Good Article on Toyota's Predicament

Good article. Many big, successful organizations eventually suffer this same problem. NASA went through this, leading to the Challenger explosion. After that they were paralyzed for fear of making more mistakes.

Toyota's response over the next few weeks will be critical and interesting to watch.

Tom

 

Reminds me of how Mercedes lost their way on quality in the 1990's. They appear to have recovered since and I'm sure Toyota will learn and come back stronger.

 

How would a test drive indicate warranty repair rate?

Sound & Feel have aren't related to reliability. Heck, my Taurus had a remarkably smooth & quiet automatic transmission... for years, right up until shortly before the transmission died.
.

 

1. Wasn't the original claim about cost, not quantity?

2. Wasn't the original comparison to Camry, not Prius?

Better read your own posts closer.
.

 

same here
a smooth running automatic american brand ( i am sorry ) that just stopt working from one moment on to the other..
and i have to say with a lot less miles on it then it suposed to have.

toyota and for that matter subaru also have more cheap feeling plastic dashboards.
but thats nothing to do with quality of the ice and transmission

so i agree with your comment

and how many recalls where there with GM or ford?
the chevy cobalt..... more then 1100 complaints and several injury's

and also maybe read this
its on the same page of your link

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35261471/

By Dan Carney, contributor

Toyota says it has recalled 5.6 million vehicles in the U.S. over unintended acceleration.

But Toyota’s recall -- while massive -- isn't nearly the largest, so far ranking No. 4 on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s hit parade of top recalls in the agency’s history.

Domestic manufacturers dominate this list, but it’s simply a matter of mathematics: Many of the biggest recalls are from the agency’s earlier years, and import brands at that time simply didn’t sell enough autos in the U.S. for any recalls to cover a large number of vehicles. Now that they do, they are earning places on the list too.

Click on the top for a look at the top 10 recalls in the U.S. of all time.\

the number one is ford
1: Ford
Number of vehicles recalled: 7.9 million
Year of recall: 1996
The company warned that the ignition switch on the recalled vehicles could overheat and smoke or catch fire.

Ford recalled most of its models built between 1988 and ’93, including the Aerostar, Bronco, Crown Victoria, Escort, F-150 pickup, Mustang, Tempo and Thunderbird.

 

GM recalls 2 million vehicles — Autoblog
If you have virtually any 2003-2005 GM SUV or crew cab truck you'll probably be getting a recall notice. 1.5 million 2003-2005 Chevy Silverado Crew Cabs, Suburbans, Tahoes, Avalanches, Cadillac Escalades, Escalade ESVs, Escalade EXTs, GMC Sierra Crew Cabs, Yukons, Yukon XLs and Hummer H2s have been recalled for faulty rear safety belts that don't protect passengers adequately. No one has been injured as a result. However 142,000 1999-2002 1500 Series Chevy Silverados and GMC Sierra pickups are also being recalled for manual transmission problems that led to 26 crashes.

http://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/grm/insult-to-injury-gm-recall/9333/page1/
The possibility of engine fires has prompted General Motors to recall nearly 1.5 million passenger sedans manufactured between 1997 and 2003, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced Monday. The recall involves certain GM vehicles in which oil apparently can leak and ignite.

Yep, current and newer GMs are trouble free.