Toyota Recall

budyog · « **Reply #140 on:** 5 Feb 2010, 04:10 pm »

Quote from: budyog on 4 Feb 2010, 07:12 pm

I pull over for all Toyota's!

So, if you are driving a Toyota behind me, I will gladly pull over and let you pass!

I don't want my car to be hit in the ass!

Quote from: Wind Chaser on 5 Feb 2010, 12:59 am

Good attitude! I wish everyone was like you.

I am having bumper stickers made, how many would you like?

macrojack · « **Reply #141 on:** 8 Feb 2010, 12:49 pm »

For anyone who doesn't believe that the gas pedal recall is being overblown, here's some perspective.
I heard on the radio this morning that you, yes you, are 30 times more likely to be hit by lightning than to die in a Toyota with a stuck accelerator pedal.
Listening to the media you get the idea that getting too close to a Toyota car of any kind could result in immediate disaster.
Maybe knocking Toyota off their pedestal is part of our recovery plan.

cujobob · « **Reply #142 on:** 8 Feb 2010, 01:09 pm »

What you fail to understand is that the average person is struck by lighting once every six hours.

Personally, I think they should stick with the original plan...advertise on the Fox News channel that anyone who doesn't buy an 'American' brand vehicle is a terrorist.

jackman · « **Reply #143 on:** 8 Feb 2010, 01:28 pm »

Quote from: macrojack on 8 Feb 2010, 12:49 pm

For anyone who doesn't believe that the gas pedal recall is being overblown, here's some perspective.
I heard on the radio this morning that you, yes you, are 30 times more likely to be hit by lightning than to die in a Toyota with a stuck accelerator pedal.
Listening to the media you get the idea that getting too close to a Toyota car of any kind could result in immediate disaster.
Maybe knocking Toyota off their pedestal is part of our recovery plan.

You are joking, right? Most defects in autos only affect a small percentage of cars and the media gets into a frenzy about EVERY safety recall. Remember Explorers flipping, Suzuki Samarai flipping, Audi 5000's sudden acceleration, baby cribs busting, garage doors crushing kids, etc.? Overreacting to hype is what the media does? The fact that Toyota handled this one very poorly from the start didn't help matters.

This is not a US conspiracy or an attempt to prop up domestic manufacturers. The media would be pouncing just as hard if the culpret happened to be Ford or GM. The only difference is people like you would be right there with the "Told you so" or "this is why I buy Toyota" attitude. It's about time we have some balance in the reporting of the news!

Oh, and good luck with those Prius brakes!

Cheers,

J

rollo · « **Reply #144 on:** 8 Feb 2010, 01:43 pm »

One life is too many to lose. A design error or system failure caused death. Toyota is responsible for their error. No matter what they do will NEVER bring back those people.
It was an accident. Toyota would not purposely design a system to fail. When Ford had the exploding gas tanks where wasall the hoopla ? I'm sure there were more issues easily forgotten about. As Ron Emanuel says " never waste a crisis" . Lets just hope that Japan does not feel unrespected and call our debt.

charles

charles

cujobob · « **Reply #145 on:** 8 Feb 2010, 01:59 pm »

Again, Jackman, telling someone with a history of poor quality 'I told you so' is much different from telling someone with a reputation of high quality. You're lumping them into the same category when they clearly don't belong lumped in with GM or Ford. The 'American' companies have put out a better product than they had been in years passed...but that doesn't mean it will continue after the threat of bankrupcy is gone. They HAVE to create a better vehicle right now or they're gone. It's as simple as that.

The media does blow everything out of proportion, but that doesn't mean it isn't doing it even more so because of the company being Toyota in this case. The fall of a reputable company is newsworthy. The Bird Flu, Swine Flu, or whatever is being overblown in a particular year is the same case....they make it seem like we're all doomed. Martha Stewart going to jail got far more press than it deserved...why? Because of her positive reputation.

macrojack · « **Reply #146 on:** 8 Feb 2010, 02:09 pm »

Joking? A little. Exaggerating some too. I don't really see a conspiracy in this. Doesn't mean there isn't one though.

