Toyota Blames Rapid Growth For Quality Problems

TOKYO: The president of Toyota Motor acknowledged Thursday its rapid global growth was partly behind an increase in quality problems in recent years.

The company has improved quality controls and is sticking to its sales targets, including those in North America, despite worries about a credit crunch and a slowdown in the auto market, said the president, Katsuaki Watanabe.

Speaking at the Japan National Press Club, Watanabe said the reasons behind the defects were varied, involving development, design, production, suppliers and maintenance...

(International Herald Tribune/The Associated Press
Published: March 13, 2008)
http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/03/...ess/toyota.php

 

He's finally seeing that NOW?

We were discussing this matter on CAR CHAT several years ago.

 

That is not a reason that is going to make people feel better having experienced issues because he may not realize it but that as an excuse or part of a reason means they allowed production output/sales to overrule Quality Control when it should always be that production is subordinate to the final say of quality control.

 

idc what they blame it on, as long as the fix it, as in now!!!! and tell lexus to release the lf-a already.

 

Took him until now to figure that out???

Another one of those useless press if anything. "Acknowledging" the problem does not make you look better. You always hear people saying "well at least they're acknowledging their faults." Talk is cheap. It's the action that counts.

 

i hope it's not too late, it's pretty obvious already

 

I hope they fix these problems. Toyota has a good reputation for quality and they need to keep that up to attract new and current customers to keep buying their products.

 

This may be the public acknowledgment, the private one was probably known a while back IMO.

 

Problems can't be just fixed overnight. Do you really think he's just making speeches and Toyota isn't actually taking action?

 

I think he is making PR speeches up to a point, after all what can he say that would make sense given the various issues affecting numerous Lexus models and Toyota models for several years now.

To say it is due to rapid growth simply glosses over the fact that someone decided to subordinate Quality Control measures which impacted many consumers who had to or are currently dealing with that decision allowing defects in vehicles they purchased.

The question I hope being asked is who has been behind the deliberate decision to subordinate quality for quantity in the first place and if it was him or others immediately around they need to pay for their thoughtless decision.

 

at least they admitted quality problems. Most companies would recall millions of cars and still in the end wont admit they had problems

 

Of course problems can't be fixed overnight. Yet, why do we continue to criticize the big 3 when they announce that they want to improve their quality? Many domestic vehicles are a lot better now than they were years ago. It's unfair to give Toyota the benefit of the doubt if we dont do the same for other companies. I do hope Toyota improves on their quality control, because it's never a bad thing to have high quality products.

 

Toyota has a reputation spanning several decades of learning from their mistakes, and actually delivering on what they talk about.

The American Big 3 have a reputation spanning several decades of ignoring mistakes or not learning from them, and not delivering on a lot of things they talk about.

I don't see how it's "unfair". Toyota can be given benefit of the doubt simply due to their past history, and also because there have been very few instances of Toyota not delivering what they talk about. Toyota stated that they implemented new measures to improve quality, and we can already see that with the new Highlander and new Corolla. All the talk from Toyota about raising their quality is already showing results. We should see the full results from Toyota's new quality initiatives with the next-gen of Toyota vehicles.

I agree that GM and Ford have improved in recent years (Chrysler not so much) in terms of quality but all of sudden you cannot put them on the same level as Toyota with regards to delivering on their promises.

 

How many times does it have to be said, no one sets out to build crappy cars but every brand has it's undying loyalists (as you seem to be for Toyota) and they give them the benefit of the doubt every year until things get out of hand, if everyone gives them a pass what incentive is there to do better, the Big Three were once at this crossroads, think about it.

 

Toyota is, indeed, at a crossroads in thier history and I do think there are parallels to the Detroit big 3. But there's one difference and it is a huge one.

Toyota is simply putting effort to regain a level of quality that it is clearly capable of maintaining while the big 3 still haven't figured out how to achieve that level yet. There's a difference in trying to arrive at a point verses returning to a point.