正文
5 Reasons to Buy a Toyota
Comment Print By Rick Newman
Posted: March 2, 2010
It\'s hard to think of another company that nose-dived as fast as Toyota has. A few months ago, millions of drivers considered Toyota the gold standard for automobiles, with quality and reliability you could practically take for granted. Then came mysterious gas-pedal problems, claims of deadly sudden acceleration incidents, the global recall of more than 8 million vehicles, and vacillating assurances from shellshocked executives. The recalls could end up costing $2 billion or more. Toyota\'s sales have plunged, and its U.S. market share has fallen from 17 percent to 13 percent in just two months. The collapse rivals Enron or Lehman Brothers.
[See what Toyota could learn from Detroit.]
What\'s different about Toyota, though, is that it will recover. The automaker has deep pockets and tons of talent. Diffident CEO Akio Toyoda may not be the right man to lead Toyota through the worst crisis in its history, but sooner or later the company will regain control and get back on the pavement. It may even end up a better company than before. Meanwhile, Toyota automobiles could be a smart buy, with dealers forced to offer discounts and other incentives to move merchandise sullied by the scandal. Shoppers should research prices at sites like Edmunds.com or kbb.com to make sure that the price paid today is commensurate with the likely resale value down the road. If the price seems right, there are several other good reasons to buy a Toyota:
Safety concerns are exaggerated. The problems are serious, but political posturing in Washington and media hype have created the impression that every Toyota is dangerous. That\'s ridiculous. The sudden-acceleration incidents at the center of the controversy have been linked to 34 deaths over the past decade or so. Toyota has sold more than 20 million vehicles in the United States during that time. By those numbers, rough math suggests the odds of a sudden-acceleration fatality in a Toyota vehicle are on the order of 1 in 600,000—not exactly a death wish for somebody buying a Toyota. And those odds could end up much lower. Deaths now considered linked to sudden acceleration could later be proved to have been caused by something else—including drivers who were pressing the gas pedal instead of the brake. No driver wants to admit doing that, but the fact is, it happens.
[See 6 myths about car recalls.]
None of that is meant to disparage people who have been killed or hurt in a Toyota, and recent revelations depict a company that seemed unsympathetic to genuine complaints from customers. But the acceleration problem could turn out to be far less widespread than current hysteria suggests. It\'s worth recalling that the Audi sudden-acceleration incidents in the 1980s—at first thought to be related to vehicle flaws—were later proved to be entirely the fault of drivers. Meanwhile, by virtue of its woes, Toyota is probably paying more attention to safety right now than any other automaker, to include the extraordinary step of shutting down factories to retool the gas-pedal assembly in many popular models. Toyotas coming off the assembly line these days are probably subject to more quality control than most other cars on the market.
Recalls aren\'t the whole story. Being forced to recall millions of vehicles is a big deal, but Toyota still seems to perform better than other automakers when it comes to the kinds of complaints that lead to recalls. Data analyzed by Edmunds.com, for example, show that there have been many more complaints lodged against Toyota for sudden acceleration since 2005 than for any other automaker. But overall, Toyota has drawn far fewer complaints than most competitors, which is consistent with its once sterling reputation. Edmunds found that over the past 10 years, Toyota accounted for just 9.1 percent of all complaints filed with the government, even though it racked up 13.5 percent of all car sales. So despite the acceleration issue, Toyota still performs better than most in terms of complaints.
[See 10 fire-sale cars to avoid.]
Toyota\'s not alone. Internal documents showing that Toyota boasted of saving $100 million by avoiding a series of recalls make the Japanese automaker seem singularly sinister. But all automakers try to avoid recalls. Toyota just happens to be the one that got caught boasting about it, since it\'s the company under investigation right now—and subject to subpoena. And all carmakers know that the Obama administration is not industry friendly, as another embarrassing Toyota document put it. Obama, like Bush, is requiring steep improvement in fuel economy, which will force all automakers to invest heavily in new engine technologies. That arguably hurts the Detroit automakers most, since their fleets get the worst gas mileage and they have the farthest to go. And anybody who still has doubts should ask Rick Wagoner or Fritz Henderson if the Obama administration is industry friendly; they were both forced to resign as CEO of General Motors, in the midst of the company\'s bankruptcy and federal bailout.
