Toyota: retirada podría afectar a A. Latina
Redacción
BBC Mundo
La retirada masiva de vehículos Toyota podría extenderse a América Latina.
El fabricante japonés de automóviles Toyota Motors informó que la retirada de sus vehículos anunciada en Estados Unidos y Europa podría extenderse a América Latina, Medio Oriente y África. Se calcula que la operación le costará a la empresa un total de hasta US$2.000 millones en pérdidas de producción y ventas.
Toyota -la primera automotriz del mundo- señaló que en América Latina, Medio Oriente y África se vendieron 180.000 automóviles que podrían verse afectados por un problema en el pedal del acelerador.
La automotriz se encuentra en el proceso de retirar para revisar millones de vehículos que potencialmente son propensos a registrar una aceleración incontrolada debido a esa falla.
clic Lea: Toyota también retira autos en Europa
Las oficinas de Toyota en América Latina en estos momentos esperan lineamientos específicos en torno a si se verán o no afectadas por el anuncio.
América Latina
En caso de que se vieran afectadas, esperan detalles sobre la cantidad de vehículos que contemplaría la retirada, los modelos y fechas de producción involucrados, así como el procedimiento a seguir por los concesionarios.
En conversación con BBC Mundo, la encargada de relaciones públicas de Toyota en México, Ana María Vallarino, hizo un llamado a la tranquilidad de los clientes y dejó claro que en ese país no se ha registrado ningún accidente vinculado a este problema.
"No existe peligro de aceleración repentina en México", indicó Vallarino, quien añadió que está a la espera de mayor información por parte de Toyota.
Europa y Estados Unidos
La falla que ha provocado la retirada de vehículos en Europa y EE.UU. hace que el pedal del acelerador se atore con el tapete del piso.
La semana pasada, Toyota anunció que retirará hasta 1,8 millones de vehículos en Europa debido a problemas con el pedal del acelerador.
Además, en los últimos cuatro meses, Toyota retiró 8 millones de automóviles en EE.UU.
Toyota Motors ha identificado ocho modelos que se encuentran potencialmente en riesgo en Europa y EE.UU., pero dejó claro que en realidad sólo unos pocos presentan defecto.
Entre los modelos llamados a revisión se encuentran el Yaris, el Corolla y el RAV4.
El anuncio ha tenido su efecto en las ventas y podría obligar a Toyota a recortar sus pronósticos de ventas para 2010.
En el primer comentario público de un directivo de Toyota, el vicepresidente ejecutivo, Shinichi Sasaki, admitió que la empresa está "muy preocupada" por la dificultad de cumplir la meta anual de ventas.
Recall hits Toyota sales; GM, Ford see double-digit gains
Updated 13h 48m ago | 260 Comments | 12 Recommend E-mail | Save | Print | Reprints & Permissions |
Enlarge By Reed Saxon, AP file
Toyota models that have been withdrawn for sale, identified by stickers on the windshield or by a single windshield wiper pointing skyward, or both, are seen at a storage lot for Keyes Toyota in the Van Nuys area of Los Angeles.
JANUARY AUTO SALES
January U.S. car and truck sales for the six biggest automakers, with change from January 2009:
Company Sales Change
GM 146,315 14.1%
Ford 116,277 25.0%
Toyota 98,796 15.8%
Honda 67,479 5.0%
Nissan 62,572 16.1%
Chrysler 57,143 8.1%
Source: Autodata
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By Chris Woodyard, USA TODAY
Toyota — in the midst of an embarrassing recall — posted a drop in sales in January, even as the industry overall showed growth in sales reported Tuesday.
The recall included a halt, beginning Jan. 26, in sales of eight of Toyota's most popular models until they are repaired for possibly sticky gas pedals.
DRIVE ON: More on sales
SAFETY: Toyotas aren't only cars under scrutiny
TOYOTA: Hit by over 100 Prius brake complaints
HONDA: Profit up sixfold for Japanese car giant
Toyota sales, including Lexus and Scion, fell 15.8% compared with January 2009, Autodata reports. Toyota says it was its worst sales showing for the month since 1999. The industry overall registered a 6.3% sales gain for January from a year before.
The sales halt of the recalled models and bad publicity from the recall left sales 23% below Toyota's internal target for the month, Toyota-brand chief Bob Carter said. The recalled vehicles, including big sellers Camry and Corolla, constitute 60% of the automaker's inventory. Toyota's Lexus and Scion brands weren't part of the latest recall.
"Those who would like to come back are waiting," says Alexander Edwards, president of consultant Strategic Vision.
For the moment, potential buyers are content to make their old cars last longer until Toyota sorts out its troubles, he says. Toyota buyers tend to be security minded, so the automaker's safety recall strikes them extra hard.
By contrast, Ford Motor had a sales gain of 25%, General Motors saw sales increase 14.1%, and Chrysler lost 8.1% in sales compared with a year ago. GM, the largest seller in the U.S., said sales of crossover vehicles and passenger cars led its increase.
Ken Czubay, Ford's U.S. marketing vice president, said his company's retail sales to individuals were just "OK" for the month and that most of Ford's gain was in sales to government, corporate and rental fleets, which soared 154%.
Buyers took advantage of good deals in December and might have sensed incentives weren't as lucrative last month. It was harder "to get traction" with customers, he said.
Largely because of Toyota's troubles, GM and Ford were able to solidify their positions as the two best-selling automakers. GM had 21% market share last month, up from 19.5% a year ago. Ford increased its share to 16.7%, up from 14.2%. And Toyota fell to 14.1%, down from 17.9%.
Toyota officials said the priority right now is to get recalled cars fixed, not sales.
"We are focusing our full attention on jump-starting this repair process for customers," Carter said.
Updated 13h 48m ago | 260 Comments | 12 Recommend E-mail | Save | Print | Reprints & Permissions |
Enlarge By Reed Saxon, AP file
Toyota models that have been withdrawn for sale, identified by stickers on the windshield or by a single windshield wiper pointing skyward, or both, are seen at a storage lot for Keyes Toyota in the Van Nuys area of Los Angeles.
