Is Toyota Growing Too Fast?

I guess it is US auto makers are shrinking too fast...

I guess it wouldn't be a week without some newspaper publishing this story, and without 009 finding it.

I try.... But the real question is when will it level off?

yes.

yes. sez ALL toyota's competitors who are losing customers like crazy. ;)

Toyota is growing pretty fast, Will. Internationally, domestically, you name it.

^Busy sending get well cards to the president who got socked in the face by striking laborers.

GM had a simular issue and quality became an issue. This is becoming an issue with Toyota as well.

wat wud u rather a shit company like GM to grow more than it has?!?!? all GM is doing is eating itself alive!!! soon it will be dead!!!! I CAN'T WAIT FOR THE B*TCH TO DIE!!!!!!!!

Toyota makes mostly good cars (even if I find them boring).
So do all the other Japanese makers, although Subaru and Honda probably have better 4-cyl engines, and Nissan's V6 is probably the best in the world.

But Toyota has the BEST Marketing of any company.
They started brain-washing people about "Toyota Quality" in the 1980's ... a time when Detroit was producing the worst garbage on 4 wheels imaginable. Compared to the "Big 3", their cars were much better, and it worked (at least in North America).

They continue to milk that reputation (part of it earned, part of it questionable, especially the practice of telling every customer with a problem: "We've never seen that before -- you must have been abusing the vehicle!" -- look on Edmunds for lots of customers fuming about that).

But by and large, you can lump Toyota and Sony into the same mold ... they are bought by people who are not technologically knowledgable and are worried about buying a "bad product". They are fairly confident that they will get a "better than average" product.

Its a "safe bet", and that works in North America where there are lots of people who know nothing about cars. It doesn't work in the rest of the world where so many people are car nuts, but its the US where they are seeing great gains.

As cars get more complex and the number of truly knowledgable people dwindles, their sales will continue to rise.
There is no end in sight.
Congratulations Toyota, on having the best marketing in the Auto Industry!

the best marketing in the world will not succeed to the extent toyota's has, IF THE PRODUCTS THEMSELVES are not ALSO SUPERIOR to the competition's.

you may believe "toyota reliability" is JUST a myth and/or product of PR.

lemme tell you something. i bought my first new car in 1971. i shopped ALL cars in the segment, except VW (which i viewed as technically obsolete, despite its popularity).

my final choice was made on the basis of engineering specs, AND style. it was a toyota corona hardtop. at that time, toyota had NOT yet established a reputation for reliability.

the cost to me of replacing FAILED parts, was less than $25 in the first SEVEN YEARS of ownership.

my '94 toyota truck has required ZERO dollars to date, to replace failed parts. every "repair" expense has been just for replacement of NORMAL WEAR and TEAR items.

i challenge you to name ANY other brand, REGARDLESS OF PRICE LEVEL, that can claim similar bulletproof reliability.

toyota has been cranking out reliable, low operating cost cars and trucks like that since at least the early '70s. their reputation has been EARNED, and is NOT "merely PR."

ApexAlex: "my '94 toyota truck has required ZERO dollars to date, to replace failed parts. every "repair" expense has been just for replacement of NORMAL WEAR and TEAR items.

i challenge you to name ANY other brand, REGARDLESS OF PRICE LEVEL, that can claim similar bulletproof reliability."

I have a '92 VW 1-ton crew-cab with the same reliability. Its seen more off-road use than 1000 SUVs combined (as a work-truck installing underground power-lines to house sites BEFORE the roads were even in place, it spent ~1/2 its first few years off-road). My '98 VW TDI Beetle has broken power window switches. Other than that, with over 210,000 kms on it, its only had tires, brakes and the battery replaced ... same clutch, exhaust, and the brakes lasted 200,000 miles (125,000 miles).

The point is, MOST cars are reliable these days (with the exception of low-end Detroit products). So, YES - TOYOTAS are reliable. So are Nissan, Honda, Subaru, Mazda, Hyundai, Audi, VW with a few exceptions in each brand (including Toyota: the Tercel was a piece of crap, and the Matrix isn't much better).

??? '92 VW 1-ton crew-cabs...

such a beast existed??? never saw one.

