Leadership and public confidence are both equally fragile. Delicate is the balance of staying in the public’s favor which is done by consistently deliverifair and quality product or service.
Last Thursday, Toyota Motor Corporation recalled yet another 2.3 million cars and trucks for faulty gas pedals. This begs the question at what point will this impact Toyota’s long tern market share and sales? Thursday's action came on the heels of a recent recall of 4.2 million Toyota and Lexus products because floor mats could cause the accelerator to jam down.
In the immediate term the company stopped non-Japanese production of eight (8) vehicles including the 2009-2010 RAV4, 2009-2010 Corolla, 2009-2010 Matrix, 2005-2010 Avalon, 2007-2010 Camry, 2010 Highlander, 2007-2010 Tundra and 2008-2010 Sequoia.
Word about customer complaints regarding faulty pedals, specifically sudden accelerations, are as far reaching as 2005 and 2006. In a news release on November 6, 2009, Toyota said “The questions of unintended acceleration involving Toyota and Lexus vehicles has been on of the most thoroughly and repeatedly investigated issues by Toyota as well as engineers at the NHTSA. Six times in the past six years, the NHTSA has undertaken and exhaustive review of allegations of unintended acceleration on Toyota and Lexus vehicles, and six times the agency closed the investigation without finding any electronic engine control system malfunction.” Now, just three months later, Toyota officials say that the problem is clearly not an electronics one.
Questions for Toyota are not likely to end. Two Congressional committee hearings are planned, beginning February 10th. A full page Toyota advert was in the New York Times over the weekend proclaiming that the driving public‘s safety is number one with apologies for the inconvenience. In essence, Toyota cares. It appears they do care, but what will the impact and the findings of the Congressional hearings play on public’s sentiment?
So, what is the staying power of Toyota in this operational and safety chaotic fury? Especially on top of already fierce competition from Ford, Hyundai and KIA? There will be a short-term market drop in sales, no doubt. How long that will last may be impacted more by next week’s findings. But, over time, this may be a quality hiccup for all to learn from. At the end of the day, Toyota consumers are very loyal and most of us have short-tension spans, and can be very forgiving. Let’s see just how soon American’s forget about this and get back buying another Toyota.
Drive Your Bargain,
Anne
www.twitter.com/womendrivers