JANUARY AUTO SALES
January U.S. car and truck sales for the six biggest automakers, with change from January 2009:
Company Sales Change
GM 146,315 14.1%
Ford 116,277 25.0%
Toyota 98,796 15.8%
Honda 67,479 5.0%
Nissan 62,572 16.1%
Chrysler 57,143 8.1%
Source: Autodata
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By Chris Woodyard, USA TODAY
Toyota — in the midst of an embarrassing recall — posted a drop in sales in January, even as the industry overall showed growth in sales reported Tuesday.
The recall included a halt, beginning Jan. 26, in sales of eight of Toyota's most popular models until they are repaired for possibly sticky gas pedals.
DRIVE ON: More on sales
SAFETY: Toyotas aren't only cars under scrutiny
TOYOTA: Hit by over 100 Prius brake complaints
HONDA: Profit up sixfold for Japanese car giant
Toyota sales, including Lexus and Scion, fell 15.8% compared with January 2009, Autodata reports. Toyota says it was its worst sales showing for the month since 1999. The industry overall registered a 6.3% sales gain for January from a year before.
The sales halt of the recalled models and bad publicity from the recall left sales 23% below Toyota's internal target for the month, Toyota-brand chief Bob Carter said. The recalled vehicles, including big sellers Camry and Corolla, constitute 60% of the automaker's inventory. Toyota's Lexus and Scion brands weren't part of the latest recall.
"Those who would like to come back are waiting," says Alexander Edwards, president of consultant Strategic Vision.
For the moment, potential buyers are content to make their old cars last longer until Toyota sorts out its troubles, he says. Toyota buyers tend to be security minded, so the automaker's safety recall strikes them extra hard.
By contrast, Ford Motor had a sales gain of 25%, General Motors saw sales increase 14.1%, and Chrysler lost 8.1% in sales compared with a year ago. GM, the largest seller in the U.S., said sales of crossover vehicles and passenger cars led its increase.
Ken Czubay, Ford's U.S. marketing vice president, said his company's retail sales to individuals were just "OK" for the month and that most of Ford's gain was in sales to government, corporate and rental fleets, which soared 154%.
Buyers took advantage of good deals in December and might have sensed incentives weren't as lucrative last month. It was harder "to get traction" with customers, he said.
Largely because of Toyota's troubles, GM and Ford were able to solidify their positions as the two best-selling automakers. GM had 21% market share last month, up from 19.5% a year ago. Ford increased its share to 16.7%, up from 14.2%. And Toyota fell to 14.1%, down from 17.9%.
Toyota officials said the priority right now is to get recalled cars fixed, not sales.
"We are focusing our full attention on jump-starting this repair process for customers," Carter said.
Toyota hit by more than 100 Prius brake complaints
Updated 10h 45m ago | 95 Comments | 8 Recommend E-mail | Save | Print |
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By Shino Yuasa, Associated Press Writer
TOKYO — Toyota has been hit by more than 100 complaints in the U.S. and Japan about brake problems with the popular Prius hybrid, the latest in a spate of quality troubles for the automaker as it grapples with massive global recalls.
The Japanese company's sales are being battered in the U.S. — Toyota's (TM) biggest market — after recalls of top-selling models to fix a gas pedal that can stick in the depressed position.
CAR INDUSTRY: Electromagnetic signals' link to gas pedals probed
DRIVE ON: Apple icon says his Prius has acceleration 'software glitch'
SAFETY: Toyotas aren't only cars under scrutiny
SALES IMPACT: Toyota sales drop; GM, Ford make big gains
HONDA: Profit up sixfold for Japanese car giant
The new Prius gas-electric hybrid, which went on sale in Japan and the U.S. in May 2009, is not part of the recalls that extend to Europe and China, covering nearly 4.5 million vehicles.
The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has received about 100 complaints involving the brakes of the Prius new model. Two involved crashes resulting in injuries.
Japan's transport ministry said Wednesday it has also received 14 complaints since July last year about brake problems with Toyota's new Prius hybrid.
The 14 complaints included an accident in July 2009, in which a Prius crashed head on into another car at an intersection. Transport ministry official Masaya Ota said two people were slightly injured in the accident.
"The Prius driver in the accident told police that a brake did not work," Ota said. "Other Prius drivers also complained brakes were not so sharp." The complaints in Japan involve the new Prius model, and the vehicles were all made in Japan, he said.
The ministry ordered Toyota, the world's No. 1 automaker, to investigate the complaints. The other 13 cases happened from December to January 2010. Ota said the ministry has yet to receive a formal report on the complaints from Toyota.
Toyota spokeswoman Ririko Takeuchi said the company has received reports about the Prius complaints in North America and in Japan and is looking into the matter.
Toyota shares plunged 5.7% to 3,400 yen ($38) with jittery investors dumping stocks in the wake of the Prius woes in the U.S. and Japan. The benchmark Nikkei stock index edged up just 0.3% to 10,404.33 as the drop in Toyota dampened sentiment.
"Investors were worried the latest trouble involving the Prius could get bigger. The problem could pose a bigger question on Toyota's quality and safety," said Kazuhiro Takahashi, market analyst at Daiwa Securities SMBC.
The Japanese automaker is facing growing criticism that it has not done enough to ensure the safety of its vehicles.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood told The Associated Press Tuesday that federal officials had to alert Toyota to the seriousness of the safety issues that eventually led to the recalls.
"They should have taken it seriously from the very beginning when we first started discussing it with them," he said. "Maybe they were a little safety deaf."
LaHood also said the U.S. government was considering civil penalties for Toyota for having dragged its feet on safety concerns.
Toyota executive vice president Shinichi Sasaki acknowledged Tuesday in a Nagoya, Japan, news conference that it took prodding from NHTSA officials for the company to decide on the U.S. recall.
Toyota has long prided itself on sterling vehicle quality and assembly line methods that empowered workers to ensure faultless production.