As Americans waistlines grow so do Toyota sales. Don't get me wrong Toyota makes a great car if you are a bloated soft body. If you are looking for a drivers car look elsewhere.

as americans have gotten spoiled in this age of disposable products (if it stops working, throw it away and get a new one), they have likewise gotten a taste for RELIABLE vehicles. disposing of unreliable cars is TOO COSTLY. NOT disposing of 'em and trying to keep 'em running is ALSO too costly!

i TRIED a new ford in 2000. it required more return trips to the dealer in 7 years, than ALL 4 japanese trucks and cars i've owned over a 20 year span COMBINED.

as americans get spoiled like me, they will increasingly favor toyotas. (or hondas)

ApexAlex: not surprised with your Toyota vs. Ford comparison. But likely the same results could have occurred with a Honda vs. Ford comparison, or Subaru vs. Ford comparison.
Toyotas are good ... but they aren't the only car that is good.

My only point is that their marketing is better, and they've pushed the "quality" image hard for 20 years. But if you got into an argument with Honda fans stating that Toyota builds better cars than Honda (for example) you'd find yourself in a war, with little to back up your side.

Plus, Toyota seems to have pushed product testing onto the consumer lately (to save costs, presumably). That new model Camry a few years back was terrible: rattles under the dash, defective, pulsating brakes, A/T problems, driver's seat slid back when accelerating. Sure Toyota was quick to fix the problems within 1 year, but those 1st Camry's were terrible. Other companies actually test the product before inflicting it on customers. (and I think even Toyota has not repeated that disaster since)

"But if you got into an argument with Honda fans stating that Toyota builds better cars than Honda (for example) you'd find yourself in a war, with little to back up your side."

don't be so sure about that. one of my uncles was a loyal chevy fan for DECADES. (gave up on fords after having had one bad one.)

he got a honda accord coupe after the kids were grown and out of the house. loved it. except for some relatively minor brake problem.

he switched over to toyota, and never bought any other brands since. even his wife switched from vw and oldsmobile to toyota.

one of his old toyotas, an underpowered 4-cyl camry WAGON, was given to his granddaughters. who loved it so much, she had it shipped from hawaii to the west coast, so she could enjoy it at school in MOUNTAINOUS COLORADO!

i like hondas myself. but for LONG TERM reliability, i'd pick a toyota.

should've read "given to ONE OF his granddaughters"

fantastic:

"typical Japanese car buyer. Poor soul..."

the "typical" japanese car buyer is as typical as the RANDOM car buyer, which includes ALL kinds of people. what they have in common with OTHER repeat japanese car buyers, is an appreciation for RELIABILITY and low maintenance and operating costs.

YOU are the poor soul is so limited in vision and experience as to classify people in pre-conceived categories.

WHO is so limited

following is an excerpt from RealDeal post at the Motortrend forum. he claims NO brand loyalty; just leases what he considers are the BEST vehicles for him, every 3 years or so. he researches and test drives extensively to determine firsthand, which is BEST.

he also used to work at a car dealership, and knows the inside views on financing and desireability.



Not that Toyota is the Holy Grail as they are certainly far from it...but. Toyotas in general hold much more of their original value than Ford or even Nissans, and generally carry more value on the used car market as the Toyota name evokes strong consumer connection with longevity and reliability. Which in turn makes for strong sales when the Toyota Credit auction pitches the tent and has to get these lease returns back out on the market.

I lease new cars, Have done so for years. I also have a FICO score well above the 690 generally required for the best rates. My Rate/Money factor on my Tacoma is the equivilant of 2.9% financing. I'm also exempt from having to pay security deposits. In todays new car and truck market 30K plus vehicle on the market today that can be leased for less than $350 per month AFTER taxes is an good buy and a testament to that vehicles strong resale values.

I can also tell you this from years of personal experience...When an newish or newer F-150 rolls on the lot and the customer gets out and starts looking around the first thought of any sales manager in the country is...Can I get him out of that thing early? Wonder how "Buried" he is...Damn is he trying to trade that...

Same store same salesman, same salesmanager, Newish or newer Toyota tacoma pulls in...salesmen race to "Up" the guy and the salesmanager is thinking.....I hope he is trading that truck....The salesman is thinking...Geeze I have a buyer if he trades that derned thing....We need that truck. Bad.