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Toyota on the mend?

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  • anythngbutgmanythngbutgm Member Posts: 4,277
    Rumormill: Mazda RX-9 to borrow hybrid tech from Toyota
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Interesting, but I'm as skeptical as Gary on the whole idea of hybrid sports cars. The current RX8 handles well because it's light. Add batteries, you kill that. To be brutally honest that's about the only thing it does well.

    OK, and maybe the rotary revving high and smooth.

    Make it a hybrid, and I suppose to can make up for the low rpm torque deficit, but kill the handling and it's pointless.

    Maybe a lighter Li-ion battery with lower capacity for short bursts of added power...but that's not HSD.

    I don't see this working.
  • gagricegagrice Member Posts: 31,450
    It is probably a gimmick to raise the cafe numbers. Just like most of Lexus attempts at hybridization have been flops. The new CT and the RXh being the exceptions.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Mazda doesn't need it, though.

    Why?

    RX does tiny, tiny sales volumes. It simply won't have much impact on their overall CAFE scores. Almost none.

    Also, their SkyActive technology looks far more promising, and it'll go in their volume models.

    Put the DI 2.0l engine in the Miata and it would cost much less and have far more impact on CAFE. Plus you'd still have the sporty/green halo car for the brand.

    The Miata already uses the same block, think about how easy/low cost that would be. Basically an assembly line engine swap, voila.
  • nippononlynippononly Member Posts: 12,555
    Toyota doesn't go far enough on safety management changes, panel says

    WASHINGTON -- Toyota's recent management changes have not gone far enough to address a slew of safety problems that have arisen over the past decade, an advisory panel appointed by the company said today.

    Toyota's worldwide recalls of millions of vehicles since 2009 were attributable in part to overly centralized decision-making that still remains too Japan-based, the panel headed by former U.S. Transportation Secretary Rodney Slater said.

    The company's "skepticism and defensiveness" toward consumer and other outside complaints also played a role, and Toyota should align itself more closely with the goals of U.S. safety regulators and less with industry lobbyists, the panel's 60-page report said.

    ....The report said Toyota's commercial success as the world's largest automaker may have played a subtle role in safety defects dominated by unintended acceleration complaints..

    "That is because a well-deserved sense of pride at being number one can slowly and subtly transform into arrogance and foster complacency," it said.

    The report suggests Toyota has a way to go to restructure its vehicle-safety management.

    And especially for gagrice ;-)
    The report said Toyota should simplify the downloading of crash information from electronic data recorders, or black boxes, rather than using decoding devices that too often need upgrades, the report said.

    http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20110523/OEM01/110529972/1143-

    This is only one aspect of the institutional rigor that has afflicted Toyota now - this remoteness from the customer and de-emphasizing of local control in North America, both of which were new to Toyota in the last ten years, is little improved (if at all) a full two years after Akio Toyoda's mea culpa in 2009 when he said the company was too big and distant from its customers. At this point it is just a giant marketing machine fronting mediocre product, and there still seems to be little indication that will change any time soon.

    According to the article, the panel that produced this report will remain convened for another year to monitor Toyota's progress in implementing the recommendations of the report. We will see....

    2014 Mini Cooper (stick shift of course), 2016 Camry hybrid, 2009 Outback Sport 5-spd (keeping the stick alive)

  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Let's remember Toyota hired them...
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    http://www.autoblog.com/2011/05/25/kyle-busch-busted-doing-128-mph-while-test-dr- iving-lexus-lfa/

    LOL...

    How do you get this thing out of first gear?

    Who can pick out the movie reference?
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    http://www.iihs.org/news/2011/iihs_news_052611.pdf

    The Scion xB missed by a hair, with Fair/Good/Good/Good. It needed 4 Good scores to be named a Top Safety Pick.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    edited May 2011
    Hey Cheech, how do you get this thing out of first gear?

    From Cheech and Chong.
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    "Edmunds.com forecasts its sales will be down nearly 23 percent from a year ago and 22 percent from April. As a result, Toyota likely lost more than 2 points of market share from April to May.

    Toyota, likewise, retreated on incentive spending at the start of the month but, likely seeing the impact on sales, quickly put strong incentive programs into place during the month. Its retail share began dipping in the early weeks of the month but picked up by month’s end."

