This is a nice read I found about Toyota considering their awesome quality and how the media persists to tell us ours is worse. The media just publisizes ours more while they continue to stroke the Japanese auto manufacturers. If this was GM or Ford, it would be front page news. This was at least front page in business section.

http://detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/art...TO01/701190358

Enjoy

 

Another forum I frequent had an interesting thread on this.

When looking at total recalls and percentages, Toyota had far more recalls. Well above GM (which ws the subject of the forum).

The conclusion wasn't that Toyota builds better vehicles, but they are by far better at promoting, advertising, and customer relations.

 

It's good to be able to see something like that once in a while.

 

I stopped buying Toyota trucks 15yrs ago due to reliability and cost.
Switched to Rangers, My current Ranger has 178k with about $500 total maintenance outside of regular scheduled items. I sold my last Toyota at 180k due to it costing as much in maintenance as a payment.
They once built a better product. They now live off a perception of superior quality. I for one dont buy it.

 

I think Toyota's problem is that they are now built in the US by lazy un-educated, over paid auto workers. That can destroy any manufacturer........

 

Not at all true. Toyota trucks are built just up the road from me, in Princeton Indiana. Employment at the Toyota factory is highly coveted in this area.

The workers are educated, highly motivated and not at all overpaid. Lazy workers would not make it past the trail/training period. Starting wages are around $16 an hour plus benefits. While that doesn't sound like much, keep in mind you can still buy a house in the greater Evansville IN. area for under $100,000.

 

Recalls are the product of poor engineering and testing. These problems aren't coming from the assembly line. These "lazy" auto workers only build the vehicles to the specs they are given. It's up to the "highly educated" engineers back in Japan to design something right to begin with.

 

Thanks for the chuckle.

 

Toyota is building a new plant in Texas.

http://www.fordboldmoves.com/episode...1-4e98ecc93d92

Everyone says 'they (foreign auto companies) are all now built in America, so all vehicles are American'. So what's the problem? Yes, most are assembled here in America. Yes, they do pay American workers. Yes, they do pay taxes here in America. But all the actual profits go back to Japan, not to the American Economy (like it would when buying a Ford, Dodge, and GM). If we get into another war with Japan, those that bought foreign cars/truck have helped Japan afford bigger better weapons which will be used against you know who - us.

Everyone I know that bought a foreign vehicle were not looking at the quality. They were looking at the bottom line - actual price & fuel economy. Talking about buying a tough truck, do you know of any foreign truck you would feel comfortable with dumping 3,000# of rock in? No. Thats because they make their vehicles way too flimsy. Foreign car companies use the exact same brakes/suspension/drive train in their cars & trucks - they don't know how to build a real tough truck. Nissan Titan says they can tow up to a 9,500# trailer. Ford F-250 SD (5.4L engine & auto) can tow a 9,400# trailer. Which one would you rather have tow that 10,000# you have? Just look underneath the truck - that says it all.

 

Again, not at all true.

Profits from the sales of the vehicles go to the shareholders of the company. Both GM and Ford are considered an "American" company because HQ is in America. Dodges, if you want to split hairs, are made by a European company (Daimler Chrysler).


You cannot say that Toyota is a Japanese company any more. It is a huge international company, the same as GM, Ford or Daimler Chrysler.

 

doorkicker,
you like many other people in this country want to bash auto and other union workers. You obviously are too blind to realize educated people wouldn't be making the wages they (so call) earn if it wasn't for unions helping people raise their standard of living. The educated would be driving the $2000 used KIA, because they would be making the $ 5.00 an hour wage the the Koreans and Indian population are earning, to replace people that make ignorant comments like yourself.

 

Well when its computers and robots that do all the work now and the suposedly uneducated workers have to damned near be software engineers to make sense of all that crap I wonder who is the lazy and uneducated maybe you should try doing some research instead of trying to pass BS like you know what your talking about. Not to mention have fun maintaining any decent standard of living for less than $16 bucks an hour Maybe manufacturers should stop paying CEO's 5 million a year then they could make a profit

 

So true about shareholders. (As an aside, GM & Ford need to work on that profit part...)

So many view big business as some type of enemy (thanks in no small part to a media driven by hatred of all things capitalistic), when in fact businesses are owned by people. People as well as union pension funds, college endowments and hospitals. Hardly what media consider the enemy, but we can't dig deeper into it, now can we??

The global marketplace is making less and less of ownership relevant. Everybody competes with everybody today, which is a good thing.

Let's hope Ford can keep up...

 

I completly disagree DoorKicker, It's all about perception. I work for a company that validates ISO certification and visit many of the feeder(supply) plants for Nissan Honda Toyota Ford GM etc etc etc. Toyota, Nissan and Honda have for years been percieved as the benchmark for quality. Yet I see their product being made right along side Ford and Chevy parts. The only difference is specifications, as handed down by an engineer somewhere. Kia in Alabama has the worlds most technologically advanced assembly line on the planet and it was designed using Toyota's lean line plan. Their assembly quality is second to none yet the perception is they sell crap. Again I believe that goes back to specifications, not workers attitude or ability. Right up the road in Tuscaloosa Alabama is the Mercedes plant. Further up the road is the BMW plant in South Carolina, we know how the buying public perceives those manufacturers.

 

Steve here... I bought a new 05 Tundra in fall of 04... Traded it in, spring of 05 with 2000 miles on it. At the time I had a 92 Toyota 4x4 aproching 250000 miles. I got rid of the Tundra because:
Engine oil leak...They could'nt fix...claimed oil pan gasket at the rear main.
Factory bed liner rattled over bumps
Going over bumps, windows rattled in the chase when 3/4 to almost all the way down.
Passenger side power window shuddered going up and down
Passenger side seat rattled over bumps
I know every auto maker can have issues. My old 92 Toy had some issues too, but all in all was a good solid truck. That truck WAS made in Japan.
I now have a Honda S2000 wich was also made in Japan. It too is an excellent tight quality vehicle.
I haven't had a Ford since 1990(5.0 Mustang GT). My 06 F250 I have now has 9500 miles. It is quiet and tight like my Honda.
my 2cents
Steven