USA vs Toyota....

DamageINC · February 22, 2007

This is the kind of stuff that the media never feels like bringing up. I have yet to learn why they treat Toyota with such respect. A long read, but well worth it....

Dave

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Thunder on the Tundra: Toyota Trucks Ahead in 2007 Recalls

If you’ve merely done a moderate amount of Internet surfing or cracked open a newspaper lately – just about any newspaper – you’ve undoubtedly seen the news that Toyota has once again passed Ford in worldwide auto sales and may pass GM sometime this year.

But what you may not have seen is that Toyota has already passed both Ford and GM in a different category – automotive recalls.

Although we’ve barely passed mid-February, Toyota has already recalled 533,417 vehicles this year in a mix that, according to http://www.AutoRecalls.us, includes Tundras Sequoias and Camrys. That puts Toyota on track to recall more than the over 1.76 million autos they recalled in the U.S. and Japan in 2006, and the 2.2 million they recalled in 2005 when they recalled more cars than they built.

What’s more, the current recall related to the Turdra trucks and Sequioa SUVs is similar to the same defect in 800,000 of the same vehicles in 2005. Maybe somebody at Toyota isn’t paying attention?

Hopefully the American consumers are. Recall numbers by domestic companies (GM and Ford) so far this year are as follows: Ford, 128,163; Chevrolet, 4,829; and Pontiac, 1,602.

Chrysler - a German company masquerading as an American company with plans to start importing cars from China in 2008 - has recalled 77,432 vehicles so far in 2007.

To be sure, high recall numbers are not good. Auto companies would much rather prefer high sales numbers instead. As I’ve already mentioned, the media is abuzz that GM may lose its crown this year to Toyota in worldwide auto sales. But for that to ever happen in the U.S. sales category, it’s going to take several more years since GM has a U.S. market share of 24.3% compared to 15.4% for Toyota. Even Ford, despite their recent troubles, has a higher domestic market share than Toyota at 17.5%.

But if GM loses their worldwide crown this year, it may actually turn out to be a blessing in disguise. Here’s why:

First, GM spent 17% less per vehicle this January compared to last January, which means they are more profitable on a per-unit basis. In fact, GM expects to report a profit for the most recent quarter.

Second, it may be good for GM to step aside temporarily, for now, and let Toyota take all the ammunition that is always aimed at the top dog of the industry so there is less pressure and fewer distractions. And when GM combines their more-solid profitability and their improved quality together, their public perception will also improve.

Then they can use these admirable qualities to prepare to surge back on top at the precise time Toyota is in the top slot with their recall surge in the news. Toyota’s timing at being number one worldwide would create further skepticism about whether they really deserve their reputation for untarnished quality.

According to Business Week’s January 22, 2007 issue, Toyota has recalled 9.3 million vehicles in the last three years, which is nearly four times the number of recalls in the three year period prior to 2004.

Other recent news that won’t sit well with a Camry-conscious public is the class-action lawsuit recently settled by Toyota regarding ruinous oil sludge buildup covering 3.5 million Toyota and Lexus (yes, Lexus) vehicles.

Optimistic statements by Toyota executives aren’t going to cut it for long – particularly when they don’t match well with reality. Denial in the Camry-company camp seems to be setting in. Toyota’s North American president Jim Press recently disputed the suggestion that his company no longer enjoys a large lead in reliability over the American competition. Speculating on the thoughts of American car company well-wishers while speaking at the recent Chicago Auto Show, Press said “I think there’s some hope that the gap in quality is closing, but it really isn’t.”

Oh, really? That’s a pretty strong comment considering Toyota recalled 1.27 million vehicles in one swoop in 2005, recording the biggest-ever recall in history for a Japanese car company.

But, recalls notwithstanding, the evidence that the quality gap is closing is pretty indisputable, and the evidence has been piling up for more than just the last couple of years. With the following facts, you can make your argument for American car quality fully bulletproof – even among your most ardent foreign car-defending friends.

* A February 10, 2003 Business Week told of how undeniable it was that GM cars are better built than they used to be. The article cited an improved J.D. Power quality ranking and a Consumer Reports recommendation for 13 of GM’s vehicles (equal to 41% of their sales volume) compared to just five recommended GM vehicles for the previous year. The Chevy Impala beat the Camry in a quality survey, and Buick beat BMW.