    12.2 Million SAAR Seen for May; Honda Clobbered (AutoObserver)

    image
  • gagricegagrice Member Posts: 31,450
    I thought Nissan was the hardest hit by the earthquake and Tsunami? Are they building more of the cars they sell here in the states? Or does their ties to Renault give them better access to EU suppliers? Or has Honda with their lack of flexibility in pricing finally caught up with them? And how can Chrysler make such huge gains on selling Big SUVs in this economic climate, with $4 gas?
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    edited May 2011
    Looks like Nissan had more inventory, and a bit less damage to their plants. But they have supplier problems too and have moved some production to other countries.

    Nissan Stirred Not Shaken by Quake (AutoObserver)

    Chrysler is surprising - hard winter drove 4WD sales maybe? Big Super Bowl ad push, Eminem touting them, good “Imported from Detroit” ad campaign, and the 200 got a lot of interest. Who knew the Italians had such good business sense. :P
  • anythngbutgmanythngbutgm Member Posts: 4,277
    The JGC must be playing a big factor in Chryslers gains, I see those things everywhere.

    Question: How come Hyundai hasn't been added to these charts? I would think they are considered a big player now with recent successes in both Hyundai and Kias lineups.

    Share still too small?
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Nissan had inventory. It's ironic, that actually helped them after the tsunami.

    The real winner is Hyundai, I'm reading reports that they could outsell Honda and Toyota this month.

    Are they on a roll, or what? They didn't even need the boost the Tsunami gave them (erasing supply for competitors from Asia), yet they got that boost also.

    The Genesis just got the 8 speed automatic and now 333hp/DI/29mpg highway standard. Anyone want to bet against more big gains?
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    edited May 2011
    I'd like to see the Koreans added to the chart too.

    "But, by far, the biggest winners in May likely are South Korean makers Hyundai and Kia. The two affiliated brands combined probably will sell more than 109,000 vehicles in May for a combined market share of 9.9 percent. That would rank the Hyundai/Kia combo No. 5 behind GM, Ford, Toyota and Chrysler, and ahead of Honda and Nissan. However, both Hyundai and Kia will have trouble gaining much more ground as their supply of vehicles is running low. Meantime, Japanese automakers are putting plants back to work quicker than even they initially anticipated and their inventories are building to pre-quake levels." (From that SAAR link above).

    One of Hyundai/Kia's engine part maker was crippled by a week long strike, but "thousands of riot police" raided the factory and cleared the strikers out. (Yahoo)
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    So they have their own supply issues. Still, they stand to gain the most.
  • fezofezo Member Posts: 10,384
    How do you get this thing out of first gear?

    Now if you had asked "Hey buddy how do you get this thing out of second gear?" that would have been Beep Beep by the Playmates....
    2015 Mazda 6 Grand Touring, 2014 Mazda 3 Sport Hatchback, 1999 Mazda Miata 2004 Toyota Camry LE, 1999.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    http://www.autoblog.com/2011/05/27/no-1m-prize-winners-in-contest-to-crack-toyot- a-sudden-accelerat/
  • anythngbutgmanythngbutgm Member Posts: 4,277
    edited May 2011
    I'm surprised that goof from that ABC news piece didn't jump on the opportunity. :D
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    For a million bucks, heck, I should've made up something and submitted it. ;)
  • anythngbutgmanythngbutgm Member Posts: 4,277
    edited May 2011
    link title

    Lexus has once again triumphed in the JD Power customer satisfaction survey, taking top spot in both the manufacturer and model categories.

    The Lexus IS came first in the long-running survey, while the RX took third position, helping the manufacturer take a record eleven years at the top.

    But while Lexus owners are driving around with smug grins on their faces, Vauxhall and Ford drivers are easily recognised by their scowls – the Ford Ka was ranked bottom in the poll while Vauxhall was the worst performing manufacturer as a whole.

    While the Lexus IS scored 85.4 percent, just pipping the Honda Accord's 85.2 percent, the Ford Ka came last out of the 108 cars featured, with a score of just 74.1 percent – well below the industry average of 79.4 percent.

    The soon to be replaced Kia Rio was just above the Ka with 74.6 percent, while the Vauxhall Corsa also won little favour with 74.9 percent.

    Jim Holder, editor of the survey's compiler What Car? said: "Lexus's achievement is remarkable. Eleven years at the top of Britain's most thorough customer survey is testament to its ability to build great cars and unstinting attention to customer service. The individual results for the IS and RX, with first and third highest overall satisfaction scores, should also give buyers of these cars unrivalled peace of mind."

