Weekend motoring press roundup

The AA's Edmund King writing in The Guardian said: "The global media hysteria surrounding Toyota is now getting to motoring journalists. Steve Cropley in his Autocar blog has taken on the Daily Mail."

Cropley said: "That habitual harbinger of doom, the Daily Mail, has finally pushed me over the edge. I hate the fact that this paper (which makes a speciality of fuelling our anxieties) has taken to encouraging Toyota owners not to drive their cars, apparently because their lives are at risk. I've rarely heard such twaddle."

King continued: "Other motoring journalists are tweeting in support of Toyota, and indeed some Toyota dealerships are experiencing a "positive backlash" with loyal customers rallying to back them.

"So what is going on? It is a fact that cars and drivers can be dangerous. Despite our "good" road safety record in the UK some seven people are killed every day on our roads. Each day 3,500 people will die on the world's roads and 65,000 will be injured. These deaths are not generally anything to do with faulty cars but are down to dangerous drivers, often on dangerous roads. In fact, in the last 10 years since the advent of Euro NCAP crash testing, the actual cars have become considerably safer.

"Drivers should never rely totally on their cars and shift into auto-pilot. Things can go wrong. I have had brakes fail on an old Mini. My accelerator pedal once fell off my Citroën Dyane 4 on the A1. I've had a blow-out in the outside lane of the M1 in a Volvo. Floodwater has come through the floor of my old Fiat in Hertfordshire. I have had a wheel fall off my Chevy in Mexico and got stuck in a Jeep in a river in Australia. I reacted to these situations and got myself out of trouble. Some drivers over rely on the in-car technology and get cocooned into a false sense of security. As a driver you should always expect the unexpected. That is, however, no excuse for faulty cars being sold to the public.

"In the distant past, when mechanical problems were suspected, manufacturers would only instigate a recall as the last resort and it tended to be covered up. In the last decade motor manufacturers have been much more open about recalls and to some extent it has been first resort."

David Millward, the Daily Telegraph's Transport Editor brought things sharply into focus. "Hitherto the car's image was all but untouchable, with few listening to those who suggested that the Prius might not be as environmentally benign as the manufacturers claimed.

"But as Toyota insists the problems with the vehicle's brakes are little to get worried about, there will be a slight frisson of anxiety among some of the car's celebrity owners.

"Ever since the first Prius went on sale in Japan in 1997, Toyota has boasted about its technological sophistication, fuel efficiency and environmental friendliness. This is, after all, the car which offers its owners that irresistible combination of mobility and smug satisfaction.

Millward spoke to some brand experts who said that if celebrity owners become worried, the fallout could be significant. Jonathan Gabay, who runs Brand Forensics, said: "The glitterati of Hollywood just adore their Priuses. It has a big affect on perception and the value of the car brand is tied up with who famous is driving it. It's a small aspect, but globally very relevant."

Milorad Ajder is managing director of IpsosMORI Reputation Centre told Millward: "If the corporate halo becomes stained, it is inevitable that it will pollute the Prius. In fact this will be accentuated on the Prius because it is positioned as being benevolent and ethical."

There has been speculation about how long Toyota has known about the problems. Financial Times Deutschland claimed that the company has known about accelerator problems in some of its cars since 2007.

"Tests ordered by Toyota then clearly demonstrated that the accelerator pedal could get stuck," said the paper, citing informed sources. In documents seen by the daily, the Auris model got stuck in several cases during a month of testing, with the problem arising mostly in winter months when condensation collects inside vehicles.

"Three different models were checked and Toyota directors were informed several times of the results", the FTD said.
The problems Toyota will face in the future were highlighted by Heather McGregor, an owner, writing in Sunday's Observer.

"I own a Toyota, Indeed, I own two. I have been a Toyota owner and driver for 12 years. When I need to change my car, will I buy another one? Will any of us? As a mother of three, with a husband who drives to work every day, I need cars to do much more than get us from A to B. I need them to be safe, to protect my precious family. I need them to be reliable, to know that my husband's car will start each morning.

"That's why the brand of car I choose is so much more critical than my choice of, say, shampoo, and not just because it costs a lot more. This is why Toyota is in so much trouble. I trusted Toyota and I feel it has let me down on the very things that I most counted on - safety and reliability.

"I am angry with Toyota. It presented itself to me, when I switched from a Volvo to a Prius, as responsible and trustworthy. The day I collected my Prius, I drove my 80-year-old parents to Cambridge, 150 miles away. I have been an advocate for the company, telling anyone who would listen that Toyota was a marvellous brand and that everyone should buy one.

"When my other Toyota, the Land Cruiser I brought back when I returned from Japan 10 years ago, finally gives up, or my Toyota Prius has done 50,000 miles, will I replace them with another Toyota? Right now, I suspect the answer is no. But even if I did, I doubt that I would be prepared to pay such a price premium. That is what will cause the lasting damage. Destroy trust and you increase cost. It will take a long time, and a lot of money, before Toyota will be as profitable again."

Source: Headline Auto

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