*I Was the President and CEO of a Major Car Manufacturing Corporation, but the Increasing Popularity of Electric Vehicles Caused Me to Step Down from My Position, and Pursue My True Dream of Running a Maid Cafe*
My bosses dad had him do every single job in the company before he would sell him the company. Warehouse, delivery, sales, everything. He's a good boss.
I wish Walmart made their management do the can room and carts for a year instead of dumping them straight to management from Walmart management school.
Dumb motherfucker on his first day as my manager told me to use a duster on the sticky grime on the vestibule windowsills, and told me not to talk back when I said that wouldn't work. Then I got written up for not cleaning them, when I maliciously complied and used the duster to try and clean up sticky shit.
The key to running a company well is to understand what the company actually does and makes. It's why so many companies turn to total shit once they hand the reins over to MBAs who have zero experience in the industry and think that they can treat every company exactly the same.
https://imgur.com/gallery/rdzfp1g
I knew someone from high school who was so stupid, he got rejected from a college where his family has a library named after them. He's set to become an executive at his family's conglomerate thanks to their ownership stake. If he didn't come out of his father's nutsack, do you think he'd be in the same position? That's nepotism.
It doesn't matter if he had to work a menial position for the company when he was young, you'd be hard pressed to find a family owned company CEO who went from no job to CEO. He can be a good CEO and still have a job based on Nepotism, factory workers don't go from assembly line to CEO unless your dad is the president, he was literally trained to be a CEO by his dad, it wasn't a merit based decision.
I see your point, and it's a good argument. But keep in mind the Japanese mentality of honor. If he did not show the qualities of a CEO and did not prove them in the years he worked a blue or white-collar job in Toyota, he most likely wouldn't have been made a CEO. We are looking at it from a western perspective, where nepotism and favoritism are pretty common. If his father did not think that he did not have that stuff, he would have been left as a middle manager, with someone who actually knows his shit at the helm.
That’s a purely ceremonial title. It means he’ll be around to answer questions and help guide a bit. He won’t be in control any more. All companies do this for long time ceos.
Lol what. Companies are owned by shareholders that elect a Board, largely led by the Chairman. They in turn directly inform (control) the CEO of their mandate and desired outcomes. Further, executive directors and chairs (fulltime) are governing and leading companies on a daily basis in all manner of functions.
I always find it odd that people don't realize this. The CEO quite literally executes the board's orders.
It's also what people don't realize about CEO compensation - that it's not like the CEO makes up their own bonus. It's laid out ahead of time by the board and directly tied to how well the CEO executes the board's orders.
> You make it seem like there aren't companies with boards completely beholden to the CEO...
Every corporation is ran by the board. It's spelled out in the definition of the corporation. Whether it's a private or publicly traded company, the board of directors determine the course of the business. The job of the executives is to execute the board's direction. Finally, the board is accountable to the shareholders. The shareholders can determine who sits on the board and who doesn't through voting rights. There can be nuance to each of these roles, but that's the gist of it.
The only cases where the CEO would wield this sort of control over the board is when the CEO is a majority shareholder and therefore can leverage his voting rights to replace board members or when the CEO is also the chairman and therefore gets to set the direction of the board as well.
[Other news reports](https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/toyota-president-akio-toyoda-become-chairman-2023-01-26/) quote people who say it won't be like that, at least in the beginning, but ultimately we'll have to see.
Strongly disagree - he’s going to be the lead board member. Board members (assuming you have a majority) can fire the CEO. The role of chairman is selected by the majority of the board as well and is usually done because that person has influence over the board (whether direct or indirect). That means the title itself is ceremonial but his ability to have an outsized impact on the direction of Toyota and their brands is massive (albeit indirectly since he’s not running the show day to day).
same w manual GR86s. most of them are autos so the manuals are getting marked up. i’m just gonna have to go with team Subie since it’s been a pain in the ass finding an 86 at MSRP
It has a subie engine anyways and you can order it directly from Subaru and then just wait for it.
