Toyota braces for big sales hit from recall

[spookyturtle 9,465]

NAGOYA/DETROIT - Toyota Motor's unprecedented recall of millions of vehicles with accelerator problems is taking a toll on sales and may force the world's largest automaker to cut its 2010 forecasts.

Auto sales figures for January, due later on Tuesday, are expected to show a sharp drop for Toyota after it pulled eight of its most popular models from showrooms last week following complaints over sticking accelerator pedals.

"The sales forecast is something that we're extremely worried about," Executive Vice President Shinichi Sasaki told a news conference in the first public comment from an executive at Toyota's head office. The company will report its third-quarter earnings on Thursday.

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On top of a separate recall for slipping floormats, also linked to unintended acceleration, some 8.1 million Toyota vehicles are now being recalled, more than its total group sales last year.

Sasaki said it was too soon to put a number on the ultimate cost of the recall. But Tatsuo Yoshida, an auto analyst at UBS in Tokyo, estimated the recalls are likely to cost about $900 million, and lost sales are already costing Toyota another $155 million a week.

Two other analysts estimated the costs for the recall and the shutdown to around roughly $1.1 billion to $2.2 billion.

"It's a positive that we now can grasp what the direct costs might be, but Toyota has yet to address uncertainties about indirect costs, such as litigation costs and costs of incentives to win back customers," said JP Morgan analyst Kohei Takahashi.

Although Toyota says the occurrence of problems is rare, public confidence is being shaken by coverage of the saga, including the harrowing details of the crash of a Lexus, blamed on unexpected acceleration, which killed an off-duty California state-trooper and three members of his family last year.

Toyota President Akio Toyoda, the grandson of the company's founder, has not formally addressed the public or media on the recall problems. While in Davos, Switzerland last weekend, he appeared briefly on broadcaster NHK and apologized to consumers.

The company's U.S. head, Jim Lentz, appeared on TV on Monday and also expressed his regret as part of a public relations blitz in Toyota's largest market.

Meanwhile, Europe's No.2 carmaker PSA Peugeot Citroen said it would discuss with Toyota in coming days how to proceed with its own recall of just under 97,000 Citroen C1s and Peugeot 107s, built on the same assembly lines as Toyota's Aygo at a joint plant in the Czech Republic.

The spokesman confirmed PSA cars used the same pedal as Toyota and said two cases that could potentially be linked to a sticking accelerator pedal had been reported around the end of 2009 and the start of 2010, but the link was not confirmed.

"We haven't had any accidents reported in our network," the spokesman stressed.

FACT FILE Toyota recalls

Toyota has issued recalls on more than 8 million cars worldwide, including some vehicles subject to multiple recalls. For more information, customers can call Toyota at 1-800-331-4331. Here is a summary.

• Gas pedal issues

• Floor mat issues

The following models are affected by the recall and sales suspension over potentially sticking gas pedals:

• Certain 2009-2010 RAV4s

• Certain 2009-2010 Corollas

• 2009-2010 Matrix

• 2005-2010 Avalon

• Certain 2007-2010 Camrys

• 2010 Highlander (except hybrids)

• 2007-2010 Tundra

• 2008-2010 Sequoia

Source: Toyota • Print this

The spokesman said he could not say how much the recall campaign would cost, nor how long it would take.

"Decisions about recall campaigns are made jointly, so during this meeting with Toyota we'll decide on the details of the campaign, the type of repair that will be carried out and when the campaign can be launched," he told Reuters.

Toyota detailed its plans on Monday to fix the faulty pedals on at least 4.2 million vehicles in North America and Europe with a small metal spacer to prevent sticking.

Toyota said it would restart production on Feb. 8 of the eight models including its popular Camry, Corolla and Rav4 models after an unprecedented one-week shutdown at six plants in the United States and Canada.

Sasaki said costs were not taken into account with the recall and said they would monitor sales before reviewing their 2010 forecast. Last month Toyota forecast global auto sales would rise 6 percent this year, but has since said that did not take the impact of the recalls into account.