The latest recall, announced Jan. 21, over sticky gas pedals affects 2.3 million vehicles in the U.S. alone.
Any serious problems emerging in the Prius, Toyota's flagship green car model, is certain to further tarnish its brand.
The Prius, now in its third generation since its 1997 introduction, is the best-selling gas-electric hybrid in the world, racking up a cumulative 1.6 million units sold so far, according to Toyota.
Hybrids, by going back and forth between a gasoline engine and electric motor, tend to offer better mileage in slow-speed and stop-and-go driving that's common in crowded cities.
AP Business Writer Yuri Kageyama contributed to this report.
Updated 10h 45m ago | 95 Comments | 8 Recommend E-mail | Save | Print |
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By Shino Yuasa, Associated Press Writer
TOKYO — Toyota has been hit by more than 100 complaints in the U.S. and Japan about brake problems with the popular Prius hybrid, the latest in a spate of quality troubles for the automaker as it grapples with massive global recalls.
The Japanese company's sales are being battered in the U.S. — Toyota's (TM) biggest market — after recalls of top-selling models to fix a gas pedal that can stick in the depressed position.
CAR INDUSTRY: Electromagnetic signals' link to gas pedals probed
DRIVE ON: Apple icon says his Prius has acceleration 'software glitch'
SAFETY: Toyotas aren't only cars under scrutiny
SALES IMPACT: Toyota sales drop; GM, Ford make big gains
HONDA: Profit up sixfold for Japanese car giant
The new Prius gas-electric hybrid, which went on sale in Japan and the U.S. in May 2009, is not part of the recalls that extend to Europe and China, covering nearly 4.5 million vehicles.
The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has received about 100 complaints involving the brakes of the Prius new model. Two involved crashes resulting in injuries.
Japan's transport ministry said Wednesday it has also received 14 complaints since July last year about brake problems with Toyota's new Prius hybrid.
The 14 complaints included an accident in July 2009, in which a Prius crashed head on into another car at an intersection. Transport ministry official Masaya Ota said two people were slightly injured in the accident.
"The Prius driver in the accident told police that a brake did not work," Ota said. "Other Prius drivers also complained brakes were not so sharp." The complaints in Japan involve the new Prius model, and the vehicles were all made in Japan, he said.
The ministry ordered Toyota, the world's No. 1 automaker, to investigate the complaints. The other 13 cases happened from December to January 2010. Ota said the ministry has yet to receive a formal report on the complaints from Toyota.
Toyota spokeswoman Ririko Takeuchi said the company has received reports about the Prius complaints in North America and in Japan and is looking into the matter.
Toyota shares plunged 5.7% to 3,400 yen ($38) with jittery investors dumping stocks in the wake of the Prius woes in the U.S. and Japan. The benchmark Nikkei stock index edged up just 0.3% to 10,404.33 as the drop in Toyota dampened sentiment.
"Investors were worried the latest trouble involving the Prius could get bigger. The problem could pose a bigger question on Toyota's quality and safety," said Kazuhiro Takahashi, market analyst at Daiwa Securities SMBC.
The Japanese automaker is facing growing criticism that it has not done enough to ensure the safety of its vehicles.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood told The Associated Press Tuesday that federal officials had to alert Toyota to the seriousness of the safety issues that eventually led to the recalls.
"They should have taken it seriously from the very beginning when we first started discussing it with them," he said. "Maybe they were a little safety deaf."
LaHood also said the U.S. government was considering civil penalties for Toyota for having dragged its feet on safety concerns.
Toyota executive vice president Shinichi Sasaki acknowledged Tuesday in a Nagoya, Japan, news conference that it took prodding from NHTSA officials for the company to decide on the U.S. recall.
Toyota has long prided itself on sterling vehicle quality and assembly line methods that empowered workers to ensure faultless production.
The latest recall, announced Jan. 21, over sticky gas pedals affects 2.3 million vehicles in the U.S. alone.
Any serious problems emerging in the Prius, Toyota's flagship green car model, is certain to further tarnish its brand.
The Prius, now in its third generation since its 1997 introduction, is the best-selling gas-electric hybrid in the world, racking up a cumulative 1.6 million units sold so far, according to Toyota.
Hybrids, by going back and forth between a gasoline engine and electric motor, tend to offer better mileage in slow-speed and stop-and-go driving that's common in crowded cities.
AP Business Writer Yuri Kageyama contributed to this report.
US chides Toyota over massive recall
Feb 2 11:25 PM US/Eastern
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Toyota has come under fire from a top US official for its handling of a mas...
Graphic showing models affected in Toyota's mass vehicle recall.
Driving seats and pedals are seen in a Toyota Camry at the company's showro...
Toyota has come under fire from a top US official for its handling of a massive recall as the giant Japanese carmaker scrambled to reassure customers on safety.
US Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said on Tuesday that Toyota's recall of millions of vehicles with defective pedals that can get stuck and cause unwanted acceleration came only after pressure from the US government.
"Since questions were first raised about possible safety defects, we have been pushing Toyota to take measures to protect consumers," LaHood said in a statement.
"While Toyota is taking responsible action now, it unfortunately took an enormous effort to get to this point."
Safety regulators are "considering a civil penalty against Toyota," an official told AFP on condition of anonymity.
Toyota said Monday it had not been forced into the voluntary mass recalls, insisting the decision to stop US sales and production of eight affected models was "entirely ours."
A spokesman for Toyota's US operations acknowledged Tuesday that it had discussed the matter with LaHood and was "grateful for his advice."
"Secretary LaHood said to us that the soonest possible action would be in the interest of our customers," said Mike Michaels, Toyota Motor Sales USA's vice president in charge of communication.
"We took his advice very seriously and instituted a recall," Michaels said in a conference call discussing the automaker's US sales, which were down 8.7 percent in January.
"We're grateful for his advice and we feel we've been given a chance to regain our customers trust."
Meanwhile, the recall spread to about 180,000 vehicles in the Middle East, Africa and Latin America Tuesday that were imported from the United States with sticking accelerator pedals.