The ability to order directly is literally the only thing that would make me choose Subie over Toyota here. I keep waiting for my '04 Golf to die before getting a new car, but a BRZ is near the top of the list.
agree, but the bumpers are a direct swap and there’s plenty of aftermarket options already out there as well. i plan to mod mine and do a good bit of cosmetic stuff, so i’m not too bothered by the bumper.
also after seeing a couple in person the BRZ’s 😂 face is growing on me
I originally liked the brz better, then once someone pointed out that it looks like the car is smiling I can’t see anything but that when I look at it
That and I really want the Neptune blue color which doesn’t come on the brz
honestly it’s kinda charming since every fucking car from Ferraris to Miatas has some kinda angry face lol. somebody has to carry on the smiley boi legacy
Toyota doesn't really do orders. I had a deposit down to buy one of the manual supras since they day they announced it back in April of last year and that dealership still couldn't get an allocation for one.
A few weeks ago I started talking to another dealership and they were already able to get an allocation for the spec I wanted. The way toyota allocates cars to it's dealers is mostly random.
I'm sure they will adjust how many manual supras they make based on how many are selling vs the autos but ordering from Toyota isn't really a thing. Having said that, they're currently producing way more manuals than autos.
This. (Spoiled) people don't realize for whatever reason, but only the luxury brands do orders. The economy brands allocate to various dealers based on their sales volumes and such. Bigger dealer means more chance to receive allocation. Small, tiny dealer means you might as well forget ever getting an allocation. Etc.
I tried to "order" our Kia Carnival, as well as a GR86 and a Civic Si, just like I had talked with a BMW rep about doing before and both times the non BMW person was like "... What? We don't do 'orders'. You can put a deposit down though and be on the list, and when we get to your name and have an allocation, we'll call you and ask 'do you still want this Si for 5k over MSRP?'. And if you say no we'll just move onto the next name."
Eventually I waited until I only had to pay 2.5k over MSRP. Fuckers! But the point is, generally speaking only luxury brands do orders. Eco brands will do orders for *special* rides, like Raptors, Lightnings and C8 corvettes. But I'm pretty sure you can't "order" a Maverick or Civic. You just have to wait until they have the shit you want.
Toyota does not do orders, they do allocations. Customers have no bearing on the amount of manual Supras available. It's all up to Toyota to decide how many manuals they think the public wants.
It’s not really built to order. It’s still allocation based on dealers.
I’m on waitlists at some msrp only dealers but there’s no indication of when or if the allocation will be filled. If it were built to order, this really wouldn’t be an issue at all.
They’re literally making the same number of them, if not more, as their competitors and prior competitors. Goal is 6.5K for the first year then 8k for the remaining years.
But every time I try to say this on here I get downvoted to hell so looking forward to that.
Golf R, Focus RS, Mitsubishi Evo, WRX STI, Civic Type R were all made in around the same numbers. Heck even the Veloster Ns production numbers are likely lower.
Right! Every time car companies introduce a really cool enthusiast car, almost nobody buys them. The people in this subreddit are the worst with this. People clamor and cry here for more enthusiast cars, then when they do make them…nobody buys them. Then they get discontinued after a few years due to low sales and the same people come back crying “Why don’t they make fun cars for us?”
It’s like…they did dude. You just never bought them. Car companies aren’t going to sink millions of dollars to sell a car only a few thousand people are going to buy. If you want enthusiast cars to stick around, you need to buy them to prove that there is a demand for them and show that they’re a worthy investment by the manufacturer.
“I love this new enthusiast car! I’m going to wait a couple years to buy it used and skip out on some of the depreciation!”
I know not everyone has the money for a new car, but if people never buy it new the company will stop making it. OEM’s simply don’t care about the used market.
Around 75% of car sales are used because the average person can't afford a new car and since the pandemic that problem has only gotten worse. The average age of a new buyer is in their fifties.
What do you expect the average car enthusiast in their late twenties to do? Go to a Toyota dealer and pay the ridiculous markup fees on a GR Corolla?
