Although Toyota has a reputation for impeccable quality and fuel-efficient vehicles, its lesser-known truck and SUV offerings have left the Japanese automaker susceptible to recent economic downturn. Because of that vulnerability, Toyota has cut its sales forecast for 2009.
Japan’s largest automaker originally planned to sell over 10 million vehicles in 2009, but in light of the recent economic downturn, has tempered those expectations. Toyota has already slashed its 2008 outlook by 3.7 percent to 9.5 million vehicles.
Although Toyota has yet to announce by how much it will be reducing next year’s sales forecast, Automotive News speculates that ’09 figures could be reduced by as much as 5 percent. Some Japanese media outlets are reporting that Toyota will set its 2009 sales target at 9.8 million units.
Although a 5 percent reduction is a fairly sharp decline, Toyota’s deep pockets should ensure that the Japanese automaker will make it through 2009 relatively unscathed. However, the set back pretty much guarantees that Toyota will miss its goal of becoming the first automaker to sell 10 million vehicles in a single year next year.
