Today in Tokyo, Toyota president Akio Toyoda met with shareholders for the first time since the world’s largest automaker began issuing recalls on millions of its vehicles last October. And fittingly enough, the grandson of the company’s founder kicked things off humbly. [More]
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Is Humility A Good Advertising Tool?
By 6.5.10
In recent months, consumers have seen two very different advertising campaigns built on an attitude of “Ooops. Please forgive us.” [More]
Toyota Waited Months To Recall Trucks For Defect Linked To 3 Deaths
By 5.10.10
An AP investigation has found that Toyota waited nearly a year after a 2004 recall in Japan to issue the same recall in the U.S.– claiming that it had little evidence of a U.S. problem. The AP says, however, that the automaker had received at least 52 reports from U.S. drivers about a steering defect in trucks and SUVs. [More]
Toyota Shoots For $50k Price Tag On Hydrogen Car
By 5.9.10
Good news for those hankering after a fuel-cell vehicle: Toyota has announced they’ve cut the cost of making hydrogen-powered cars by around 90 percent and could start selling the first retail model for close to $50,000 by 2015. [More]
CR: You Can Buy A Lexus GX 460 If You Want
By 5.7.10
Consumer Reports has lifted its “don’t buy” warning on the 2010 Lexus GX 460 SUV, after reviewing the results of Toyota’s recall fix. According to CR, that modification solved the emergency handling problem that had been uncovered in earlier tests. So, if you’re in the market for a big, $60K luxury SUV, you can go ahead and add this one to your list. [More]
Toyota Recalls 50,000 Sequoia SUVs
By 4.28.10
It seems like it’s almost been two weeks since the last Toyota recall, meaning… yep, it’s time to announce another Toyota recall. This time, the car giant has issued a voluntary safety recall on around 50,000 early-2003 Model-Year Toyota Sequoia SUVs to upgrade program logic in its Vehicle Stability Control (VSC) system. [More]
Toyota Recalls 9,400 2010 Lexus GX 460 Vehicles
By 4.19.10
Less than one week after our lab coat-wearing brethren at Consumer Reports issued a “Don’t Buy” rating on the 2010 Lexus GX 460 SUV because of potential rollover issues, Toyota has announced a voluntary recall of approximately 9,400 GX 460s worldwide. [More]
Toyota To Pay $16.4 Million Fine Over Delayed Defect Report
By 4.19.10
The U.S. Department of Transportation is expected to announce today that Toyota will agree to pay $16.4 million over its failure to notify the government about the defects that led to recalls of millions of vechicles earlier this year. The company apparently knew about the problems for several months before reporting them to regulators; it should have done so within five days. [More]
Toyota Recalls 600,000 Sienna Minivans
By 4.17.10
Because 8 million recalled vehicles worldwide was apparently not enough for Toyota, the car giant has gone and recalled 600,000 of their Sienna minivans because of possible rust damage to the cable holding the spare tire. [More]
Why Did Toyota Wait 6 Weeks To Recall Venzas In The U.S.?
By 4.16.10
While we in the U.S. have become accustomed to getting things before the rest of the world, that doesn’t seem to hold true for Toyota recalls. Documents show that the car maker issued a recall for their Venza vehicle in December, but decided to wait six weeks to make the same decision stateside. [More]
Consumer Reports: Sorry, Toyota, You Can't Borrow Our Test Track
By 4.15.10
Consumer Reports, which is published by Consumers Union just like good old Consumerist, has declined to allow Toyota to borrow its test track to replicate the findings that led the organization to issue a “Don’t Buy” rating on a Lexus SUV. [More]
Consumer Reports: Don't Buy This Lexus SUV
By 4.13.10
Our little buddies at Consumer Reports have determined that a safety risk may be present in the 2010 Lexus GX 460 SUV. When pushed to its limits on CR’s track, the rear of the GX they bought “slid out until the vehicle was almost sideways before the electronic stability control system was able to regain control.” [More]
Kids Who Can't Even Read Recognize Logos For McDonald's, Disney And… Toyota?
By 4.12.10
A new study of brand recognition in kids shows that even kids who can’t read can recognize corporate logos like Disney, McDonald’s and randomly… Toyota. [More]
State Farm To Toyota: Pay Us Back For Unintended Acceleration Accidents
By 4.12.10
As if the mass of class-action lawsuits against Toyota weren’t enough for the Japanese car maker, it now faces an immediate challenge from another side — the insurance companies. State Farm announced over the weekend that they want Toyota to reimburse them for claims they’ve had to pay out for incidents related to sudden unintended acceleration. [More]
Toyota Class Action Suits To Be Heard In California
By 4.9.10
Looks like California has won the legal lottery that is the Toyota recall, after a federal panel selected the Central District of California as the place to hear an amalgam of class-action lawsuits against the Japanese car maker. [More]
NHTSA Hits Toyota With $16.3 Million Penalty For Sticky Pedal
By 4.5.10
Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood today announced today that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is seeking the maximum civil penalty of $16.375 million against the world’s largest car maker “for failing to notify the auto safety agency of the dangerous “sticky pedal” defect for at least four months, despite knowing of the potential risk to consumers.” [More]
GM To Install Brake Override Software Worldwide By 2012
By 4.5.10
Perhaps in a move to not win Consumerist’s Worst Company In America title, General Motors announced today that they plan on installing brake override software in all GM cars with automatic transmissions and electronic throttle control worldwide by 2012. [More]
Worst Company In America 2010: Toyota VS GM
By 4.2.10
A bailed-out, bankrupt car company VS one dealing with its first major crisis. The two companies have a long history together… in fact up until recently, they operated a plant in California. Both are unpopular right now… but which one is worse? [More]