I like my old Toyota Camry but I have never bought a new car so I'm not really part of the argument anyway.

jackman · « **Reply #147 on:** 8 Feb 2010, 02:37 pm »

Quote from: cujobob on 8 Feb 2010, 01:59 pm

Again, Jackman, telling someone with a history of poor quality 'I told you so' is much different from telling someone with a reputation of high quality. You're lumping them into the same category when they clearly don't belong lumped in with GM or Ford. The 'American' companies have put out a better product than they had been in years passed...but that doesn't mean it will continue after the threat of bankrupcy is gone. They HAVE to create a better vehicle right now or they're gone. It's as simple as that.

The media does blow everything out of proportion, but that doesn't mean it isn't doing it even more so because of the company being Toyota in this case. The fall of a reputable company is newsworthy. The Bird Flu, Swine Flu, or whatever is being overblown in a particular year is the same case....they make it seem like we're all doomed. Martha Stewart going to jail got far more press than it deserved...why? Because of her positive reputation.

You complained about "fairness" and that Toyota wasn't treated fairly. I said the media reacts this way all the time and that American manufacturers would have received similar treatment. Toyota has an excellent reputation for quality and has earned the spot as the #1 automaker in the world. They also just experienced one of the biggest recalls in a long time and many feel they handled it poorly.

Mishandling a major product defect -one that can potentially kill people - is always going to get headlines. If you feel Toyota deserves a "pass" from the media because of their quality record, we are going to have to disagree. Toyota has benefitted from overly positive press over the years and it appears the pendulum has swung in the opposite direction. They deserve all of the bad publicity they are receiving and are fortunate more people were not killed or injured. I would have the same opinion if the guilty party was named Ford or GM. Customers dying as a direct result of your using your product is usually bad for bidness (unless you are selling cigarettes)!

Just my opinion.

J

turkey · « **Reply #148 on:** 8 Feb 2010, 05:35 pm »

Quote from: JimJ on 5 Feb 2010, 01:55 pm

The US has had some winners, too...

The Gremlin was better looking than the Pacer or Matador IMO.

Hey Toots! Where's the other half of your car?

jackman · « **Reply #149 on:** 8 Feb 2010, 05:55 pm »

Quote from: turkey on 8 Feb 2010, 05:35 pm

The Gremlin was better looking than the Pacer or Matador IMO.

Hey Toots! Where's the other half of your car?

I saw a Pacer in perfect condition driving down the street near my home last summer. Brought a smile..er, chuckle, to my face. It looks much more freakish in person. Sadly, I remember when these cars were first introduced and, I'm not joking, in high demand. I also recall stories about these cars getting hella-hot in the summer sun due to the greenhouse windows. Combine that with bad AC (or no AC in some models), fugly styling, and plastic interior and you have a one-two-three punch combo of ugly and uncomfortable (not to mention anemic engine and poor reliability). What's not to like ?

To be fair, at least the Pacer did not suffer from faulty brakes and uncontrolled acceleration. In fact, acceleration was so poor, it would be hard to tell if the pedal was stuck in the "floored" position.

flintstone · « **Reply #150 on:** 8 Feb 2010, 06:16 pm »

Toyota fan boys got their undies in a bunch on this

It's 2010 guys...GOOGLE news is world wide, and "any" major company with gas peddle problems is going to be plastered all over the web.

jackman · « **Reply #151 on:** 9 Feb 2010, 08:30 pm »

Look out guys, Prius has now been officially recalled. You may want to wear a helmet until you get those brakes looked at!

It's really not a big deal. Just 437,000 cars with faulty brakes.

Even Consumer Reports said it "no longer recommends V6 versions of Toyota's Camry or four-wheel-drive V8 versions of its Tundra pick-up because of poor reliability." Consumer Reports??? Say it ain't so...

Wind Chaser · « **Reply #152 on:** 9 Feb 2010, 10:12 pm »

This hardly an issue as most people who have owned (or driven) a Toyota would prefer a Toyota in need of repairs of a brand new Chrysler, Ford or GM product. A repaired Toyota is far more reliable and desirable than anything made by the so called big three.