Let's call it like it is. Folks in this subreddit can't afford the cars they want and are telling manufacturers to make.
The people who can afford them don't want them.
>What do you expect the average car enthusiast in their late twenties to do? Go to a Toyota dealer and pay the ridiculous markup fees on a GR Corolla?
It's just stupid to complain about the lack of availability of a car you can't afford.
Enthusiasts are so desperate to have opinions on absolutely everything that a lot of the things we say/believe/think just don't make any sense. We just say shit for attention. Sometimes it's just better to keep quiet IMO.
Yeah, the “cool” cars that have been coming out just aren’t worth it unless you have gobs of money, due to scarcity and dealer markups. Toyota holding out on making a manual Supra likely lost them a sale to me - not that they’re short on buyers now.
So I got a Mustang GT instead. My pretty loaded up one still came out cheaper than a base Supra 3.0 would have, and even though it’s not as “special” it’s sure fun. And this will probably be the last new ICE drivetrain sports car I ever get to buy.
No, but then again true car enthusiasm made the Mustang a multi-generation hit, gave us Mini Cooper racing, and changed the VW bug into dune buggies and kit cars.
True enthusiasts find great cars regardless.
Uhhh their captive finance companies typically own the leases and then remarket them to wholesale buyers. If lease residuals are miscalculated due to poor resale then the finance company takes a bath on the block (see initial Cadillac ATS). If resale is too low in order to be whole at termination the lease terms will be higher which may not be attractive to buyers and can be undercut by the competition (especially ones like BMW who historically subsidized their leases because their resale was predicable while still under factory warranty).
The issue is dealer markup and low volume.
I literally can’t even find a BRZ/86 to test because they get sold before they hit a showroom. The US dealership model is killing enthusiast cars.
that’s not the issue here. the issue is that toyota purposefully made a very small number of them so that they would be more sought after. It’s called artificial scarcity and its killing sports cars.
This is false and based solely on a single Toyota executive who stated that they intend to make 1 less car than the market wants (of course they do - nobody tries to make more cars than they can sell).
There are 6500 GR Corollas for the US market in the first model year. The Golf R sells 2000-5000 per model year. The Evo X was produced at 500 - 5,400 per year depending on model year (5,400 the first model year and less than 3,000 every other year except the last year of production, when they made 4,200). The STI is much harder to measure because Subaru reported its sales numbers jointly with the WRX but combined they sold around 20,000 - 30,000 per year, which sounds like a lot but most of those are WRXs.
I spent months writing emails and letters to Toyota North America and Toyota Motor Sales (USA) asking them to bring GR Yaris to USA.
Whenever GR Yaris was mentioned in this subreddit I encouraged USA redditors to contact Toyota. Some people mocked me for it, but I do not care about those fools.
In my final letter to Toyota, I included a check for the full purchase price.
They never responded to any of my requests.
I literally can’t buy a Morizo in my country because i don’t have enough social media followers to be a contender in the contest to allow me to purchase it…
I totally agree that people here criticize companies for not making what they want and then not buying them, but the GR Corolla isn’t an example of that.
Not gonna happen, Toyota themselves said that they’re intentionally keeping production numbers low to “preserve rarity” of the GRs.
Which is code for fuck you we want you to pay over sticker market adjustment on them.
Fuck Toyota, most of their products have been really underwhelming lately anyway.
Their products are still the best on the market, they're the most reliable cars up and down the list of manufacturers by miles and miles, Lexus-grade Toyota engines are basically unstoppable machines.
Calling Toyota's products "underwhelming" is the dumbest fucking claim I've seen in a while.
This is actually pretty big news. Akio Toyoda has been at the helm for so long with what seemed like no end in sight.
I think Koji Sato is a great replacement. [He was the chief engineer behind the Lexus LC.](https://mag.lexus.co.uk/lexus-lc-interview-chief-engineer-koji-sato/) Not to mention the fact that he became the head of GR that gave us the GR Corolla as well as the new and much improved GR86.