Recall forces US supplier into defense That follows the recall of 1.8 million vehicles in Europe on Friday and brings the number of vehicles affected to almost eight million worldwide -- roughly equivalent to Toyota entire 2009 global sales.
Toyota's US unit says the Japanese company had "developed and rigorously tested" a fix for accelerator pedals in faulty models and had also come up with "an effective solution" for vehicles currently in production.
Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak suggested Tuesday in media interviews that Toyota's troubles may have to do with software, after his Prius sped up while in cruise-control.
"Since my foot never touches the pedal," Wozniak told ABC News, the problem "cannot be a sticky accelerator pedal.... There might be some bad software in there."
Wozniak said he tried unsuccessfully to get Toyota's and US authorities' attention after his 2010 Prius acceleration problems cropped up while he was in cruise control months ago.
Thanks to the media attention this week, however, Toyota has responded by offering to borrow Wozniak's car for a week to diagnose the problem, The Los Angeles Times reported on its website.
The Prius, a best-selling hybrid, is not one of the vehicles under recall.
Toyota has actively expanded overseas in the past decade to meet brisk demand for its cars, prompting critics to question whether its renowned quality control has weakened in the process -- a suggestion the group denies. Related article: Hyundai sales soar in US amid Toyota recall
"I do not think that the expansion of the production overseas has affected the quality," Toyota vice president Shinichi Sasaki told a news conference Tuesday, at which he issued a fresh apology for the company over the massive recall.
"We have full trust in engineering and quality," added Sasaki, the first Toyota executive to talk publicly in Japan about the recalls since they spread around the world last week.Related article: Apple co-founder says Toyota may have software trouble
The company is still unsure what the financial impact of the recalls will be for the automaker, Sasaki said.
"The cost is going to be high but we needed to do this," he said. "Before we worry about the impact, we should worry about the customers and the dealers."
Toyota president Akio Toyoda, the grandson of the company's founder, has kept a low profile since the recall went global last week, and he did not appear at Tuesday's news conference. Related article: Toyota draws flak over recall PR strategy
When he was eventually tracked down by a Japanese television crew at the Davos economic forum over the weekend, he briefly apologized, saying the group was "extremely sorry to have made customers feel uneasy."
The Japanese giant is facing criticism that it failed to communicate adequately with customers. It took more than a week for the company to outline a repair program after the recall was first announced.
"We gave priority to properly issuing a warning, even at risk of causing confusion," said Sasaki. "I apologize from the management for the delay and I hope you understand the situation."
The company said that in rare cases, the accelerator pedal mechanism could become worn and harder to depress, or get stuck in a partially depressed position.
Feb 2 11:25 PM US/Eastern
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Toyota has come under fire from a top US official for its handling of a mas...
Graphic showing models affected in Toyota's mass vehicle recall.
Driving seats and pedals are seen in a Toyota Camry at the company's showro...
Toyota has come under fire from a top US official for its handling of a massive recall as the giant Japanese carmaker scrambled to reassure customers on safety.
US Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said on Tuesday that Toyota's recall of millions of vehicles with defective pedals that can get stuck and cause unwanted acceleration came only after pressure from the US government.
"Since questions were first raised about possible safety defects, we have been pushing Toyota to take measures to protect consumers," LaHood said in a statement.
"While Toyota is taking responsible action now, it unfortunately took an enormous effort to get to this point."
Safety regulators are "considering a civil penalty against Toyota," an official told AFP on condition of anonymity.
Toyota said Monday it had not been forced into the voluntary mass recalls, insisting the decision to stop US sales and production of eight affected models was "entirely ours."
A spokesman for Toyota's US operations acknowledged Tuesday that it had discussed the matter with LaHood and was "grateful for his advice."
"Secretary LaHood said to us that the soonest possible action would be in the interest of our customers," said Mike Michaels, Toyota Motor Sales USA's vice president in charge of communication.
"We took his advice very seriously and instituted a recall," Michaels said in a conference call discussing the automaker's US sales, which were down 8.7 percent in January.
"We're grateful for his advice and we feel we've been given a chance to regain our customers trust."
Meanwhile, the recall spread to about 180,000 vehicles in the Middle East, Africa and Latin America Tuesday that were imported from the United States with sticking accelerator pedals.
Recall forces US supplier into defense That follows the recall of 1.8 million vehicles in Europe on Friday and brings the number of vehicles affected to almost eight million worldwide -- roughly equivalent to Toyota entire 2009 global sales.
Toyota's US unit says the Japanese company had "developed and rigorously tested" a fix for accelerator pedals in faulty models and had also come up with "an effective solution" for vehicles currently in production.
Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak suggested Tuesday in media interviews that Toyota's troubles may have to do with software, after his Prius sped up while in cruise-control.
"Since my foot never touches the pedal," Wozniak told ABC News, the problem "cannot be a sticky accelerator pedal.... There might be some bad software in there."
Wozniak said he tried unsuccessfully to get Toyota's and US authorities' attention after his 2010 Prius acceleration problems cropped up while he was in cruise control months ago.
Thanks to the media attention this week, however, Toyota has responded by offering to borrow Wozniak's car for a week to diagnose the problem, The Los Angeles Times reported on its website.
The Prius, a best-selling hybrid, is not one of the vehicles under recall.
Toyota has actively expanded overseas in the past decade to meet brisk demand for its cars, prompting critics to question whether its renowned quality control has weakened in the process -- a suggestion the group denies. Related article: Hyundai sales soar in US amid Toyota recall
"I do not think that the expansion of the production overseas has affected the quality," Toyota vice president Shinichi Sasaki told a news conference Tuesday, at which he issued a fresh apology for the company over the massive recall.
"We have full trust in engineering and quality," added Sasaki, the first Toyota executive to talk publicly in Japan about the recalls since they spread around the world last week.Related article: Apple co-founder says Toyota may have software trouble
The company is still unsure what the financial impact of the recalls will be for the automaker, Sasaki said.