* Business Week also reported September 23, 2003 that GM boosted its productivity 23% in six years while Toyota’s productivity remained flat, and that GM’s most-productive factories now beat Toyota’s most-productive factories.

* A 2004 Consumer Reports ranking selected the Buick Regal as the most reliable among family sedans, beating the Toyota Camry, Honda Accord and Nissan Maxima. They also gave recommended ratings for four Ford models, including the Ford Focus.

* J.D. Power and Associates awarded Cadillac’s Lansing Grand River assembly center its highest honor – the Gold Plant Quality Award – in 2004.

* An August 4, 2004 Wall Street Journal article said Toyota’s lead in quality and reliability has narrowed in some segments and disappeared in others. Quality problems were reportedly “mushrooming.”

* The Toyota Camry hasn’t been awarded the best in its segment since the year 2000, but many Americans continue to regard it as the number one model in terms of quality. Toyota’s Kentucky Camry plant was awarded with high initial quality rankings by J.D. Power from the late 1980s through the 1990s, but it plummeted to number 26 in 2002, improving to only number 14 in 2004, while two GM factories and one Ford factory took the top three spots that year.

* In a J.D. Power Initial Quality Survey of new 2004 cars, Chevy placed second behind Honda and Toyota sank to number three.

* As far back as at least 2003, Business Week has reported that American consumers regard certain foreign cars as better built than American cars, even when facts prove otherwise.

* Fast-forwarding to 2006, J.D. Power shows Mercury, Buick and Cadillac beat Toyota in a list of dependable cars. Two Buicks and a Mercury took the top three midsize car awards; Mercury, Ford and Buick took the top three large car awards; Ford took the midsize van award and the midsize truck award; and GMC and Cadillac took the large MAV (multi-purpose activity vehicle) and large premium MAV awards, respectively.

* In an article about trust issues, Business Week’s December 11, 2006 issue stated “GM’s quality nearly equals Toyota’s.” Perceived quality among the American public is another story, however. The difference between the actual quality of American cars and the perceived quality of American cars is the “perception gap.”

* In the same article, J.D. Power’s director for retail research said “Actual quality is so close…” discussing the quality rankings of GMC, Chevrolet and Cadillac placing them on par with both Honda and Toyota.

* And most recently, of course, the Ford Fusion and Mercury Milan beat the Honda Accord and Toyota Camry according to Consumer Reports.

What’s needed among automotive senior executives, and much of the media as well, is a return to intellectual honesty. Everyone tends to have their favorites and biases (mine are pretty obvious) but I pride myself in sticking with the facts to back up my comments.

When Toyotas North American president says that the quality gap isn’t really closing, he’s not being intellectually honest.

Some editorial writers aren’t either. When Douglas Brinkley trumpeted Indiana’s success in a Wall Street Journal article last year for attracting a Honda plant to their state – even though it took $140 million in tax credits and incentives – he wasn’t what you would call “intellectually honest.” In an apparent attempt to convince the reader that Honda doesn’t send any automobiles to the U.S. from outside the country, he said the following: “Turning farm fields into factories, that’s what Henry Ford used to do. Today, in the heartland, it’s being done by Honda – a company that doesn’t manufacture imports but builds American-made cars.”

Such statements lead the reader to think that some Japanese companies make all of their cars in the USA. Hardly. In fact, according to a January 8, 2007 Wall Street Journal article, the NAP ratio – a ratio that compares how many cars are built in North America vs. the number of cars imported – is slipping for Toyota. And according to Toyota internal documentation, the ratio is going to worsen next year.

Occasionally I’ll find an editorial writer that dares to step away from the foreign biases of others in the same industry and rate cars objectively, rather than relying on the mindset of the question “will American cars ever match the Japanese cars in quality?”

Editorial Director for Consumer Guide Automotive, Mark Bilek departed from the typical mindset of his colleagues back in June of 2005 by declaring that the Ford Five Hundred was the best car he’d ever driven.

That’s good news for Ford, since the Five Hundred is being renamed the Taurus and will get several more second-looks because of the Taurus’ higher name recognition. Billek said he judged the Five Hundred based on “what it is” and how well it “fulfills its mission.” Based on this, his opinion was that the Five Hundred was “simply the best full-size sedan sold in America.”