    The survey assesses cars on four key areas – vehicle appeal, quality and reliability, ownership costs and dealer satisfaction – and looks at vehicles that are an average of two years old.

    Top five models:
    1 Lexus IS - 85.4%
    2 Honda Accord - 85.2%
    3 Lexus RX - 84.3%
    4 Honda CR-V - 84.2%
    5 Toyota Prius - 83.9%

    Bottom five models:
    104 Mitsubishi Colt - 75.3%
    105 Suzuki SX4 - 75.0%
    106 Vauxhall Corsa - 74.9%
    107 Kia Rio - 74.6%
    108 Ford Ka - 74.1%

    Top five manufacturers:
    1 Lexus - 84.5%
    2 Honda - 83.3%
    3= Jaguar - 82.5%
    3= Skoda - 82.5%
    5 MINI - 82.2%

    Bottom five manufacturers:
    24 Mitsubishi - 77.3%
    25 Peugeot - 77.1%
    26 Chevrolet - 76.6%
    27 Suzuki - 76.4%
    28 Vauxhall - 76.3%
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Can't wait to hear all the haters' conspiracy theories.

    They'll say something like this: "of course they're all happy, SUA killed all the unhappy ones".

    C'mon guys! You're slackin'!

    And this was in Europe, too...
  • gagricegagrice Member Posts: 31,450
    I am assuming the top five were all diesel or hybrids. We know that Honda could not sell a car in the UK till they built their wonderful diesel. The only RX sold their is the hybrid. Lexus sells an IS-D that by the way gets a lot better mileage than their new CT200h.

    I am curious. Why would the car buyer care about dealer satisfaction?
  • gagricegagrice Member Posts: 31,450
    This is the first I heard of the Contest. They must have kept it under wraps until the year was up. :P

    I am sure someone like WWEST could have figured it out. I can tell you from my experience working on programming and rebuilding computers for just shy of 30 years. That anomalies occur that you can NEVER replicate or explain. I am sure that Toyota was well aware of that and was not worried about paying out the money.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    I've mentioned it before, even here in this thread.

    wwest is hit or miss, just don't bring up EcoBoost in front of him, or hilarity will ensue.
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    "Toyota, the world's biggest carmaker, said its domestic production fell 74.5% compared with the same month last year."

    Japan's car production plunges due to parts shortages (BBC)
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Not recovering as quickly as they'd hoped, obviously.

    I wonder if they're painting a rosy picture so that customers do not avoid showrooms thinking they won't find much selection? Are factory orders still cancelled?
  • gagricegagrice Member Posts: 31,450
    You could go in and try and order a Pink Prius with Purple Velvet seats and find out.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    edited May 2011
    You're confusing me with The Artist Formerly Known as Prince. :D

    We did special order our last vehicle, though. To get the right color and a PZEV model, which is available but not common here in MD.
  • gagricegagrice Member Posts: 31,450
    Does Toyota offer a Mary Kay pink version of the Prius. Seems like a no brainer. Cadillac has sold over a 100,000 MK cars. I think I saw a MK Audi driving around.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    I snapped a pic of a new Caddy SRX in full Mary Kay guise. Shared it up on my Facebook account and it got a few laughs.
  • anythngbutgmanythngbutgm Member Posts: 4,277
    edited June 2011
    If you put a Toyota in your driveway in the future, it may be a bit more American>
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    edited June 2011
    I thought you were linking to the Toyota recall news today. What's more American than recalls? :P
  • anythngbutgmanythngbutgm Member Posts: 4,277
    Ya, I read that one as well. They must be getting down the nitty gritty stuff if they are recalling 10 year old Prius models and a handfull of the others. :D
  • nippononlynippononly Member Posts: 12,555
    This is one of the ones Toyota was sued for recalling too late - it is part II of a much larger recall for Yarises (and Echos) and Priuses that occurred about a year ago, maybe two. Globally, part I of this recall affected more than half million cars as I recall.

    2014 Mini Cooper (stick shift of course), 2016 Camry hybrid, 2009 Outback Sport 5-spd (keeping the stick alive)

  • anythngbutgmanythngbutgm Member Posts: 4,277
    Report: Hyundai/Kia will likely top Toyota/Lexus for No. 3 sales spot in May
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Vehicles involved include Toyota Avalon, Venza, Sienna, Tacoma and Tundra.

