Auto Industry Update
Toyota Resale Values Take Another Hit
Posted: Feb. 09, 2010 10:02:37 a.m.
“The Toyota in your garage,” ABC News reports, “Is losing value by the week.” In the wake of a series of high-profile safety recalls, the company’s public image has taken a hit – and sales of used Toyotas have slowed.
The used car value analysts at Kelley Blue Book “dropped the resale values of recalled Toyotas for the second time in four days Monday, leaving them as much as 4 percent or $300 to $750 lower than a week ago ...
Report: Toyota Dealers Pull Ads to 'Punish' Recall Coverage
Posted: Feb. 09, 2010 10:02:03 a.m.
Some Toyota dealers are not happy with heavy media coverage of the company’s recent reliability problems. The world’s largest Toyota dealership group is reportedly taking action by pulling advertising from media outlets that have given the company’s recent safety recalls heavy coverage.
Autoblog reports, “Southeast Toyota, which is the largest franchised distributor of Toyota vehicles in the world with 173 dealers in Florida, Georgia, Alabama, North Carolina & South Carolina, has reportedly pulled all of its advertising from ...
Toyota Giving Dealers Cash to "Do The Right Thing" For Customers
Posted: Feb. 04, 2010 11:02:17 a.m.
Toyota owners, listen up. If your local dealership hasn’t answered your concerns about the recent safety recalls over potentially faulty accelerator pedals and slipping floor mats, don’t give up asking. Toyota’s corporate leadership has given dealers extra resources for dealing with customer problems.
The Detroit News reports, “Toyota Motor Corp. is giving U.S. dealers payments of up to $75,000 to help win back customers' trust in the wake of a massive safety recall.” The company ...
2010 World Car of the Year Nominees Announced
Posted: Feb. 04, 2010 11:02:07 a.m.
Ten cars have been nominated for the 2010 World Car of the Year award. Edmunds Inside Line reports, “The WCOTY awards, now in their seventh year and always presented at the New York auto show, are becoming ever more prestigious and influential.” The winner will be chosen by a jury of 59 auto writers from 23 countries.
In a press release, the WCOTY jury explains, “The jurors' next step is to re-evaluate the ’top ten’ cars in both classes, in ...
Ford, GM, Others See Sales Recover in January; Toyota Slips
Posted: Feb. 03, 2010 10:02:46 a.m.
With one notable exception, the auto industry showed signs of recovery in January. Battered by bad publicity and prohibited from selling eight popular models, Toyota saw its sales slip dramatically. But Ford, General Motors, Hyundai and others sales increase last month.
Industry-wide, CNN reports, “auto sales rose 6 percent in January. Ford Motor, General Motors, Nissan and Korean automaker Hyundai Motor all reported improved January sales compared to a year ago. But Honda Motor and Chrysler both said January sales ...
Feds: We Had To Force Toyota Into Recall
Posted: Feb. 03, 2010 10:02:47 a.m.
Toyota is busy trying to repair its public image after one of the most high-profile safety recalls in history, but U.S. government officials aren’t helping. Federal safety regulators have announced that they may penalize Toyota for its failure to take action, and toughen safety rules to keep automakers from behaving like Toyota in the future. To make matters worse for the automaker, the U.S. Secretary of Transportation just called the Japanese automaker “a little safety deaf.”
It ...
Could Non-Toyota Vehicles Face Unintended Acceleration?
Posted: Feb. 02, 2010 10:02:27 a.m.
Toyota’s public image has taken a beating recently, after the automaker was forced to halt sales of eight popular models over concerns they could face a problem with sudden, unintended acceleration. Some engineers, however, warn that the problem may not stay confined to Toyota products.
The Detroit Free Press explains, “In today's complex cars, a cell phone, satellite radio or even a restaurant's large microwave could -- in theory -- cause the accelerator to surge out of control, according ...
Toyota: "We're Sorry. Have a Donut."
Posted: Feb. 02, 2010 10:02:56 a.m.
Toyota has a PR problem. And a solution. Krispy Kremes. Mmmmmmmm.
Toyota executives are on a mission to limit fallout from the company’s high-profile decision to halt sales of eight models and recall more than 4 million cars due to a possible problem with unintended acceleration. The Detroit News reports, “On Sunday, Toyota took out full-page ads in 20 major newspapers to reassure its customers.” The ad, portraying the sales halt as “a temporary pause to put you first ...
GM, Chinese Company Still Negotiating Over Hummer
Posted: Feb. 02, 2010 10:02:45 a.m.
When it comes to selling off the brands it no longer wants, General Motors’ track record is not good. A proposed sale of Saturn fell through, leading GM to shut down that brand. Saab survived, only because a second buyer stepped up after the first planned sale fell through. And Hummer…well, that one’s still up in the air.
Reuters reports that GM and the Chinese company bidding to buy Hummer, Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industry Machinery, have “agreed to ...
Toyota's Plan to Fix Millions of Pedals; Some Dealers Open 24 Hours
Posted: Feb. 01, 2010 11:02:14 a.m.
Worried Toyota owners will be happy to hear that the Japanese automaker has announced details of a plan to repair 4.2 million vehicles worldwide (2.3 million in the U.S.) recalled due to a gas pedal defect that could lead to unintended acceleration.
Autoblog explains, “The fix involves installing a ‘precision-cut steel reinforcement bar’ into the pedal assembly that will reduce friction between a shoe and the adjoining surface, the place where Toyota has found these defective pedals ...