Toyota faces a growing number of lawsuits claiming it and its U.S. supplier CTS Corp endangered drivers by not acting sooner to fix problems with faulty accelerator pedals.

Lawsuits announced on Monday in the U.S. claimed Toyota had ignored signs of trouble with some of its top-selling models.

The suits are part of what is expected to be a wave of litigation against the automaker for claims ranging from losses on car resale values to injury and death.

Analysts and dealers said it would take months for the automaker to fix all of the vehicles at risk of having an accelerator pedal stick in the open position.

Rivals such as General Motors Co, Ford Motor Co and Hyundai Motor Co have been offering discounts targeting Toyota customers.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35196954/ns/business-autos/

[Dakine 26]

Anyone want to sell their Toyota? I'm buying them.

[trillium13 84]

I have a Toyota and I love it. It's not part of the recall. It's all pretty sad really.

[Ban Hammer 13,337]

I have a Toyota and I love it. It's not part of the recall. It's all pretty sad really.

we can make you a recall letter if you'd like.

[Pinocchio Liberal 268]

This just in: Obama motors attempts to ** toyota to raise sales numbers.

[spookyturtle 9,465]

This just in: Obama motors attempts to ** toyota to raise sales numbers.

Toyota fvcked themselves.

[trillium13 84]

we can make you a recall letter if you'd like.

When I re-read that it did sound kinda dumb. I think I'll be ok without one though.

[scandal 951]

This just in: Obama motors attempts to ** toyota to raise sales numbers.

Old news. Gary&Alla came out with this lovely conspiracy theory yesterday.

[mawilson 2,133]

Old news. Gary&Alla came out with this lovely conspiracy theory yesterday.

You honestly don't think there's conflict of interest in the government being the regulator

of vehicle safety and the majority shareholder of GM who just happens to be Toyota's

biggest competitor?

[scandal 951]

You honestly don't think there's conflict of interest in the government being the regulator

of vehicle safety and the majority shareholder of GM who just happens to be Toyota's

biggest competitor?

You too, huh?

[mawilson 2,133]

You too, huh?

####### does Obama's birth certificate have to do with the conflict of interest?

Surely you understand "conflict of interest", you're not a stupid guy.

[mRx 16]

####### does Obama's birth certificate have to do with the conflict of interest?

It's Bulverism.

[scandal 951]

you're not a stupid guy.

Sure I am! You've told me so yourself, on at least 2 distinct occasions. Hence it must be true.

Ok, you want serious? I'll give you serious. No, I don't believe there is a "conflict of interest" here.

I think several things are independently true, and it's facile to conflate them together.

1. The US government bailed out GM/Chrysler last year. They have made some decisions which have influenced policies (most notably pay czar Kenneth Feinberg imposing salary caps on them), but otherwise are hands off. The automakers have their own executive management teams in Detroit, Washington is essentially a passive investor (think something like Warren Buffet and Coca Cola or your favorite insurance carrier, Geico).

2. The US DOT has a responsibility for consumer safety. If there are known dangers in cars on the road, they have a mandated obligation to force recalls and to warn the public.

3. Toyota has some serious "made in Japan" quality problems with accelerators and brakes. They need to fix these, asap.

End of story. If you believe otherwise, you might want to look into the tooth fairy. Or the Kenyan birth certificate thing.

[Usui Takumi 1,562]

Lets face it, the accelerator issue has been in the news for what 6 months? I'd have to say the gov. would look negligent if it DIDN'T start an investigation on this. In fact, I'm surprised the DOT didn't do something sooner.

[Pinocchio Liberal 268]

####### does Obama's birth certificate have to do with the conflict of interest?

Surely you understand "conflict of interest", you're not a stupid guy.

It has to do with the reality of him voting for a silver tongued rookie hack, that he fell head over heels for! And continues to be in a state of denial.