    Makes sense - the USA is the primary market for some of these anyway.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    From AN:

    Toyota and Honda, hobbled by inventory shortages stemming from the March earthquake in Japan, posted sharp declines in U.S. sales last month, while South Korean rivals Hyundai and Kia advanced. GM and Ford also recorded declines ...

    http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20110601/RETAIL01/110609998/1- 448

    Toyota down 33%, Honda down 23%, Mazda down 21%, Nissan down 9%. Even Subaru ended their years-long growth streak and was down 15%.

    Exceptions? Suzuki and Mitsubishi were up, probably due to excess inventory when the tsunami hit, though.

    Who did well outside of Japanese brands?

    Jeep
    Buick
    Hyundai
    Kia
    VW

    Plus a few other low volume brands.

    Market overall down 5%.
  • xluxlu Member Posts: 457
    May US vehicle sales:

    Toyota 108,387
    GM 221,192

    Chrysler zoomed pass Toyota; Hyundai/Kai was trailing by a few hundreds.
  • xluxlu Member Posts: 457
    Chevrolet Malibu is the new best selling car in May; No. 3 overall.

    Toyota Camry slipped to No. 12 overall.
  • berriberri Member Posts: 10,165
    Let's check it out 6 to 10 months from now. Dealer lots are lean because of lack of Toyota Camry product, not shriveling of consumer Camry demand.
  • gagricegagrice Member Posts: 31,450
    My guess is demand has dwindled. There are 2852 Camry cars of every type in the So CA inventory on Edmund's. From Base to XLE. Plus 189 Camry Hybrids. So no excuse for Toyota on not selling in So CA for sure.

    Except that our unemployment is 12.5% or higher and the state is bankrupt.
  • obyoneobyone Member Posts: 7,841
    Except that our unemployment is 12.5% or higher and the state is bankrupt.

    Yep. That's why he's known as the terminator. :shades:
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    edited June 2011
    The real reason is because Toyota eliminated incentives, and Chevy piled them on.

    Search here:

    http://fitzmall.com/

    Malibus are plentiful and selling at about $4000 below invoice. They are giving them away. It is the old, outgoing model, but you wonder if GM is losing money with such give-aways?

    I guess GM wanted to unload excess inventory at a loss, and that's exactly what happened.

    Per Automotive News Toyota put back incentives as of today, June 2, but per the article the models with new incentives "All are built in North America", so Japan-built models will still be priced high for the near-term.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Hyundai/Kai was trailing by a few hundreds

    961 is more than a few hundred, but whatever.

    Autoblog had predicted Hyundai/Kia would outsell Toyota:

    http://www.autoblog.com/2011/05/31/hyundai-kia-will-likely-top-toyota-lexus-for-- no-3-sales-spot-in/

    the Korean conglomerate is expected to pass Toyota (including its Lexus luxury brand) as the third-best-selling automaker in the United States.

    Surely there are multiple reasons why Toyota and Lexus sales are expected to drop in May (when compared to April, 2011 and May of 2010), but parts and inventory shortages stemming from the devastating earthquake and subsequent tsunami in Japan are front and center.

    An indirect result is higher prices on Toyotas, but that too was as a result of reduced supply.
  • xluxlu Member Posts: 457
    you wonder if GM is losing money with such give-aways?

    Just look at the bottom line, Q1 2011 profit;

    GM: $3.2B
    Ford: $2.6B
    Toyota: $0.3B
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    edited June 2011
    Q1, 1st quarter, as in January through March, right?

    MAY sales of the Malibu (at $3895 below cost) beat Camry. That counts towards Q2.

    LOL nice try...
  • xluxlu Member Posts: 457
    That counts towards Q2

    Just wait for the Q2 numbers come out in Aug. Q1 numbers are the latest ones available now.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    I don't see how they profit on that particular model with such huge incentives. They erode profits and residual values as well.

    They could make money in other places, though - transactions prices are up as consumer buy more tech, the Camaro and Cruze are doing well. Buick and GMC were up in a miserable month overall.

    Malibu is not creating profits for them, no way no how.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    http://www.autoblog.com/2011/06/02/toyotas-baby-prius-c-spotted-for-the-first-ti- me/

    Headlights moved down off the base of the A-pillar to a more conventional location.

    Honda has had much success with the JDM Fit Hybrid so they are probably targeting that as opposed to the failed CR-Z/Insight.

    I still want to see a CR-X Si sans the weight/complexity of batteries.
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