If this effort is successful, new and updated models will come to market quicker and better focused on what on what consumers want here in Canada and even more so in the United States.

So vehicles such as the Sienna minivan and the Venza wagon will be under the sole purview of the North American team. The Camry, which is assembled in Georgetown, Ky., is another model for which North America will hold sway.

In all this it’s worth remembering that Toyota is starting from a position of strength, despite two years of flagging sales. In the latest long-term J.D. Power and Associates Vehicle Dependability Study, the Lexus brand finished second overall, with the Toyota brand in fifth place and ahead of brands such as Acura, Mercedes-Benz, Cadillac, Hyundai, Honda, Ford, Infiniti, Audi, BMW and Volkswagen.

In individual segments, these Toyota, Lexus and Scion models finished first in their segments for dependability: Prius (compact cars), Scion xB (multi-purpose), Tundra (large pickups), Tacoma (compact pickups), Sienna (minivans), 4Runner (mid-size crossovers/SUVs) and Lexus RX (mid-size premium crossovers/SUVs). No other car company comes close to matching that performance.

In addition, however, these models were runners-up in the study that looks at owner-reported problems in three-year-old vehicles: Toyota’s Yaris (subcompact), Matrix (compact), Lexus ES350 (mid-size premium sedan), Lexus GS (premium sedan), RAV4 (compact SUV/crossover), Lexus GS470 (large premium crossover/SUV) and Sequoia (large crossover/SUV).

Toyota may have been wounded by events over the last two years, but the company’s resourcefulness and attention to detail are not to be underestimated. So, too, is Toyota’s awareness of what the competition is doing, particularly South Korean auto maker Hyundai and its Kia brand, along with the reengineered car companies from Detroit. In particular, the Koreans have Toyota’s eye.

“From now on, the challenge starts for them,” said Inaba of the Koreans. “Maybe their exchange rate is not going to be as favourable as today. There is a sign of it. And product-wise, once they think they’ve reached Toyota, what’s next?

“And they have much less resources. They will have this inherent issue they face. They are very impressive, but at the same time, they will have issues.”

No doubt that’s true, but few expected to see Toyota having issues of its own these last few years. Beatty and others in the company are happy to push the reset button.

If this effort is successful, new and updated models will come to market quicker and better focused on what on what consumers want here in Canada and even more so in the United States.

So vehicles such as the Sienna minivan and the Venza wagon will be under the sole purview of the North American team. The Camry, which is assembled in Georgetown, Ky., is another model for which North America will hold sway.

In all this it’s worth remembering that Toyota is starting from a position of strength, despite two years of flagging sales. In the latest long-term J.D. Power and Associates Vehicle Dependability Study, the Lexus brand finished second overall, with the Toyota brand in fifth place and ahead of brands such as Acura, Mercedes-Benz, Cadillac, Hyundai, Honda, Ford, Infiniti, Audi, BMW and Volkswagen.

In individual segments, these Toyota, Lexus and Scion models finished first in their segments for dependability: Prius (compact cars), Scion xB (multi-purpose), Tundra (large pickups), Tacoma (compact pickups), Sienna (minivans), 4Runner (mid-size crossovers/SUVs) and Lexus RX (mid-size premium crossovers/SUVs). No other car company comes close to matching that performance.

In addition, however, these models were runners-up in the study that looks at owner-reported problems in three-year-old vehicles: Toyota’s Yaris (subcompact), Matrix (compact), Lexus ES350 (mid-size premium sedan), Lexus GS (premium sedan), RAV4 (compact SUV/crossover), Lexus GS470 (large premium crossover/SUV) and Sequoia (large crossover/SUV).

Toyota may have been wounded by events over the last two years, but the company’s resourcefulness and attention to detail are not to be underestimated. So, too, is Toyota’s awareness of what the competition is doing, particularly South Korean auto maker Hyundai and its Kia brand, along with the reengineered car companies from Detroit. In particular, the Koreans have Toyota’s eye.

“From now on, the challenge starts for them,” said Inaba of the Koreans. “Maybe their exchange rate is not going to be as favourable as today. There is a sign of it. And product-wise, once they think they’ve reached Toyota, what’s next?

“And they have much less resources. They will have this inherent issue they face. They are very impressive, but at the same time, they will have issues.”

No doubt that’s true, but few expected to see Toyota having issues of its own these last few years. Beatty and others in the company are happy to push the reset button

Source: Globe and Mail