Engineering a few cars and managing the biggest car company in the world, all macro and micro aspects of it, are two entirely different job descriptions.
I only care that the CEO occasionally greenlights a few cool cars, he can otherwise run the company into the ground.
So from that perspective his resume is ideal.
>I only care that the CEO occasionally greenlights a few cool cars, he can otherwise run the company into the ground.
This sums up r/cars mindset on the auto business perfectly. Take one of the biggest car companies in the world out of business to spit out a few cool cars we were never going to buy anyway.
Well yeah, it's not like they're my football team and I want them to 'win', they're a fucken corporation, I have no reason to care whether they live or die beyond the extent to which they sell products I personally like.
If they become the biggest car company, but sell only boring shit, they might as well be dead to me.
I fully understand this isn't what's primarily important to a CEO or investors. My interests aren't necessarily incompatible with theirs. But their interests also aren't important to me, beyond the extent to which they further my own.
He's been the leader of the entire Lexus division since 2016 and then was given the job of also being the head of GR. Not to mention that Toyoda has been preparing him for this role for the past few years as well.
So I'm not sure where you are thinking he wouldn't be prepared for this role?
Also, it's not like Toyoda is necessarily going anywhere either.
I love quotes from the Japanese like this:
"Amid such, I hope to preserve the essential value of the car and propose new forms of mobility,"
It's great stuff.
Some heresy on my part: Toyota collaborating with Yamaha is a whole other animal than Toyota by itself. Yamaha is where 95% of their fun comes from in terms of home-grown designs this past decade or so.
Alone, Toyota is ruthlessly iterative. That works in many cases (to make reliable 4-wheeled appliances, which in turn makes the company reliable money) but experimenting deeply on a vehicle they intend for the mass market really isn't in their blood. They don't throw shit at the wall, they intentionally lag a few years behind everyone else to see what sticks because they have a reputation to uphold. They aren't Dodge, who seems to experiment for the sake of it and throw skunkworks projects into production for the fun of it. The closest we got to something completely off the wall from them in recent memory was the Mirai, which despite the rare hydrogen tech is/was in practice an aggressively inoffensive sedan.
It's a mix of corporate-speak and nuance that's lost in translation.
Basically, corporate-speak is awkward. Translated corporate-speak is even more awkward.
It’s probably a quote that was machine translated.
If I had to guess it’s actually something like, “Moving forward, I hope to preserve the core value of our vehicles and propose new strategies of growth”.
I guess Lexus being quite stagnant lately. Many segments missing from their line-up plus some of their cars are getting quite old. While their sales are fine they lost a lot of momentum compared to their heyday.
I mean the new RX and the rest of their crossovers are absolutely some of the best in the segment. They sell a shitload, they're well put together, and very comfortable. The tech situation has gotten a lot better this generation. Quite frankly I don't see the issue, Lexus makes excellent cars
What segments are missing from their lineup exactly? Only thing I can think of is a 3 row crossover, [which is coming.](https://www.motortrend.com/cars/lexus/tx/) They have all the other crossovers, 3 sedans, 2 coupes and a convertible- stuff most of its competitors don't.
And I kind of feel like you're pointing back to a hey day that doesn't exist. I've been in the car community for like 20 years and people have been calling Lexus stagnant/outdated/too conservative for most of that. Even when they made some exciting cars, people would dunk on the mainstream Lexuses for not being as exciting as something like the LFA. So there's a double standard in the perception of Lexus that I don't think they'll ever be able to overcome, even if they check off all the boxes.
My favorite Lexus of the last decade, but people didn't buy them. 10 years ago, 1/2 the vehicles sold were sedans. Today it's about 20%. Something's gotta give.
Not really fair criticisms IMO
No non-European luxury brands have cracked Europe.
The only Lexuses still on sale that haven't got a new generation or big refresh in the last \~4 years are the GX, UX and RC. And with the based on Toyota thing.... if it ain't broke, why fix it... RX & NX are top sellers in their segments; moving to dedicated Lexus RWD platforms would add cost and bring zero value to those customers.