The cars are still good. Of 18 Toyota vehicles, seven rank in the top three in their category in the U.S. News Best Car and Truck rankings, including the Avalon sedan, Sienna minivan, Sequoia SUV, and Venza crossover. Five of 12 Lexus vehicles rank in the top three. In its latest quality ratings, J. D. Power & Associates ranks Lexus first and Toyota seventh, out of 37 automotive brands. Consumer Reports named the Toyota Prius one of its 10 Best Picks for 2010, despite a recall involving brakes. And CR is poised to restore its coveted recommended status to eight vehicles it suspended from its ranking in the midst of the mushrooming recall controversy: the Avalon, Camry, Corolla, Highlander, Matrix, RAV4, Sequoia, and Tundra. Toyota\'s overall quality has slipped from the stratospheric highs of a few years ago, but there are still few automakers that can match its record across their entire fleet.
[See how Toyota stumbled in the first place.]
White-glove treatment. To win back customers and alleviate safety concerns, Toyota will pick up and return some recalled cars, so worried owners don\'t have to drive to the dealership. Toyota is also offering rental cars or rides to work to some owners getting their cars fixed. And CEO Toyoda has said that the company must start paying more attention to customers. Toyota certainly has room to rise: It ranks 17th out of 23 on J. D. Power\'s customer-service index. If Toyota is serious about rebuilding its business, it has to start by wooing skeptical consumers. That\'s a boon for buyers.
More Rick Newman posts
Reader Comments Read All 7 Comments
Add Comment
Toyota Witch Hunt
150 dealers in TX (10 percent of US total) have been polled for sudden acceleration problems. There was not one complaint reported. I have owned Toyota\'s since 1974 with zero problems that required any service other than routine maintenance. The gas bags in Washington in the O\'bammboozlers administration dont like Toyota because the workers are not members of the UAW union.
[report comment]
Bill Planey of TX @ Mar 02, 2010 17:02:28 PM
Great artical
Wonderful artical finally someone with some common sense. Every car manufacturer has had their issues and since Toyota by far has had the least amount when they have one it becomes a witch hunt (thanks ed allen of texas). GM has major quality issues and since this has come out now every death in a toyota is being blamed on a stuck gas pedel instead of someones lead foot. Look at how many recalls GM has had over the years. Most of Toyota branded vehicals are built by americans for americans in the USA. more and more GM products are being produced out of the country like mexico and now there is talks of a factory in china to export back to usa. Way to go GM.
[report comment]
JL of OH @ Mar 02, 2010 16:56:20 PM
Ed Allen of Texas
Show me one fatal accident that has been proven the fault of Toyota. I am waiting........it has been a Toyota Witch Hunt (Business Week)
I am an American and along with almost a million other Americas we are proud to be associated with Toyota, which makes more of their vehicles in the US than either Ford or Chevrolet.
Did I see that GM recalled over a million vehicles today and Ford is having problems with the air bags on the F-150. Guess not.
[report comment]
Ed Allen of TX @ Mar 02, 2010 16:13:34 PM
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The global economy is mysterious, even scary. Chief Business Correspondent Rick Newman connects the dots. In addition to his writing for U.S. News, Rick is the co-author of two books: Firefight: Inside the Battle to Save the Pentagon on 9/11, and Bury Us Upside Down: The Misty Pilots and the Secret Battle for the Ho Chi Minh Trail.
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Recent Posts Archives Why Everybody Loses When Nobody Trusts Anybody
How Toyota is Doing Fat-Cat Bankers a Favor
What Detroit Can Teach Toyota
What Tiger Woods and Toyota Have in Common
Why Politicians Can\'t Create Real Jobs
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Comment Print By Rick Newman
Posted: March 2, 2010
It\'s hard to think of another company that nose-dived as fast as Toyota has. A few months ago, millions of drivers considered Toyota the gold standard for automobiles, with quality and reliability you could practically take for granted. Then came mysterious gas-pedal problems, claims of deadly sudden acceleration incidents, the global recall of more than 8 million vehicles, and vacillating assurances from shellshocked executives. The recalls could end up costing $2 billion or more. Toyota\'s sales have plunged, and its U.S. market share has fallen from 17 percent to 13 percent in just two months. The collapse rivals Enron or Lehman Brothers.
