Toyota's quality lapses due to rapid expansion

[User12343]

ST, 27/09/06

 

Firm will improve training and review resource allocation: Camry chief engineer

 

TOYOTA Motor expanded too rapidly and, as a result, did not devote enough time to maintaining quality for some of its products, admitted the carmaker's chief engineer for the new Camry.

 

Mr Yasuyuki Kawamoto, who unveiled the new executive sedan at the Ritz-Carlton, Millenia Singapore yesterday, said rapid expansion was the reason for the spate of recalls that Toyota had to initiate in the last few months.

 

'I believe we've expanded fast, and as our volume increased, our development work could not catch up,' said the 48-year-old, who is one of Toyota's youngest chief engineers.

 

From being the world's fourth-largest vehicle maker in 1999, Toyota has overtaken Volkswagen and Ford to become No. 2. It is now on the verge of beating No. 1 General Motors (GM).

 

To achieve this, it makes cars in various countries, primarily the United States, Europe, Thailand and China. More than half of the nine million vehicles it produces are made outside of Japan.

 

Mr Kawamoto said that maintaining consistent quality is a top priority. 'This is the main challenge of globalisation.

 

'Whether we overtake GM is not that important. We must have the range of cars that people want and maintain our standard of quality.''

 

He added that Toyota has realised its mistake and is making 'drastic adjustments' to address the quality issue.

 

'If there are models we can delay, we will delay. Also, we are reviewing our allocation of resources,' he said, referring, in particular, to outsourcing. 'Some of these outside resources are not used to the Toyota way.'

 

From within, the company will raise efforts to nurture and impart know-how to younger workers whom, he admitted, were 'a little different' from the older generation.

 

There had been reports blaming Japan's quality lapse on the country's repudiation of lifelong employment and a seniority-based system for American-style performance-based rewards.

 

This had apparently led to workers taking a short-term view of their careers, with little or no loyalty to the company.

 

Meanwhile, quality lapses have prompted the Japanese government to call on Toyota and Sony - which had to recall faulty laptop batteries - to buck up.

 

Influential motoring quality consultants JD Power has even placed South Korea's Hyundai ahead of Toyota at the top spot for the first time in a recent poll.

 

Mr Kawamoto said, however, that the Camry is still one step ahead of the Hyundai Sonata - its direct South Korean rival.

 

'Before Hyundai made the new Sonata, it studied the previous Camry closely. But before we made the new Camry, we studied the new Sonata closely. On the surface, the quality of the two cars looks very similar. But deep down, the Camry has better durability,' he said.

 

Buyers here seem to agree. Since Toyota agent Borneo Motors started taking orders for the car in June, it has collected more than 1,300 bookings - or 350 units a month.

 

In the first eight months of the year, Hyundai sold 560 Sonatas, or about 70 a month.

[Nine_eleven]

well, it about time they admitted that!

 

we've been suffering long enough...

[Mzrmazda3]

Finally, they've admitted it

 

But at least, they come clean about it

[User12343]

buta that is the words of the camry chief engineer, and it really takes helluva guts to speak out like that.... wonder what the top brass there would feel about such statements, after all, what the CE's POV may not be representative of the big boys up there....

[Mydotcom]

They compare Camry to Sonata. They studied Sonata before building the new Camry. Its a BIG credit given to Hyundai

 

Only ppl here still sticks to their old mindset that Hyundai is unreliable

[Genie47]

Soon he might release statement and say that it is precisely this reason they sell it as the Daihatsu Altis. This rebadging thing which works for GM works for them too by passing off poor quality ones to let Daihatsu take the crap.

[Genie47]

Problem with the Sonata line up here. No Lambda engine.

[Fourwheels]

what is Lambda engine?

[Vit4wd]

At least the Toyota Chief Engineer is honest to admit it!

 

Nothing beats pure honesty & sincerity in this world.

[Pisces69]

At least the Toyota Chief Engineer is honest to admit it!

 

Nothing beats pure honesty & sincerity in this world.

===============================

 

And after that, i'll expect him to go & commit hara-kiri.

[Nkps]

They compare Camry to Sonata. They studied Sonata before building the new Camry. Its a BIG credit given to Hyundai

 

Only ppl here still sticks to their old mindset that Hyundai is unreliable

 

ya boy, they have to compare it with sonata before they even dare to compare it with cefiro, accord and others... what a shame...

[Cheekg98]

saw the latest camry on the road today, looks quite nice

[Cheekg98]

think u misunderstood that Nippon man ... he is comparing it with his DIRECT competitor - Sonata.

[Weixiang_06]

Nkps is an anti-toyota person.

[Nkps]

u mean with camry kind of pricing, cefiro and accord is not camry's direct competitors?

[Cheekg98]

direct competitor means No. 1 vs No. 2

[Nkps]

you can say that again, no problem! i anti toyota is bcoz it make in thailand but selling at the price of make in japan.

 

for all u know, i never anti wish, i never anti isis, i never anti ist and i never any car with FAIR-PRICE!

 

for your info, i never like sunny, lancer and many other make due to its FC, refinement etc...

 

but i do respect sunny in the sense that they know their FC no good, they come up with better package... similar to lancer...

 

but what have toyota done?

Edited September 27, 2006 by Nkps

[Nkps]

okok ic ic, perhaps they try to find out how come korean can sell the car cheaply and yet as good as theirs where as they have to make it in thailand to stay competitive in price (not that cheap afterall)