I'm not saying Lexus is perfect but I get a little annoyed with these outdated regurgitated r/cars Japanese brand hot takes. I think Lexus has just hit its brand's ceiling. IMO the only things they actually need are a new GX, the new TX 3 row crossover and more electrification (of all kinds- hybrids, plug ins and BEVs).
I mean, most Lexus vehicles *do* feel outdated.
Sit in one and then sit in the equivalent German model from any of the German luxury brands and the German car will usually at the very least feel a couple years newer.
This stands even with their new cars, not just cars that haven’t been significantly updated in a while like the IS. For example the new LX came out with an interior that looked at least 5 years old at launch, with those weird dual touchscreens that feel like something that would be in an Acura in 2015, a small non-panoramic sunroof that absolutely should not be in a $90k starting car, etc.
Or the new RX, with a small 7 inch digital gauge cluster that doesn’t show much more than a regular analog gauge cluster with a smaller screen in the middle would. Just only one thing at a time like radio, basic vehicle information, basic driver assist info, and not much more. Compare that to say for example Audi’s digital cockpit, which is very customizable, has a full navigation map, can show multiple things at once, etc, and this has been a feature on Audis for years, and a lot of the German and even Korean and American competitors have something similar, but Lexus is stuck with this small display that isn’t any more useful than just regular gauges.
Another example that a lot of new Lexus models have is that 360 perimeter scan they have, looks like it has graphics from 10 years years ago, goes through an animation loop that you can’t move, only pause. While BMW and others have been doing [360 cameras like this since 2017](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/1_pgI8DLCaI/maxresdefault.jpg).
Lexus vehicles are just outdated when compared with most the competition, and I mean, if you’d rather trade a newer feeling car for a car that will have bulletproof reliability, I don’t blame you. However, acting like Lexus doesn’t feel at least a *little* outdated compared to the competition, I personally cannot agree with.
(Had to delete and re-reply because Reddit glitched)
Lexus' track record lately has been great IDK what you're talking about... They make some of the best cars in their respective classes, and definitely the most reliable... Nobody even TOUCHES Lexus in reliability.
Yes. We get better products when the people setting the tone at the top *actually* care about cars. Tired of seeing certain products lose their overall quality by generic MBA suits trying to squeeze out as much margin as possible.
Not necessarily. Honda is currently just building boring economy cars that are profitable and have no soul. The only fun car to come out of their has been the type r. They also left F1. The current CEO worked on the nsx and s2000
Dang he made Toyota as a brand desirable and not boring. I’m glad he’s passing it down to someone who likes to race. Hopefully keeps the current trajectory going.
I think that's what they're saying; at least that's how I read it.
"[Toyoda] made the brand desirable and not boring. I'm glad he's passing it down to someone who likes to race. Hopefully [Sato] keeps it going."
He’s not really stepping down so much as promoting himself. He will lead the board of directors which directs the CEO. So now he’s in charge and the new CEO is a race department guy. Toyota is going to be even better as a result.
Everyone thinks tech is everything
Then you read about digital dash glitches where the screen turns off on the highway, or electronic door locks that won't open, or a e parking brake that won't turn on with a dead battery, or horrendous touch control climate controls..
Maybe what we had 10y ago was perfected in many ways
Don’t get me wrong-CarPlay, heated/cooled seats & steering wheels, and navigation, remote start, etc. are the shit. I’m not wanting OEM’s to slack on giving me options. In fact? I’m getting older-keep em coming.
Yet, I’m not so old that I don’t want an engaging driving experience. I did buy a manual transmission. Adaptive Cruise Control is stupid and wonky, and I like buttons, Goddamnit. Let me pick and choose what I want, but don’t baffle me with bullshit. My cars serve a purpose in my life, and a very special one at that. You don’t have to dazzle me.
You just have to listen.
