production System is build only as many cars as can match demand, and we ourselves broke that rule.”

Editor's note: An earlier version of this story contained the incorrect date for the U.S. House Oversight Committee's Toyota hearing. The correct date is Wednesday, Feb. 24.

http://www.autonews..../100219873/1147

[shc-boomer]

Whoa, thanks for the information Big Bang!

[chconline]

At least they're finally doing something about it. Also:

http://www.autoblog....cret-documents/

Quote

According to a report by Automotive News, the House Oversight Committee has issued a subpoena to former Toyota lawyer Dimitrios Biller requiring him to submit secret documents to Congress in advance of a February 24 hearing about the Japanese automaker's unintended acceleration issues. Biller is required to submit the reported four 18-inch bank boxes of documents to Congress by February 23. Biller filed a federal racketeering suit against his former employer over the summer.

Just one week ago Toyota won a temporary injunction against Biller barring the lawyer from releasing any of the secret documents. Biller's lawyer, Jeffrey Allen, says the congressional subpoena supersedes the injunction and that Biller intends to supply the documents by the February 23 deadline. Biller contends that Toyota destroyed multiple documents that could have implicated the automaker in SUV rollover cases. In late September, Texas Judge T. John Ward ordered Toyota not to destroy any crash informaton.

Toyota is suing Biller for $33.5 million for divulging confidential information and Biller's lawyer contends that Toyota's ex-lawyer flew to Japan and tried for four days to get executives to air his concerns over the handling of the information. Biller was then reportedly asked to resign and given a severance.

The February 24 House Oversight meeting has still more drama due to the fact that Toyota President Akio Toyoda will testify before the committee. Toyoda originally planned to leave the testifying to Yoshimi Inaba, president of Toyota's operations in North America. That changed when committee chairman Edolphus Towns (D-NY) sent a formal letter to the Toyota president requesting his presence.

We're not sure how the alleged SUV rollover info is relevant to unintended acceleration, but the bigger picture may be that congress is looking into whether Toyota has a history of hiding evidence that could potentially paint the company in a bad light.

[shc-boomer]

Thanks for the latest updates chc.

This post has been edited by shc-boomer: 19 February 2010 - 06:08 PM

[chconline]

Scroll up to TL's post.

[TL6MT]

http://blog.truecar.com/?p=2058

Quote

The big news: as of February 15, Honda is atop the industry in retail sales (excluding fleet and rental sales). A gain of 1.8% in market share gives Honda 13% of the market, putting them above Toyota (12.1% after suffering a loss of 5.4%) and Ford (11.7% after gaining 1.1%). On the flip side, Chevrolet lost 0.3% retail market share so far, despite aggressive marketing and incentives, designed to steal market share. It is likely that heavy fleet & rental sales for particularly domestic brands will change these rankings by the end of February, but the below data gives us an accurate read of what’s really going on in the retail market.

Holy ****.

[chconline]

^ Whoa no way. What's boosting Honda sales so much?

By the way, here's an excellent article at TTAC:

http://www.thetrutha...sis-commentary/

A 6-part series on Toyota gas pedals.

[shc-boomer]

Woot, too bad they can't say the same for Acura eh? They really need to pump some life into their Acura brand. They were never really a luxury brand but more of a sporty brand. They have lost their way there.