If you have ever played telephone as a kid (or if you read Luann in this mornings comics) you know that it doesn’t take much to get information messed up. Well, the media has managed to do a bang up job of messing up the information on the Toyota/Lexus recall.
There was a recent article by a New York Times reporter that started with the tragic accident in Southern California that killed a family of four who were in a Lexus. The article described the incident then went on to talk about the Toyota issue with sticking accelerators. The two do not go together. The Lexus issue is a floormat problem (with the exception of the HS Hybrid) but the article would lead one to believe it was caused by a sticking accelerator pedal.
Both Toyota and Lexus are addressing the problems specific to each and are spending a great deal of money to assure all drivers of their vehicles that they are safe. Toyota has been criticized for not responding with the speed of light in addressing the issue, which in reality is unfair as not only did they have to zero in on what the problem was but also had to come up with a solution that was not just a band aid.
The interesting thing is that now we are seeing recalls from Honda, Ford, and GM on other safety related items. It will be interesting to see who else has an issue with accelerator pedals since the company that supplies Toyota also supplies other manufacturers.
To me the bigger issue is about who do you trust? Toyota and Lexus have been building quality vehicles for some time and have set the bar for automobile workmanship (some of you may remember that Ford used to stand for “fix or repair daily”). Little known until the first gas crisis of 73-74, Toyota has moved to almost number one in car manufacturers (a position they do not gloat about and are even criticized for). The Lexus motto of doing it right from the start has kept them at the top of luxury vehicles and caused other luxury brands to rethink how they do business.
What people seem to forget is that other manufacturers have waited until being forced by the government to correct faults in their vehicles. Things like tires that did not hold up, engines that caught on fire, or air bags that deploy with excessive force, all took the government to step in before any action was taken. Lexus has from the beginning made corrections to their products as they found a flaw or weakness, not because the government made them, but because it was the right thing to do. They just spent millions replacing the fuel lines on several of their models. This was done not because any customer had had an issue, but because the test vehicles that Lexus runs and runs showed a potential problem.
Like Tiger Woods, Toyota is taking flack for not being more open with the public. Maybe both are spending there time getting their problems corrected rather than feeding the media machine.
Any vehicle can have an issue including a Lexus, after all their motto is the pursuit of perfection, not we are perfect. So it comes down to- in whom are you going to trust your life and family to? I just bought my oldest step-daughter a Toyota Yaris and my wife drives a Lexus IS250. Enough said.
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