NEWS

TOYOTA has underlined its current dominance of the hybrid car market by hitting a Prius sales landmark. Sales have just topped the 200,000 mark across Europe, a decade after the petrol-electric motor went on sale. It’s an impressive figure; the 100,000 mark was only reached in 2008! It’s doing even better globally, too: worldwide sales [...]

LEXUS is to recall 3238 GS and LS models, including hybrid versions, to fix what it describes as a rare engine issue. It has been found the valve spring strength can degrade over time, leading to failure. If it breaks, says Lexus, the engine will misfire and start to run roughly. New valve springs are [...]

LEXUS has announced the posh LS is the latest Toyota Motor Corp car to be issued with a worldwide recall note. Around 40 UK owners will be contacted for their local dealer to check their car. The fault surrounds the Variable Gear Ratio Steering. In certain conditions when manoeuvring at low speed, the wheels return [...]

TOYOTA service centres in the UK have been awarded top customer satisfaction prizes by the brand. Three Toyota centres were honoured with the ‘Ichiban’ European Customer Satisfaction Awards in a ceremony held in Toyota’s Paris customer experience showroom. The UK dealers were Border Toyota at St Boswells, Hodgson Group in Newcastle and WKB Waterlooville – [...]

TOYOTA has announced the latest global recall campaign does not affect models sold in the UK. This is because right-hand drive Land Cruiser models are set up differently so British buyers have escaped the recall hitting headlines in other countries. For left-hand drive Land Cruisers (and their Lexus equivalents), the recall fixes issues with the [...]

TOYOTA is 80 percent through its 180,000-car recall programme 8 weeks after initiation. The maker has praised ‘unstinting efforts’ by its dealers and service centres to process so many cars so quickly. ‘Owners have been able to have their vehicles fixed at their convenience, with minimum delay,’ said a spokesman. Now, car dealers will continue [...]

TOYOTA cars have suffered no discernible drop in secondhand values following the recent big recalls. Glass’s says there are no signs of any change as the maker begins to recover after the past few months’ drama. ‘Many Toyota models still boast some of the strongest residuals in the UK used car market,’ said Glass’s car [...]

TOYOTA has held the first meeting of its new Global Quality committee to set the agenda for future work. TMC president Akio Toyoda chaired the meeting, which will investigate the cause of quality problems such as the recent spate of recalls. The firm says quality will be approached from the customer’s point of view in [...]

TOYOTA has moved to reassure retail car buyers by introducing a 5 year warranty on its new car range. From this weekend, private car buyers will be offered the 5 year new car warranty. What’s more, if the 5 year warranty is not for them, they can choose the regular 3 year warranty option, but [...]

TOYOTA reports a big effort from car dealers has helped it fix over two thirds of its recalled models after 6 weeks. That equates to 119,000 cars receiving attention from the Toyota UK car dealer network. ‘The rapid progress has been made possible thanks to the commitment and hard work of the teams at Toyota’s [...]

TOYOTA Prius used prices are beginning to rise again now the well publicised brake recall issue has passed. Exchangeandmart.co.uk reports that prices, which plummeted a few months ago, are now on the up. Falling from £9230 in December 2009 to £8650 last month, used values are staging a recovery. This is being reflected in the [...]

TOYOTA has rectified more than half of cars needing attention under the big accelerator pedal recall. That equates to more than 90,000 cars, and is the result of a massive effort from the firm’s dealers. It’s even more impressive because the recall has only been running for 4 weeks! The firm’s 200-plus UK service centres [...]

SCRAPPAGE deals are running dry for many car makers with some insiders predicting they will close order books today. Many big brands are down to their final initial allocations under the Government’s official Exit Strategy scheme. Unless and until further allocations are dished out for the the last dregs of the scrappage fund pot, the [...]

TOYOTA dealers have helped the firm handle recent highly publicised recall events by setting a new sales record. The Toyota Prius has just recorded its best-ever monthly sales record in the UK. 538 models were sold in February 2010 – more than double the previous best score set in February 2008. This, said the firm, [...]

TOYOTA is making a concerted effort to reduce its delivery times with the UK taking a leading role. The firm has been running a ‘Speed Project’ for the past 2 years, with Toyota UK chief Miguel Fonseca playing a leading role in the plan. Toyota introduced the programme in response to customer feedback over its [...]

TOYOTA is launching the first step in its future marketing strategy with the full hybrid Auris HSD. Within a decade, it plans to offer a hybrid version of every single car it has on sale. The launch of the Ford Focus-rivaling Auris is the first step in that plan. It is proof that Toyota believes [...]

SCRAPPAGE key car maker players have given Car Dealer Magazine their thoughts on the Exit Phase scheme. Ford, Kia and Toyota have all offered us their views. And it is Kia that is most outspoken! ‘KMUK is somewhat disappointed,’ said a spokesman, ‘that the scrappage scheme exit plan does not properly reflect the clear view [...]

TOYOTA’S reputation is remaining in tact says one car dealer supplier after a recent poll. Warranty Direct asked visitors to its website whether they viewed Toyota as a ‘less reliable mark’ because of the recalls. 76 percent of people said they did not. This has led the firm to pronounce the reliability of Toyota as [...]

TOYOTA is creating new chief quality officer roles worldwide to improve response to customer complaints. The global giant has acknowledged current quality worries by setting up the new roles. There will be one for each specific region worldwide, says Toyota, with the first new quality head role being set up in America. The aim is [...]

CAR dealers should see recalls as an opportunity to impress customers with relationship building techniques. Network Automotive says that, while the negative publicity of car recalls is not ideal, it’s also the perfect opportunity to demonstrate the integrity of both the car maker and the dealer. Both speed and efficiency can be showcased if things [...]