Oh yah Scion…now that was Moving Forward?? They need to fire a few product designers as well. Get rid of the “everything squints and smirks” at me looks. Work on the road noise and reduce the rental car mentality when it comes to “numbers dominance”. Honda builds a better car but sucks when it comes to marketing and advertising next to Toyota…thats why Toyota leads over Honda…as well as the rental car #’s and Honda has no Tundra or Sequoia.

Sounds like alot of harry carry is gonna to be goin’ on.

JDASCH1

I agree Honda does build a better car. Toyota lives of of it’s past laurels…it’s just a matter of time before the sheep(general public) realize this too.

40% makes it sound like a lot of changes, but how many people is that really?
I remember when mazda was letting go of a big % of there people in North America it was only like 20 people.
So how many people is 40% of there senior managment?

@Caddy: Its not just in the US. Its primarily in Japan, and maybe the US according to the report.

@Madcapp: It’s not Harry Carry, it’s Harikiri. Regardless, you could be right.

Toyota is heading down the 1980 – 2000 GM path, there cars are so uninspired. I don’t know what is so appealing about them.

I couldn’t have said it better jdasch1. Rental car companies are being flooded by their product in an effort to boost both Toyota and the rental companies own resale value #’s. That can only last so long as the used car market is flooded with year old Toyotas.

…………. “OUCH WHAT A FEELING! TOYOTA!”

@jdasch1 The Scion TC and first gen Xb were good models for what they were supposed to be-tunable youth-oriented vehicles. Now I’m not sure what their direction is…

As for Honda, the best analogy I’ve heard is Toyota is a car company that got into racing. Honda was a racing company that got into cars. I think that’s where the philosophies differ and you can see it in their product lines. I’m not even sure Honda would WANT to get as large as Toyota.

GM is currently worth $740 million which is nothing for a big corporation. Toyota is worth $118 billion. Its very clear who is better at business and better at building cars that are popular all over the world. American made GM cars are only popular in North America, but even in Canada you will see alot more imported cars on the roads than domestics, unless you go to some small town because canadian rednecks are just as stupid and low class as american rednecks. Only difference is that even canadian rednecks think nascar is crap.

1115 must be hiding.

ACC:

You are an idiot. GM sells more cars than Toyota in China, Canada, the US, Europe and Australia.

This management change is just for show- the falling on the sword so to speak. Unless they address Toyota’s bloated plant capacity, refusal to drop workers they dont need, bloated truck lineup, dealers who wont deal, bland styling and lack of performance credentials nothing will change. Toyota is becoming the brand that you recommend to your mother, not the one you drive yourself. They should ask GM how easy it is to turn around a large automaker on a dime.

GM outsells Toyota in 12 out of the 15 largest markets in the world. If Toyota didn’t outsell
GM by millions in Japan. It wouldn’t even be close. GM’s problems come from thier legacy costs,
and mismanagement from the 70’s 80’s and 90’s. Toyota is starting to go down that road now.
look at what they offer and the quality problems the Camry and Tundra have. Maybe Toyota will
learn from history. If not in 20-30 years we will all be saying Toyotas are crap.

I can fill in for 115 if you want:

Yeah but at least TOYOTA still makes RELIABLE product that wont fall apart after 200 miles! Toyota is moving us forward with high quality product that has excellent resale value and due to the fact that they are not getting government HANDOUTS I would say they are thriving right now. This management change is just what we would NEVER see at GM. I predict record profits next year! Toyota only lost $8B last quarter and that is NOTHING considering how deep their pockets are right now. Its all part of their strategy to stay number one until VW passes them in 2010!

A_C_C The dot com bubble, housing bubble all had a lot a value at one point but as several members stated above that 118b worth can easily crash down very quickly…..look to GM for the example. GM and Ford destroyed themselves in the quest for numbers instead of product through daily rental fleet sales. Toyota is heavily invested in fleet sales to support the growth orientated business model.

**** TOYOTA

Toyota=Grandma’s store

eal2009:

Another issue: Toyota employees will get pensions in the US. Within the next decade those people will start to retire giving Toyota legacy costs. Toyota’s trump card has been quality for the last 30 years. If word gets out that Ford, Hyundai and other make quality cars that look better for less money their entire business plan is in danger.

BTW, can anyone explain why the guy who is being replaced for poor performance is remaining in a high position? If failure is unacceptable why isnt he being fired?

Do Toyota employees get pensions? I don’t know just asking.

I think it is very positive step. If something like that would have been done at GM the first time they lost their asses, we would not have to carry payroll out of federal treasury. Ditto all other manufacturers.

Good to see a company admit that they have problems and actually do something about it in an acceptable timeframe. The very 1st year they lost $, and they are axing 40% of the management- that’s a VERY radical move.

Guys, about legacy costs, Toyota will have no issue with these as long as they are fully funded along the way.