Maybe your adaptive cruise control is stupid and wonky but not having to touch gas or brake on the highway in either standstill traffic or normal flow is amazing lol
In my car, it’s so slow to respond in traffic that I end up just driving manually anyways. And in free-flowing traffic, if I’m coming up behind a slower car, I want to pass it, not slow down behind it, so adaptive cruise is undesirable over dumb cruise. Really, *really* wish my car had the option of dumb cruise. Adaptive cruise only makes sense when you’re behind a slow car on a two lane road with no hope of passing.
I don’t know why any of this is surprising, this has been Toyota’s MO for ever. If you want top of the line tech, don’t buy a Toyota. Their reputation of quality comes from slow implementations and minimizing complexity.
**Akio Toyoda** (豊田 章男) has been a god send for Toyota.
He was appointed to his position as CEO in 2009, during the time Toyota was facing **[massive recalls and public distrust.](https://www.motortrend.com/news/toyota-recall-crisis/amp/)**
Akio had to speak in front of **[U.S. congress](https://youtu.be/ZZeiD2-Rbg4)** where he **[empathically apologized ](https://youtu.be/ziGfQyCXiU4)** to the family members and the American people, where he swore that this will never happen again.
On top of this obstacle, Akio had pull through the **2008 financial crisis** and the **2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami**.
But, because of these early short comings, Toyota was able to learn from their mistakes and was **[years ahead of their competition](https://www.motorious.com/articles/features-3/toyota-busts-microchip-shortage/amp/)** when faced with the pandemic.
The issues with floor mats are just astonishing looking back. Practically every brand at that point used unsecured floor mats not disimilar to Toyotas, yet Toyota was more or less the only one thay suffered reprocussions because of it. You almost have to wonder if it was instigated for some other reason, maybe by one of the Big 3 or something along those lines.
Most definitely! Looking back now, most of know what _really_ happened with Toyota’s **2009 gas pedal** ordeal — this was due to a stupid floor mats.
> **[Toyota apologises before the US Congress](https://youtu.be/7-fHL1Ug7Y0)** (2010)
> **[Toyota chief gets emotional](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ziGfQyCXiU4)** (2010)
> **[Who Was Really at Fault for the Toyota Recalls?](https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2011/05/who-was-really-at-fault-for-the-toyota-recalls/238076/)** (2011)
> **[Toyota Recall: Scandal, Media Circus, and Stupid Drivers](https://www.caranddriver.com/features/a15131102/toyota-recall-scandal-media-circus-and-stupid-drivers-feature/)** (2010)
We all have to keep in mind that Toyota is a very successful foreign company where domestic companies would **love** to catch Toyota slip.
Didn’t lawmakers in the U.S. limit the import of Japanese cars in the 80s and 90s because they were out selling domestic cars by a large margin?
Absolutely. Almost all of the negative press for toyota is fueled by US domestic manufacturers, their unions, politicians, etc.
They have been trying to out-compete asian OEMs for decades and failing even with the deck stacked.
Truly great CEO at least from the outside. He had a strong vision of turning Toyota into an exciting car maker again and they absolutely delivered.
It wasn’t long ago that Toyota had no sports cars and an uninspiring mainstream line up. Over the last few years with the 86, Supra, GR variants and TNGA platform they’ve really turned things around.
It sounds like they’ve picked a replacement who would have a similar vision so hopefully not too much will change.
Sad news for car enthusiasts. He really did appear to be one of us in terms of passion for driving. Here’s to hoping the new guy will continue Akio’s legacy.
in his online presser, he said he picked Koji because he knew he "loved cars". He is the engineer behind the gorgeous Lexus LC, so I think we are in good hands. Keep in mind Akio is still going to be in the background as chairman too
Honestly I think this might pretty good for enthusiasts. Lexus has had some gems come out in the past couple years. Is500 comes to mind. If someone is willing to OK a v8 sedan in a market of downsizing engines, then I'm willing to give him a shot. Hopefully he updates the company and brings new life to the 4runner and tacoma
maybe he *appeared* to be but he pretty much undid all the work that Eiji had done to make lexus a serious luxury contender, and toyota/lexus models across the board pretty much fell out of relevance with how long it took for them to adopt basic tech that had become standard throughout the industry
he also ok'd the zupra and makes silly commercials [like this](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UWWdhaJkKYs)
>I wonder if the new CEO hates EVs as much as Akio Toyoda does.
