The Real Toyota

amtz.zero · December 23, 2009

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-toyo...7792,full.story

This is from the article:

"In the wake of Toyota's announcement of the massive recall, The Times examined some of the ways the automaker has dealt with safety problems in recent years and found that:

* The automaker knew of a dangerous steering defect in vehicles including the 4Runner sport utility vehicle for years before issuing a recall in Japan in 2004. But it told regulators no recall was necessary in the U.S., despite having received dozens of complaints from drivers. Toyota said a subsequent investigation led it to order a U.S. recall in 2005.

* Toyota has paid cash settlements to people who say their vehicles have raced out of control, sometimes causing serious accidents, according to consumers and their attorneys. Other motorists who complained of acceleration problems with their vehicles have received buybacks under lemon laws.

* Although the sudden acceleration issue erupted publicly only in recent months, it has been festering for nearly a decade. A computerized search of NHTSA records by The Times has found Toyota issued eight previous recalls related to unintended acceleration since 2000, more than any other automaker.

* A former Toyota lawyer who handled safety litigation has sued the automaker, accusing it of engaging in a "calculated conspiracy to prevent the disclosure of damaging evidence" as part of a scheme to "prevent evidence of its vehicles' structural shortcomings from becoming known" to plaintiffs lawyers, courts, NHTSA and the public."

"Currently, Toyota is a defendant in at least 10 lawsuits alleging unintended acceleration that caused five fatalities and four injuries. Two of those suits are seeking class-action status."

It makes me mad.

ColoradoSkiCountry · December 23, 2009

While I think Toyotas are ugly and overpriced jokes, I am sure that just about every auto maker out there has one or more things in common with what was listed above.

rodram · December 23, 2009

Toyota is no different than any other car/truck maker.... hey I'm not defending Toyota or any others in anyway.... they are just all the same...

... you takes your chances when you buy a vehicle ... there is no perfect safe vehicle

asilverblazer · December 23, 2009

"And even before this week's Tundra recall, the company had been dealing with complaints that its Tacoma and Tundra pickups were rust-prone.

Two years ago, Consumer Reports magazine -- often accused by U.S. automakers of unfairly favoring Asian brands over American -- suspended its practice of automatically giving new Toyota vehicles a positive recommendation. The action came after the magazine's vehicle testers decided that the brand's history of dependability could no longer be relied upon."

Tundras were recalled because the frame rusts and the spare tire falls off...

Flimsy tailgates, flimsy frame, flimsy cam shaft, but by God that accelerator will work.

...snickers to self...

"Toyota is asking owners of the affected vehicles to remove the spare tire from under the vehicle until a remedy can be obtained."

I got some zip ties?

...laughs uncontrollably to self...

unit731 · December 25, 2009

As I have stated numerous times, perception can be reality.

The perception is that Toyota makes a better vehicle.

Many people buy on that perception.

Stevens03 · December 25, 2009

My friend at work has a 2007 Toyota tacoma and the excellerator went to the floor while he was pulling into his garage, He rammed the front of the garage and caused $3000 damage to the front end of his truck. He also was standing on the brake and it still rammed the garage.

He's fighting with the insurance and toyota.

MS3DALE · December 30, 2009

More issues for Toyota....Prius brakes

Nytemare · December 30, 2009

I know a few guys who had they're Tacoma bought back due to rusting frames, and a few that couldn't do the buy back because it only extended to the second owner(here in Canada anyway) ....some of them were the 4th or higher.

A friend of mine has a new 09 Corolla. He absolutely hates the car....it is noisy...the CEL has been on a couple times now...he bought it in May...the last one was for the engine running too rich....this caused the Cat to overheat and make a horrible smell....like rotting food, not the normal sulfur smell of a bad cat. He and I chased it for weeks...thinking it was some food that had dropped somewhere...he had it shampooed and everything.

The clutch is the worst I have ever used...along with the drive by wire system...the delay is so bad that you have a 30%+ chance of stalling on take off...and its random, sometimes you wont stall it for days on end...than it starts acting up again, and you may stall it several times in a row. Both of us know how to drive manual cars, and he actually owns a 68 VW...and I have never seen him stall it once...even when the clutch was bad. Its like the go peddle doesn't do anything for a half second or more sometimes...and other times...you push it a little harder to make it go and you end up chirping the tires pulling away cause you revved it. Oh and you cannot just pull away on the clutch alone...it just stalls if you try to move the car with the clutch and not hit the gas.

But...he did get free maintenance on the car for 5 years.... so that kind of makes up for some of the issues...

Zembonez · December 30, 2009

Toyota has issues.

GM has issues.

It's funny when we point out little fanboy fingers at them and laugh (I do it too). All I can say is that it sucks when it's YOUR brand making the fWONkup.

Nytemare · December 30, 2009

Whats funny is that they probably have a thread exactly like this over on they're boards dedicated to GM's screwups.....

Not ford or dodge screwups though...cause not even yota jerks care about ford or dodge...

Daryl LBZ · December 30, 2009

Toyota has issues.

GM has issues.

It's funny when we point out little fanboy fingers at them and laugh (I do it too). All I can say is that it sucks when it's YOUR brand making the fWONkup.

It's just alot more fun when its Toyota because the media and everyone else says they are so perfect!

MS3DALE · December 30, 2009

Toyota has issues.

GM has issues.

It's funny when we point out little fanboy fingers at them and laugh (I do it too). All I can say is that it sucks when it's YOUR brand making the fWONkup.

It's just alot more fun when its Toyota because the media and everyone else says they are so perfect!

Exactly,Same way with Honda

ColoradoSkiCountry · December 30, 2009

Oh how the mighty are falling.. and soon the resale values of the Toyota's as well

truckofwinandawesome · December 31, 2009

well, there's only 3 Japanese Automakers I will NEVER Knock.

1) Nissan, because I have family that owns Nissans that are trouble free

2) Subaru, because they OWN at All Wheel Drive

and 3) Mitsubishi, because they built the engine in our Minivan (which is still going strong at 173,000 miles!)

Nytemare · December 31, 2009

well, there's only 3 Japanese Automakers I will NEVER Knock.

1) Nissan, because I have family that owns Nissans that are trouble free

2) Subaru, because they OWN at All Wheel Drive

and 3) Mitsubishi, because they built the engine in our Minivan (which is still going strong at 173,000 miles!)

LOL...a friend of min finally blew up his 94 pathfinder a couple days ago...it had 475K km on the clock and hasn't had an oil change since the turn of the century.