This means effectively that they are setting money aside in preparation for the obligation and recognizing the costs of establishing these reserves on their P&L and Balance Sheet. I don’t know whether or not Toyota is doing this but if they are smart, they are.

GM’s big issue was that their pension oblgation was unfunded, meaning the obligations made in prior years needed to come from current profits and cash flows. Quite frankly I do not know how they got that thru their auditors but it sounds somewhat enronesque.

ray:

GMs pension fund was overfunded until recently. Pension funds work by estimating rates of return for years into the future. Cities and states around the country are in trouble because their funds have not been able to match the estimated rate of return and thus taxpayer money is diverted into pension funds to keep them solvent. GM’s ability to pay its retirees’ healthcare is dependent on healthy sales and revenue and once sales dropped their money started to run out quickly. Toyota’s plan is likely the same- they project that a portion of the sales will be allocated to pay retiree costs but that plan will not work properly if Toyota’s sales and marketshare are less than projected.

Borat:

This means nothing unless a clear change in strategy is formulated. The story above doenst mention any drastic changes. Firing executives for the heck of it is nothing more than a PR stunt. You need new ideas, not necessarily new people. Most people that know anything about GM’s situation agree that the management team realized what had to be done but they werent doing it fast enough or they werent doing it in a manner in which the restructuring process could survive a severe reduction in sales volume. GMs board would have ousted the management long ago if they felt their plan wasn’t capable of succeeding. GM’s stock was over $40/share in 2007 which tells you that many people thought they were on the right track. NO one was calling GM’s management team inept back then.

hummah:

Radical? The current CEO is now “demoted” to vice chairman. Not radical at all. Its reshuffling the deck chairs.

sj79,

When GM stock was $40/share I unloaded it.I am far from being bright, much less genius, but then I called the board and management of GM inept and disturbingly infective. Stock prices, history and GM performance proved me and many other investors right.
I remember very well for reason stock shoot up so high: Kerkorian and his desire to link up with Renault/Nissan managed by Ghosn. Then investors saw potential in a company which was terribly mismanaged to remove dead wood and install new management blood. Having Kerkorian at helm raised probability of it to happen. Management is what makes company viable to investors. Toyoda understands this and did the right thing. Toyota has terrific strategy. Their execution suffered with recalls and somewhat bland offering across the line, although they have some bright spots. Removing 40% of dead wood is right and clear strategy: you don’t perform, you’re out.

THE NEW KING OF THE NUMBER “1″ AUTOMAKER OF THE WORLD…..

IS GOING TO F-ED UP!!!

“The size of the [financial] loss is huge. Somebody has to take responsibility for that.”

YA IT’S NAME IS RESECTION…. WHAT A DUM-FUK!……

ACC, you hurt my feelings! I’m alittle busy right now, fixin the leaky roof of my doublewide , but my wife, formerly my sister, suggests i shud kick yer ass!

Maybe they should start canning those in the design department … there couldn’t be a company that produces worse looking crap.

At least they’re actually reacting. In a REAL way.

Instead of ramping up ads, trying to shove bogus offers down everyones throats, and using childish comparative advertising.

Like who again?

Time will tell as the news comes out but the issue still exsists will Mr Toyoda make the right choices now or will he continue to feed the rental fleets. Yoshimi Inaba from a business stand point missed his intended mark with Scion, a division that is a Saturn clone in more ways than not, is this a good decision? Time will tell
Shane – Just saw a commercial last night where Toyota has increased incentives. Additionally in talking to the procurment rep from Enterprise many Toyota dealers are dumping inventory at a loss. What about Toyota’s “truck that is changing it all” ads. Wow…..dude….reality please.

The “Truck that is changing it all has been running for a while”.

I’m talking about silly ads like the Chevy “We can compete with everything but Honda’s lawnmower” type ads.

Everyone’s increasing incentives, of course, but Toyota has run a similar amount of commercials as they did before this economic clusterf***, and what I see, at least, is an INCREASE in advertising from GM, Chrysler, and Ford. Toyota isn’t running ads on money they got from the US govt., so I would have to protest that it’s way different.

Huh??? Ford is not and has not received any money what so ever from the Feds and truth be told across the world market Toyota has received more government money than Ford IE: Japanese, EU and other minor contributors.

Additionally Ford has shown market share increases since September and Fords incentives have actually reduced from a year ago per unit so throw Ford out of your argument.

In reference to GM (Government Motors) and Chrysler who’s holding the tail and who is fornicating with the cat in reference to tax payer money spent on ads? The fact is Toyota opened up the “go after the competition” with Blundra ads.

A_C_C_, Market capitalization is not the same as worth.

I heard they fired 1115, too.

@A4 Bout time. That was a significant waste of their budget.