I am confident, however, that people like Toyota’s Jim Press can be somewhat honest in their statements about the competition from time to time. He did say that the “car of the show” at the Detroit Auto Show in January was, for him, none other than the Chevy Malibu. Maybe there’s hope for intellectual honesty after all.

LARRY BRUDZYNSKI · February 22, 2007

Whew!!! I didn't think that post was ever going to end. Very interesting though. I think what people don't understand is that the import customers have been treated differently than at the Ford,GM and Chrysler dealers over the years and don't mind as much when there is a recall or problem. Lets face it the big 3 have turned into Warranty nazi's. Don't get me wrong I'm not trying to side with anybody being the fact that I've been on both sides of the fence(Import and Domestic dealers)and have seen the way the manufacturers handle things.

One thing comes to mind, back when I was at a Honda dealer(1990-1991) Honda had rust issues and fuel contamination on 1983-1985 Accords. Fuel filler necks were rusting out and contaminating the system. Honda replaced these under policy. I don't see Ford doing this with the oil pans, when they know that there is a problem.

I don't see import or domestic anymore lets face it. This has become a world business, everybody trimming down and cutting costs. Everybody doing business together.

To finish I'm glad that you didn't say anything about NASCAR!!!!

Tony302600 · February 23, 2007

I have a budy that used to be a service writer at our Ford Dealer and now is with Honda as a service writer. he told me that they rape the !@#!?$! outta the customer and the customers eat it all up and think they are getting a deal. My mom bought a 20003 Honda accord and hates the thing to death, also attempting to follow the maintainence intervals, 15K service they wanted $800 to do the usual bullcrap, and ADJUST THE VALVES. I talked to the manager and said wut the hell that was all about. The Vtec, from what i understand, is an automatically adjusted valve lash. He refused to answer my question. This is at 15K, wut do we do on Fords, LOF + Rotate, and trans flush at 30K. I dont understand why people dont do this, no more timing belts they are chains. I just dont get it.

DamageINC · February 23, 2007

VTEC is actually more of a performance enhancement thing than anything else, and a great idea to boot. It's essentially a large "extra" lobe on the camshafts for each cylinder that is engaged when commanded on by the ECU... basically it's the same idea as stomping on the gas, waiting till the upper RPMs, and then swapping the cam out for one with more overlap, lift, and duration, for better power production in the top end.

Dave

LARRY BRUDZYNSKI · February 23, 2007

Yeah I agree Honda does get more for the maintenances than Ford. As for the customer getting screwed the dealers cater to them very well. Being that I have 1st hand experience with this, I can tell you that Sales sells the 1st car, and Service/Parts sells the next 3. It's very tough trying to say this being at a Ford dealer now, it seems that the more we try, the harder it is to take care of the customers. As I see it if keep plugging away eventually we'll all make a difference and see the fruits of our labor.

In regards to the VTEC, if you ever get a chance drive the Acura NSX it's unbelievable!!!

DamageINC · February 24, 2007

It's unbelievable that they charge 80 grand for that box of !@#!?$!. It's a decent performance car but to be honest, for the price, it's an absolute waste of money. No torque, *ok* power (but nothing to get excited about) and a good suspension setup.

A totally stock '03 Cobra would thoroughly embarrass an NSX at the drag strip, and with nothing more than a decent set of springs and shocks/struts, would run circles around one on a road course too.

The NSX would have been a cool ride if it were closer to 40 grand... and even then it'd be getting stomped by C5 Vettes. (I sure know how to hijack my own thread, 'eh?)

Dave

LARRY BRUDZYNSKI · February 24, 2007

Not to burst your bubble...,but I believe the 2003 Cobra came in at 4.6 liters 390HP with 2 additional cyl's and blown with a 0-60 at 4.9. The NSX came in with 3.2 liters 290HP VTEC and a 0-60 in 5.0 I would have to say that they are pretty well matched other than everyone that wants a Cobra can get one, if you want a NSX you REALLY have to want it.

But enough of that I thought this is a Ford Diesel Forum...

pm me if you want to continue our apples to watermelons comparison.