"The cost is going to be high but we needed to do this," he said. "Before we worry about the impact, we should worry about the customers and the dealers."
Toyota president Akio Toyoda, the grandson of the company's founder, has kept a low profile since the recall went global last week, and he did not appear at Tuesday's news conference. Related article: Toyota draws flak over recall PR strategy
When he was eventually tracked down by a Japanese television crew at the Davos economic forum over the weekend, he briefly apologized, saying the group was "extremely sorry to have made customers feel uneasy."
The Japanese giant is facing criticism that it failed to communicate adequately with customers. It took more than a week for the company to outline a repair program after the recall was first announced.
"We gave priority to properly issuing a warning, even at risk of causing confusion," said Sasaki. "I apologize from the management for the delay and I hope you understand the situation."
The company said that in rare cases, the accelerator pedal mechanism could become worn and harder to depress, or get stuck in a partially depressed position.
Prius Brake Inquiry May Be Another Blow for Toyota
Shizuo Kambayashi/Associated Press
A Prius assembly line at a Toyota plant in Japan. The Japanese government received 14 reports of faulty brakes on the hybrid.
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By HIROKO TABUCHI and KEITH BRADSHER
Published: February 3, 2010
NAGOYA, Japan — The Prius, a centerpiece of Japan's cutting-edge technology, fell victim to Toyota's widening quality crisis on Wednesday after Japanese authorities told the automaker to investigate reports of faulty brakes on the gas-electric hybrid.
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The troubles appeared to weigh on the company's stock price, which dropped almost 5 percent in early trading Thursday after Tokyo's Nikkei opened.
Slow-moving brakes on the car may have led to a collision last July, just months after the third-generation Prius went on sale in Japan, the country's Transport Ministry warned Wednesday. At least 77 more cases of possible brake malfunctions have been reported in Japan since the newest model went on sale in May.
The company had not yet decided about a recall, but a spokeswoman, Ririko Takeuchi, said a defect with the brakes could not be ruled out.
Concerns over the Prius's safety threatens to undermine Toyota's reputation even in its home market, where confidence in the carmaker has appeared watertight despite a worldwide recall of other models because of sticky gas pedals and unintended acceleration.
The difficulties with brakes on the hybrid Prius could deal a second blow to the automaker's reputation for quality. Toyota executives must now confront complaints that seem tailor-made for late-night comedians — some cars that keep accelerating against the driver's will and others that fail to stop promptly when the driver hits the brakes.
"There couldn't have been a worse timing for Toyota," said Koji Endo, analyst at the research agency, Advanced Research Japan.
The Prius is one of the world's best-known cars and the centerpiece of Toyota's campaign to portray itself as more environmentally aware and progressive than its rivals. Toyota had promoted the cutting-edge design of the Prius brakes as a feature that gives the car a technological edge and better mileage.
Faced with the shutdown of more than half its sales in the United States because of a recall of cars with faulty gas pedals in several Toyota models, Toyota embraced the Prius even more tightly this week, making it the focus of the company's advertising.
But on Wednesday, Japan's Transport Ministry said it had told Toyota to investigate 14 reports of momentary brake failure since the car went on sale in May.
Drivers complained that the brakes on the newest Prius momentarily stopped working at low speeds, especially on slippery surfaces, said Kenji Sato, a Transport Ministry official. In one incident in July 2009, a Prius crashed head-on into another vehicle at an intersection, hurting two people in that car.
In the United States, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has logged at least 136 complaints about the brakes on the 2010 Prius. Many are from drivers who say the vehicle surged forward or temporarily lost braking after driving over a pothole or other uneven surface, and many say it is a recurring problem.
Four cases involved a crash, and two of those resulted in injuries, according to the safety agency's complaint database.
Ms. Takeuchi stressed that the newest Prius model was fitted with an overhauled regenerative brake system different from the ones used in previous models, which had not caused any complaints.
"We are examining any complaints that we hear through our dealers, one by one," said Shinichi Sasaki, an executive at Toyota in charge of quality. "Only after that can we get back to our customers on possible improvement."
Experts say a possible problem with the regenerative brakes in the Prius raises a conundrum not just for Toyota but for the entire industry. It is also bad news for environmental advocates who considered the technology one way to help improve fuel economy and reduce the contribution of automobiles to global warming.
Regenerative braking is simple in theory but complicated in practice. The energy of most cars' momentum is wasted during braking, as brake pads exert friction against rotors on the wheels and heat up. The theory of regenerative braking is that the car's momentum is partly used to recharge a car battery.
This helps to slow the car while storing power that can be used to help the car regain speed later. John German, a semi-retired auto engineer and an expert on environmental engine technologies, said that adding regenerative braking improves a car's gas mileage while driving in a congested city by at least 10 percent.
Practically all hybrid cars have regenerative braking.
"The greater benefits occur if there are frequent braking events, as you find in congested city driving," said Danilo J. Santini, an urban systems engineer at Argonne National Laboratory in Argonne, Ill.
Some early hybrids, like the Honda Insight, added regenerative braking to conventional brake pads for extra force in slowing a car. But the Prius and other hybrids increasingly rely on complex electronics to combine the regenerative braking with brake pads, so that battery recharging absorbs as much energy as possible.
Mr. German, who is now the program director at the International Council on Clean Transportation, an environmental group, said that possible problems with the brakes on the Prius might have nothing to do with the electronics system and, might, in fact, be related to the conventional brakes.
If any problem does surface on the Prius, it could prove troublesome as Toyota tries to rebut claims that electronics difficulties, and not flaws in gas pedals, are behind incidents of sudden acceleration in Toyota and Lexus cars.
Meanwhile, Japanese regulators have been stepping up their vigilance after long being known for a passive role in identifying possible auto defects. Auto safety is overseen by the Transport Ministry, and its recall division solicits reports of possible defects from the public and posts them on a Web site.
A catalyst for the government's expanded role was a scandal in 2000 involving the cover-up of a string of defects by Mitsubishi Motors, which almost drove the automaker out of business. The number of cars affected by recalls in Japan have surged since then, jumping to 5.07 million in 2008 from 680,216 in 1998.