[See what Toyota could learn from Detroit.]
What\'s different about Toyota, though, is that it will recover. The automaker has deep pockets and tons of talent. Diffident CEO Akio Toyoda may not be the right man to lead Toyota through the worst crisis in its history, but sooner or later the company will regain control and get back on the pavement. It may even end up a better company than before. Meanwhile, Toyota automobiles could be a smart buy, with dealers forced to offer discounts and other incentives to move merchandise sullied by the scandal. Shoppers should research prices at sites like Edmunds.com or kbb.com to make sure that the price paid today is commensurate with the likely resale value down the road. If the price seems right, there are several other good reasons to buy a Toyota:
Safety concerns are exaggerated. The problems are serious, but political posturing in Washington and media hype have created the impression that every Toyota is dangerous. That\'s ridiculous. The sudden-acceleration incidents at the center of the controversy have been linked to 34 deaths over the past decade or so. Toyota has sold more than 20 million vehicles in the United States during that time. By those numbers, rough math suggests the odds of a sudden-acceleration fatality in a Toyota vehicle are on the order of 1 in 600,000—not exactly a death wish for somebody buying a Toyota. And those odds could end up much lower. Deaths now considered linked to sudden acceleration could later be proved to have been caused by something else—including drivers who were pressing the gas pedal instead of the brake. No driver wants to admit doing that, but the fact is, it happens.
[See 6 myths about car recalls.]
None of that is meant to disparage people who have been killed or hurt in a Toyota, and recent revelations depict a company that seemed unsympathetic to genuine complaints from customers. But the acceleration problem could turn out to be far less widespread than current hysteria suggests. It\'s worth recalling that the Audi sudden-acceleration incidents in the 1980s—at first thought to be related to vehicle flaws—were later proved to be entirely the fault of drivers. Meanwhile, by virtue of its woes, Toyota is probably paying more attention to safety right now than any other automaker, to include the extraordinary step of shutting down factories to retool the gas-pedal assembly in many popular models. Toyotas coming off the assembly line these days are probably subject to more quality control than most other cars on the market.
Recalls aren\'t the whole story. Being forced to recall millions of vehicles is a big deal, but Toyota still seems to perform better than other automakers when it comes to the kinds of complaints that lead to recalls. Data analyzed by Edmunds.com, for example, show that there have been many more complaints lodged against Toyota for sudden acceleration since 2005 than for any other automaker. But overall, Toyota has drawn far fewer complaints than most competitors, which is consistent with its once sterling reputation. Edmunds found that over the past 10 years, Toyota accounted for just 9.1 percent of all complaints filed with the government, even though it racked up 13.5 percent of all car sales. So despite the acceleration issue, Toyota still performs better than most in terms of complaints.
[See 10 fire-sale cars to avoid.]
Toyota\'s not alone. Internal documents showing that Toyota boasted of saving $100 million by avoiding a series of recalls make the Japanese automaker seem singularly sinister. But all automakers try to avoid recalls. Toyota just happens to be the one that got caught boasting about it, since it\'s the company under investigation right now—and subject to subpoena. And all carmakers know that the Obama administration is not industry friendly, as another embarrassing Toyota document put it. Obama, like Bush, is requiring steep improvement in fuel economy, which will force all automakers to invest heavily in new engine technologies. That arguably hurts the Detroit automakers most, since their fleets get the worst gas mileage and they have the farthest to go. And anybody who still has doubts should ask Rick Wagoner or Fritz Henderson if the Obama administration is industry friendly; they were both forced to resign as CEO of General Motors, in the midst of the company\'s bankruptcy and federal bailout.