Bob in St. Louis · « **Reply #153 on:** 9 Feb 2010, 10:36 pm »

jackman · « **Reply #154 on:** 9 Feb 2010, 10:42 pm »

Quote from: Wind Chaser on 9 Feb 2010, 10:12 pm

This hardly an issue as most people who have owned (or driven) a Toyota would prefer a Toyota in need of repairs of a brand new Chrysler, Ford or GM product. A repaired Toyota is far more reliable and desirable than anything made by the so called big three.

I don't know about that...I'd take a Ford or GM truck any day over a Tundra. Also, anyone who blames the media for blowing this one up needs to consider the following:
The global recall has BALOONED to over 8.5 million cars, including the media darling Prius. Toyota is in full-blown damage control mode. Media is actually going easy on Toyota because they are afraid of losing some of those hard to get advertising $$$'s Toyota lavishes on them. And word is Toyota brass is watching networks closely to make sure they are not treated "unfairly", threatening to pull advertising dollars to any network who gets too "ambitious" with their reporting of this massive global recall.

Also, the latest recall should have been addressed a long time ago. See the following from today's headlines: _State Farm, the largest U.S. auto insurer, said it had informed federal regulators late in 2007 about growing reports of unexpected acceleration in Toyotas. That disclosure raised new questions about whether the government missed clues about problems.

Hmmm, maybe the government missed some clues regarding this problem because the chairman of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee- the guy in charge of holding the hearings- is a BIG Toyota supporter? This is not a political statement, just a rebuttal to the folks who feel this is a US conspiracy or "hometown" bias. If anything, it appears Toyota has received VERY favorable treatment to say the least. What do they say? Follow the money:

http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2010/02/the_influence_game_toyotas_pow.html

This whole thing stinks. Toyota appears to have tried to slip this under the carpet and now their reputation has taken a huge hit, sales of existing cars will be hurt and this recall is affecting the value of used Toyotas. College students will read about this in the future as an example of how NOT to handle defective products:

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/capress/100207/business/used_toyota_prices_1

cujobob · « **Reply #155 on:** 9 Feb 2010, 10:50 pm »

Jackman, you're really hyping this up.

Btw, how many actual accidents caused by these problems thus far?

jackman · « **Reply #156 on:** 9 Feb 2010, 10:54 pm »

Quote from: cujobob on 9 Feb 2010, 10:50 pm

Jackman, you're really hyping this up.

Btw, how many actual accidents caused by these problems thus far?

The truth hurts my friend. Read the attached articles and tell me which one is false? 8.5 million cars recalled and counting. The guys with the close financial connection to Toyota investigating things and a media bought and paid for by Toyota's advertising dollars entrusted to report the "facts".

How many people have to die or become injured before this is big enough for you to care? Maybe that's a better question.

Wind Chaser · « **Reply #157 on:** 10 Feb 2010, 12:47 am »

Quote from: jackman on 9 Feb 2010, 10:42 pm

Toyota is in full-blown damage control mode.

And rightfully so. Toyota has a reputation for quality that GM, Ford and Chrysler can never hope to attain.

jackman · « **Reply #158 on:** 10 Feb 2010, 01:05 am »

Quote from: Wind Chaser on 10 Feb 2010, 12:47 am

And rightfully so. Toyota had a reputation for quality that GM, Ford ~~and~~ ~~Chrysler~~ are starting to overtake.

FIXED

macrojack · « **Reply #159 on:** 10 Feb 2010, 01:20 am »

I expect Toyota to fix this situation by repairing the cars that need it and coming back with a QC vengeance that once again completely eclipses the efforts of American car manufacturers.
The only reason anything coming out of Detroit has improved at all is because they were forced to compete with the Japanese. If they had not been forced to raise their standards to a higher level, they would still be making the crap that created the negative opinions that prevail today.
Interestingly, one of the things that kept Detroit in business was the union driven buy American movement. Once organized labor was eviscerated and jobs went overseas, the momentum behind "buy American" lapsed and people went on to buy the better investments.
Resale values present a strong case as to which products were a better choice when new.