The ministry's recall unit stressed, however, that its request to investigate the Prius brakes was routine. The unit handles about 5,000 complaints a year.
"The government intends to get involved to examine whether a recall will become necessary or not," Japan's transport minister, Seiji Maehara, said .
Hiroko Tabuchi reported from Nagoya, Japan, and Keith Bradsher from Wuhan, China.
Nick Bunkley contributed reporting from Detroit.
Shizuo Kambayashi/Associated Press
A Prius assembly line at a Toyota plant in Japan. The Japanese government received 14 reports of faulty brakes on the hybrid.
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By HIROKO TABUCHI and KEITH BRADSHER
Published: February 3, 2010
NAGOYA, Japan — The Prius, a centerpiece of Japan's cutting-edge technology, fell victim to Toyota's widening quality crisis on Wednesday after Japanese authorities told the automaker to investigate reports of faulty brakes on the gas-electric hybrid.
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The troubles appeared to weigh on the company's stock price, which dropped almost 5 percent in early trading Thursday after Tokyo's Nikkei opened.
Slow-moving brakes on the car may have led to a collision last July, just months after the third-generation Prius went on sale in Japan, the country's Transport Ministry warned Wednesday. At least 77 more cases of possible brake malfunctions have been reported in Japan since the newest model went on sale in May.
The company had not yet decided about a recall, but a spokeswoman, Ririko Takeuchi, said a defect with the brakes could not be ruled out.
Concerns over the Prius's safety threatens to undermine Toyota's reputation even in its home market, where confidence in the carmaker has appeared watertight despite a worldwide recall of other models because of sticky gas pedals and unintended acceleration.
The difficulties with brakes on the hybrid Prius could deal a second blow to the automaker's reputation for quality. Toyota executives must now confront complaints that seem tailor-made for late-night comedians — some cars that keep accelerating against the driver's will and others that fail to stop promptly when the driver hits the brakes.
"There couldn't have been a worse timing for Toyota," said Koji Endo, analyst at the research agency, Advanced Research Japan.
The Prius is one of the world's best-known cars and the centerpiece of Toyota's campaign to portray itself as more environmentally aware and progressive than its rivals. Toyota had promoted the cutting-edge design of the Prius brakes as a feature that gives the car a technological edge and better mileage.
Faced with the shutdown of more than half its sales in the United States because of a recall of cars with faulty gas pedals in several Toyota models, Toyota embraced the Prius even more tightly this week, making it the focus of the company's advertising.
But on Wednesday, Japan's Transport Ministry said it had told Toyota to investigate 14 reports of momentary brake failure since the car went on sale in May.
Drivers complained that the brakes on the newest Prius momentarily stopped working at low speeds, especially on slippery surfaces, said Kenji Sato, a Transport Ministry official. In one incident in July 2009, a Prius crashed head-on into another vehicle at an intersection, hurting two people in that car.
In the United States, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has logged at least 136 complaints about the brakes on the 2010 Prius. Many are from drivers who say the vehicle surged forward or temporarily lost braking after driving over a pothole or other uneven surface, and many say it is a recurring problem.
Four cases involved a crash, and two of those resulted in injuries, according to the safety agency's complaint database.
Ms. Takeuchi stressed that the newest Prius model was fitted with an overhauled regenerative brake system different from the ones used in previous models, which had not caused any complaints.
"We are examining any complaints that we hear through our dealers, one by one," said Shinichi Sasaki, an executive at Toyota in charge of quality. "Only after that can we get back to our customers on possible improvement."
Experts say a possible problem with the regenerative brakes in the Prius raises a conundrum not just for Toyota but for the entire industry. It is also bad news for environmental advocates who considered the technology one way to help improve fuel economy and reduce the contribution of automobiles to global warming.
Regenerative braking is simple in theory but complicated in practice. The energy of most cars' momentum is wasted during braking, as brake pads exert friction against rotors on the wheels and heat up. The theory of regenerative braking is that the car's momentum is partly used to recharge a car battery.
This helps to slow the car while storing power that can be used to help the car regain speed later. John German, a semi-retired auto engineer and an expert on environmental engine technologies, said that adding regenerative braking improves a car's gas mileage while driving in a congested city by at least 10 percent.
Practically all hybrid cars have regenerative braking.
"The greater benefits occur if there are frequent braking events, as you find in congested city driving," said Danilo J. Santini, an urban systems engineer at Argonne National Laboratory in Argonne, Ill.
Some early hybrids, like the Honda Insight, added regenerative braking to conventional brake pads for extra force in slowing a car. But the Prius and other hybrids increasingly rely on complex electronics to combine the regenerative braking with brake pads, so that battery recharging absorbs as much energy as possible.
Mr. German, who is now the program director at the International Council on Clean Transportation, an environmental group, said that possible problems with the brakes on the Prius might have nothing to do with the electronics system and, might, in fact, be related to the conventional brakes.
If any problem does surface on the Prius, it could prove troublesome as Toyota tries to rebut claims that electronics difficulties, and not flaws in gas pedals, are behind incidents of sudden acceleration in Toyota and Lexus cars.
Meanwhile, Japanese regulators have been stepping up their vigilance after long being known for a passive role in identifying possible auto defects. Auto safety is overseen by the Transport Ministry, and its recall division solicits reports of possible defects from the public and posts them on a Web site.
A catalyst for the government's expanded role was a scandal in 2000 involving the cover-up of a string of defects by Mitsubishi Motors, which almost drove the automaker out of business. The number of cars affected by recalls in Japan have surged since then, jumping to 5.07 million in 2008 from 680,216 in 1998.
The ministry's recall unit stressed, however, that its request to investigate the Prius brakes was routine. The unit handles about 5,000 complaints a year.
"The government intends to get involved to examine whether a recall will become necessary or not," Japan's transport minister, Seiji Maehara, said .
Hiroko Tabuchi reported from Nagoya, Japan, and Keith Bradsher from Wuhan, China.