The cars are still good. Of 18 Toyota vehicles, seven rank in the top three in their category in the U.S. News Best Car and Truck rankings, including the Avalon sedan, Sienna minivan, Sequoia SUV, and Venza crossover. Five of 12 Lexus vehicles rank in the top three. In its latest quality ratings, J. D. Power & Associates ranks Lexus first and Toyota seventh, out of 37 automotive brands. Consumer Reports named the Toyota Prius one of its 10 Best Picks for 2010, despite a recall involving brakes. And CR is poised to restore its coveted recommended status to eight vehicles it suspended from its ranking in the midst of the mushrooming recall controversy: the Avalon, Camry, Corolla, Highlander, Matrix, RAV4, Sequoia, and Tundra. Toyota\'s overall quality has slipped from the stratospheric highs of a few years ago, but there are still few automakers that can match its record across their entire fleet.
[See how Toyota stumbled in the first place.]
White-glove treatment. To win back customers and alleviate safety concerns, Toyota will pick up and return some recalled cars, so worried owners don\'t have to drive to the dealership. Toyota is also offering rental cars or rides to work to some owners getting their cars fixed. And CEO Toyoda has said that the company must start paying more attention to customers. Toyota certainly has room to rise: It ranks 17th out of 23 on J. D. Power\'s customer-service index. If Toyota is serious about rebuilding its business, it has to start by wooing skeptical consumers. That\'s a boon for buyers.
More Rick Newman posts
Reader Comments Read All 7 Comments
Add Comment
Toyota Witch Hunt
150 dealers in TX (10 percent of US total) have been polled for sudden acceleration problems. There was not one complaint reported. I have owned Toyota\'s since 1974 with zero problems that required any service other than routine maintenance. The gas bags in Washington in the O\'bammboozlers administration dont like Toyota because the workers are not members of the UAW union.
[report comment]
Bill Planey of TX @ Mar 02, 2010 17:02:28 PM
Great artical
Wonderful artical finally someone with some common sense. Every car manufacturer has had their issues and since Toyota by far has had the least amount when they have one it becomes a witch hunt (thanks ed allen of texas). GM has major quality issues and since this has come out now every death in a toyota is being blamed on a stuck gas pedel instead of someones lead foot. Look at how many recalls GM has had over the years. Most of Toyota branded vehicals are built by americans for americans in the USA. more and more GM products are being produced out of the country like mexico and now there is talks of a factory in china to export back to usa. Way to go GM.
[report comment]
JL of OH @ Mar 02, 2010 16:56:20 PM
Ed Allen of Texas
Show me one fatal accident that has been proven the fault of Toyota. I am waiting........it has been a Toyota Witch Hunt (Business Week)
I am an American and along with almost a million other Americas we are proud to be associated with Toyota, which makes more of their vehicles in the US than either Ford or Chevrolet.
Did I see that GM recalled over a million vehicles today and Ford is having problems with the air bags on the F-150. Guess not.
[report comment]
Ed Allen of TX @ Mar 02, 2010 16:13:34 PM
Add Your Thoughts
Title
Comment 3000 characters left About YouName Email State - state - AL AK AZ AR CA CO CT DE DC FL GA HI ID IL IN IA KS KY LA ME MD MA MI MN MS MO MT NE NV NH NJ NM NY NC ND OH OK OR PA RI SC SD TN TX UT VT VA WA WV WI WY International advertisement
Ads by Pulse 360Get listed here
Acai Berry EXPOSED (Lake Zurich: Report)
Lake Zurich Warning: Health Reporter Discovers The Shocking Truth!
News6Report.com
Rick Newman
The global economy is mysterious, even scary. Chief Business Correspondent Rick Newman connects the dots. In addition to his writing for U.S. News, Rick is the co-author of two books: Firefight: Inside the Battle to Save the Pentagon on 9/11, and Bury Us Upside Down: The Misty Pilots and the Secret Battle for the Ho Chi Minh Trail.
RSS flowchart@usnews.com advertisement
Recent Posts Archives Why Everybody Loses When Nobody Trusts Anybody
How Toyota is Doing Fat-Cat Bankers a Favor
What Detroit Can Teach Toyota
What Tiger Woods and Toyota Have in Common
Why Politicians Can\'t Create Real Jobs
2010: March | February | January
2009: December | November | October | September | August | July | June | May | April | March | February | January
2008: December | November | October | September | August | July | June | May | April | March | February | January
2007: December | November | October | September
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Subscribe
U.S. News Digital Weekly
A weekly insider\'s guide to politics and policy — in a multimedia, digital format. 52 issues for $19.95!
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