As for Toyota, I dont think they are as bulletproof and infallible as they would like everyone to believe. I think if you need a good example, you dont need to look much farther than right here in San Antonio at the Tundra plant. These guys got just as wrapped up in the big truck game as the big 3 did and really pushed this overgrown Tacoma down everyone’s throats. It started out a good truck but IMHO it’s become bloated and overpriced. Durring the gas crunch last summer they were hurting in sales just like the F150, Silverado, and Ram and they responded by laying off workers at the SA plant. And since every one of them comes out with a sticker claiming “Born in Texas, Built by Texans” its only a matter of time before they end up with legacy costs just like every other American manufacturing plant. I dont know how much involvement the UAW has with Toyota and their US plants, but I imagine it’s “some”.

So TXFord- I agree on the Tundra, man, they overdid it. They got really caught up in the Joneses game, and just cranked everything to eleven (except the looks, I think it’s quite ugly).

If the tundra was an overgrown tacoma it might actually be a good truck, but its a bulbousy pile of last place sh!t, and hideous to boot.

Let me explain a few items to all the ones on this board that are talking out there you know what, because they don’t have half a clue to most everything I have read on this site. First, as far as Toyota’s pension funds, unlike all of the (used to be) Big 3, all of there’s is 100% funded on a daily basis, this is a program that is set up thru the U.S. Government where this money can’t be touched again by Toyota for any reason, including bankruptcy, unlike the others who can underfund and then even borrow it back out for any reason they deem fit. Second, for alll of the talk I hear about bland cars from them, it makes no sense to me why they are the top selling auto company in the world and the Camry has been the best selling car in the U.S. 11 out of the past 12 years, apparantly you are in the minority in your opinions. Next, being pro-active is what keeps a company in business, waiting for decades to do something about your problems spells disaster for the company and shareholders, (see G.M., Ford, and Chrysler). If Toyota wants to stir things up now more power to them, I think it is a great idea! Toyota may have gotten a little to big to fast in the U.S., admittedly, but they are fine elsewhere in the world. Lastly, I want to comment on the above individual that said Toyota needed to stop holding on to employees that they don’t need, are you really that STUPID? these employees will work there tales off for this company if they feel like they are being treated with dignity and respect! Toyota has not layed off a permenant employee since the 1950’s, can any other auto manufacture lay claim to this? Also, in closing, did you know that Toyota has enough cash assets to pay top dollar for every share of any two of the big 3, push them off into the ocean and still have cash assets totaling over 20 Billion dollars, not bad for such a boring company huh??

“Toyoda understands this and did the right thing. Toyota has terrific strategy. ”

This is the strategy that led to a $7.7B loss? If their strategy is terrific I would like to know how you qualify the stategies of Honda, Nissan, Ford and VW since they all outperformed Toyota by a significant margine. Stop making excuses. Their plan is flawed and simply moving some directors around doesn’t change anything. They also announced they wont close plants or rationalize their capacity. That is a mistake.

Rowdy:

You are so incorrect that its ridiculous. Paying workers NOT to assemble cars is part of what got GM into their current mess. Toyota cannot continue down that same path and hope to remain profitable becuase their sales will not return to 2008 for many years- maybe not ever. Toyota is operating as if everything will go back to the way they were in a year or so. Most analysts do not see that happening. You cannot streamline a bloated company and NOT close factories and shed workers. GM cant do it and neither can Toyota. As for layoffs, Toyota has laid off plenty of temporary workers in Japan. They hire these workers for less pay and less benefits so that they can be let go without the company violating its lifetime employment promise to “permanent” employees. Honda has done the same thing. As for cash reserves, I will remind you that Toyota’s current cash reserves arent much different from GM’s circa 2007 or Ford’s circa 2008. Ford has over $20B in cash and credit lines but if sales don’t improve they could run out of money. Same can happen to Toyota if revenues don’t increase. GM had $20B in cash as recently as last year so I dont know how you can think that Toyota is invincible because they have $30B in cash.

sj79:

You bring up a couple of solid points, however, you are still way off the money. First, G.M. paid workers to stay at home, Toyota, when they have plant downtime, pays workers to improve there processes and find better ways to build the cars and trucks, I have personally seen improvements from normal factory floor employees that saves Toyota in the hundreds of thousands of dollars annually, I think this more than pays for what is lost in the car production. Second, they also pay employees to do community service, this in turn shows the general public what type of company Toyota is and increases there sales in the long run, especially now that Ford and Toyota should pick up most of what Chrysler and G.M. are loosing. Lastly, you are totally off key on this $30B. you keep refering to, that ammount of money is nothing when you are many tens of Billions in debt to everyone under the sun!! Toyota has no debt, they don’t borrow money, that $20B would be AFTER they bought G.M. and Chrysler, and still with no debt. Also,Toyota does not plan for there sales to return to previous levels before at least 2011 at the earliest, ther strategy is formulated with these things in mind.

P.S. Every auto company uses temporary workers they are brought in for the very purpose of protecting the full time workers jobs during a downturn, funny, it works at Toyota, but, all the rest are laying off the temporary workers AND the full time workers. Now lets talk about who is ridiculous!!