Nick Bunkley contributed reporting from Detroit.
Toyota's Woes Grow as Prius Is Questioned
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By MICHELINE MAYNARD
Published: February 3, 2010
The hybrid-electric Prius has long been Toyota's "green car," the symbol of the automaker's engineering prowess and its big bet on the kind of car consumers will want to buy for decades to come.
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Jim Wilson/The New York Times
A new Toyota dealership in Oakland, Calif., is dealing with customers' concerns about recalls.
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Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood after a House appropriations hearing Wednesday.
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But on Wednesday, the Prius was drawn into the mounting crisis for Toyota, as Japanese officials ordered the company to investigate problems with the brakes on the 2010 model. American safety officials also said they had received dozens of similar complaints.
The troubles appeared to weigh on the company's stock price, which dropped almost 5 percent in early trading Thursday after Tokyo's Nikkei opened.
The new questions surrounding the Prius raise doubts about a different problem in a model that was not part of the recent global recalls of more than nine million vehicles.
"Prius is the gold standard," said Brian Johnson, the senior global auto industry analyst with Barclays Capital in Chicago.
"We know Toyota puts its best engineering and its best talent into that car," added Mr. Johnson, a Prius owner whose wife and mother-in-law also drive Priuses. "This hits at its flagship."
Adding to its woes, the transportation secretary, Ray LaHood, said Wednesday that owners of recalled Toyotas should stop driving their vehicles, though he quickly backtracked on the comments.
More questions are being raised about other models as well.
On Wednesday, Representative Edolphus Towns, Democrat of New York and chairman of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, asked the president of Toyota's North American operations, Yoshimi Inaba, for more information about the small Tacoma pickup.
Mr. Inaba is scheduled to testify next week before the committee, which will hold the first of two Congressional hearings on the Toyota recalls.
The Tacoma, built in the United States, was involved in a recall for problems with floor mats but was not included in the second recall, over sticking accelerator pedals. Even so, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has received more than 170 complaints about unintended acceleration on 2006-10 Tacoma trucks. Mr. Towns, in a letter, asked why the Tacoma had not been included in the second recall.
The reason, Toyota said Wednesday, is that Denso, a Japanese supplier, makes the Tacoma's pedals, and they are not part of the sticking-pedal recall. The recalled models have pedals from an American supplier.
"Even if five years from now this is all a statistic fluke for Toyota, while the narrative plays out, you will see consumer anxiety," said Mr. Johnson, the Barclays analyst.
Toyota has sold 1.2 million Priuses worldwide since 1997, about half in the United States. Last year, it was Toyota's third-best-selling American car, behind the Camry and the Corolla.
Earlier Prius models were involved in the recalls, in which buyers were advised to remove floor mats so they would not block accelerator pedals.
But the 2010 model avoided that recall, and no Prius models have been part of Toyota's recall for sticking pedals. Like the Tacoma, they are equipped with pedals from the Japanese supplier.
Toyota received thousands of advance orders for the new Prius went it went on sale in Japan last May. Federal safety officials there received their first complaint about brakes on the car two months later.
The company said Thursday that it had received 77 reports of braking problems related to the newest Prius model.
At least 14 cases have been reported to the government, Japan's Transport Ministry said, with drivers complaining of brakes momentarily failing at low speeds, especially on slippery surfaces. The ministry said that its request to Toyota to investigate the Prius brakes was routine.
In addition, in the United States, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reported at least 136 complaints involving the brakes on the 2010 Prius.
Four of the American cases involved a crash, and two of those resulted in injuries, according to the agency's database.
Many of the complaints are from drivers who say their vehicles surged forward or temporarily lost braking after driving over a pothole or another uneven surface. Many say it is a recurring problem.
There are almost no similar complaints about braking for earlier models of the Prius, including the 2004-9 versions that were included in the floor mat recall, although the safety agency has held two other defect investigations on the Prius, over stalled engines and headlights.
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By MICHELINE MAYNARD
Published: February 3, 2010
The hybrid-electric Prius has long been Toyota's "green car," the symbol of the automaker's engineering prowess and its big bet on the kind of car consumers will want to buy for decades to come.
Enlarge This Image
Jim Wilson/The New York Times
A new Toyota dealership in Oakland, Calif., is dealing with customers' concerns about recalls.
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LaHood Criticizes Toyota
Micheline Maynard on the Latest Troubles for Toyota
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Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood after a House appropriations hearing Wednesday.
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But on Wednesday, the Prius was drawn into the mounting crisis for Toyota, as Japanese officials ordered the company to investigate problems with the brakes on the 2010 model. American safety officials also said they had received dozens of similar complaints.
The troubles appeared to weigh on the company's stock price, which dropped almost 5 percent in early trading Thursday after Tokyo's Nikkei opened.
The new questions surrounding the Prius raise doubts about a different problem in a model that was not part of the recent global recalls of more than nine million vehicles.
"Prius is the gold standard," said Brian Johnson, the senior global auto industry analyst with Barclays Capital in Chicago.
"We know Toyota puts its best engineering and its best talent into that car," added Mr. Johnson, a Prius owner whose wife and mother-in-law also drive Priuses. "This hits at its flagship."
Adding to its woes, the transportation secretary, Ray LaHood, said Wednesday that owners of recalled Toyotas should stop driving their vehicles, though he quickly backtracked on the comments.
More questions are being raised about other models as well.
On Wednesday, Representative Edolphus Towns, Democrat of New York and chairman of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, asked the president of Toyota's North American operations, Yoshimi Inaba, for more information about the small Tacoma pickup.
Mr. Inaba is scheduled to testify next week before the committee, which will hold the first of two Congressional hearings on the Toyota recalls.
The Tacoma, built in the United States, was involved in a recall for problems with floor mats but was not included in the second recall, over sticking accelerator pedals. Even so, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has received more than 170 complaints about unintended acceleration on 2006-10 Tacoma trucks. Mr. Towns, in a letter, asked why the Tacoma had not been included in the second recall.
The reason, Toyota said Wednesday, is that Denso, a Japanese supplier, makes the Tacoma's pedals, and they are not part of the sticking-pedal recall. The recalled models have pedals from an American supplier.
"Even if five years from now this is all a statistic fluke for Toyota, while the narrative plays out, you will see consumer anxiety," said Mr. Johnson, the Barclays analyst.
Toyota has sold 1.2 million Priuses worldwide since 1997, about half in the United States. Last year, it was Toyota's third-best-selling American car, behind the Camry and the Corolla.
Earlier Prius models were involved in the recalls, in which buyers were advised to remove floor mats so they would not block accelerator pedals.
But the 2010 model avoided that recall, and no Prius models have been part of Toyota's recall for sticking pedals. Like the Tacoma, they are equipped with pedals from the Japanese supplier.
Toyota received thousands of advance orders for the new Prius went it went on sale in Japan last May. Federal safety officials there received their first complaint about brakes on the car two months later.
The company said Thursday that it had received 77 reports of braking problems related to the newest Prius model.
At least 14 cases have been reported to the government, Japan's Transport Ministry said, with drivers complaining of brakes momentarily failing at low speeds, especially on slippery surfaces. The ministry said that its request to Toyota to investigate the Prius brakes was routine.
In addition, in the United States, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reported at least 136 complaints involving the brakes on the 2010 Prius.
Four of the American cases involved a crash, and two of those resulted in injuries, according to the agency's database.
Many of the complaints are from drivers who say their vehicles surged forward or temporarily lost braking after driving over a pothole or another uneven surface. Many say it is a recurring problem.
There are almost no similar complaints about braking for earlier models of the Prius, including the 2004-9 versions that were included in the floor mat recall, although the safety agency has held two other defect investigations on the Prius, over stalled engines and headlights.
However, there are more than 100 complaints about 2004-9 Prius models accelerating suddenly, some leading to minor crashes. In one case, a 2007 Prius drove over the edge of a retaining wall in Seattle.
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In some of the more recent instances, drivers specifically insisted that the pedal was not caught under the floor mat.
To be sure, virtually every vehicle sold in America is the subject of complaints; the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration hears from 30,000 consumers each year. But complaints about Toyotas are being scrutinized more closely in light of the recalls.
John Hanson, a Toyota spokesman, said the company was looking into the reports but had not received word of an investigation by federal regulators.
"We're trying to figure out if there's a trend," he said. "A report is just that, a report. There are many reports we can't explain."
The 2010 Prius has a new type of regenerative brake system different from the ones used in previous years' models. With regenerative braking, energy from the wheels is used to help recharge the car's battery.
However, the Prius and other hybrid models also rely on complex electronic systems that combine regenerative braking with conventional brake pads, so that the battery can absorb as much energy as possible while the pads do most of the work of stopping the car.
Given the Toyota recalls, questions have come from many quarters about those electronic systems. The company has emphatically denied that electronic systems are responsible for complaints of stuck pedals on eight other models, which do not include the Prius.
On Wednesday, Mr. Towns asked Mr. Inaba of Toyota to provide the House committee with information about the electronic systems, which the owners of a number of Tacoma models mentioned in their complaints to the safety agency. Mr. LaHood also said his department was examining Toyota's electronics but declined to be more specific.
Some of the Tacoma owners wrote to the agency after Toyota's floor mat recall last fall, saying that was not the reason for problems with their cars. One owner wrote of an incident that left rubber burn marks in the parking lot of a Starbucks.
"This can't be a floor mat problem unless the floor mats are alive," wrote the unnamed owner of a 2008 Tacoma.
James Bell, executive market analyst at Kelley Blue Book, which tracks used-car values, said the Prius questions were making it that much harder for Toyota to put an end to its crisis.
"It just really is kind of cementing in a lot of public perception and sentiment that this story is just going to have a new chapter every day," he said.
Multimedia
Video
LaHood Criticizes Toyota
Micheline Maynard on the Latest Troubles for Toyota
Related
Transportation Chief Hastily Backtracks on 'Stop Driving It' (February 4, 2010)
Wheels: Apple Co-Founder: My Prius Has a Problem, Too
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In some of the more recent instances, drivers specifically insisted that the pedal was not caught under the floor mat.
To be sure, virtually every vehicle sold in America is the subject of complaints; the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration hears from 30,000 consumers each year. But complaints about Toyotas are being scrutinized more closely in light of the recalls.
John Hanson, a Toyota spokesman, said the company was looking into the reports but had not received word of an investigation by federal regulators.
"We're trying to figure out if there's a trend," he said. "A report is just that, a report. There are many reports we can't explain."
The 2010 Prius has a new type of regenerative brake system different from the ones used in previous years' models. With regenerative braking, energy from the wheels is used to help recharge the car's battery.
However, the Prius and other hybrid models also rely on complex electronic systems that combine regenerative braking with conventional brake pads, so that the battery can absorb as much energy as possible while the pads do most of the work of stopping the car.
Given the Toyota recalls, questions have come from many quarters about those electronic systems. The company has emphatically denied that electronic systems are responsible for complaints of stuck pedals on eight other models, which do not include the Prius.
On Wednesday, Mr. Towns asked Mr. Inaba of Toyota to provide the House committee with information about the electronic systems, which the owners of a number of Tacoma models mentioned in their complaints to the safety agency. Mr. LaHood also said his department was examining Toyota's electronics but declined to be more specific.
Some of the Tacoma owners wrote to the agency after Toyota's floor mat recall last fall, saying that was not the reason for problems with their cars. One owner wrote of an incident that left rubber burn marks in the parking lot of a Starbucks.
"This can't be a floor mat problem unless the floor mats are alive," wrote the unnamed owner of a 2008 Tacoma.
James Bell, executive market analyst at Kelley Blue Book, which tracks used-car values, said the Prius questions were making it that much harder for Toyota to put an end to its crisis.
"It just really is kind of cementing in a lot of public perception and sentiment that this story is just going to have a new chapter every day," he said.
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