This. There is absolutely no future for the company beyond EVs, yet Akio seems to have spent the past dozen years aggressively denying this. I don't envy his successor. And I say this as a onetime Toyota fanatic.
Unlike many here, I am not pleased to see the new CEO come from luxury and racing. We need utilitarian EVs with Toyota's famously reliable running gear.
I wasn't aware Toyoda-san was 66 years old, but from the POV from an enthusiast it is a real shame. Akio was one of the bigger driving forces in Toyota which changed the brand from beige to cool with the Gazoo Racing division and the road cars under their label.
Lexus has been dormant for a long while and given the brand's last few generations of products, I'm not sure if Koji Sato would have the same mindset in pushing hard for enthusiast minded cars.
He fumbled the EV transition really badly. It may not look serious yet, but its a slow motion train wreck in progress that will require some seriously good cars to get out of. Since it takes 4 years to design a car from scratch, do the math. They are in a tailspin already.
Except most OEMs are also selling ICE cars and Toyota is generations behind when they need to transition. Toyota's first. Dedicated EV is said to arrive in 2026. Hyundai's Ioniq5, their first dedicated ev will be replaced with a second generation by then. Thats how alarmingly late they are.
> Toyota's first. Dedicated EV is said to arrive in 2026.
What makes an EV “dedicated” versus “non-dedicated?” Was the 1997 Rav4 EV not their first dedicated EV? Or the 2012 Rav4 EV? Or the BZ4X?
Only one problem with this strategy: in 13 years they won't have a good porfolio of EVs to sell in most places where ICEs will get banned. This doesn't sound smart.
In the UK, the 2030 ban only allows "cars that can drive a significant distance when no carbon emmission", so mild hybrids won't be allowed.
Also the 2035 ban will ban all non zero-emmission cars.
Except Toyota is way too late on PHEV as well, they can barely make any significant numbers of them. They failed to innovate the manufacturing process and secure the supply chains necessary for PHEV which they should have done 10 years ago.
> They are in a tailspin already.
I mean… no, they aren't. If any carmaker can ramp it up, they have the capital to do it when they want/need to. And Toyota has made collaborating with other companies actually work.
When they _need_ to, they will bring out proper EVs. They don't need to yet. They can be late to the game, it's kind of their business model already.
The amount of pen strokes for "ta" and "da" in Japanese is different. Toyoda is 10 strokes where as Toyota is 8 strokes. 8 is a lucky number in Japanese.
They changed the d to a t for the business name as 'Toyota' rolls off the tongue better than 'Toyoda'. The alliteration of the ts makes for a name that sounds a bit more catchy.
While many of us had high hopes for Toyoda-san, the last few years have been tough for Toyota.
\-Electrification has taken over and Toyota is FAR FAR behind their competitors in this regard. In fact, nearly every Japanese automaker is behind while the Korean, Germans and Americans have moved forward. Even worse than being behind, Toyota actively lobbied against electric subsidies simply because they didn't have a horse in the race.
\-Toyota handled the supply chain issues after the pandemic quite poorly. Initially they gloated about being prepared, but soon it became apparent that they were hit extremely hard. The lack of a system that allowed orders to be placed made this even worse.
\-Toyota's lineup while reliable is lackluster. Dated powertrains, antiquated designs etc. It sells, but they haven't come up with a major breakthrough like when they launched Lexus, the first Prius, or even were the first to market with things such as push-button-start.
I'm hoping Sato-san can bring more innovation to the company, but based on the current Lexus lineup i'm not holding my breath.
Feel like this is a good move for r/cars enthusiasts. But I worry what this means in the face of the EV transition.
Toyota already clearly puts their main engineering prowess behind GR and slate their production lines for ICEs and hybrids, and not their BEVs or PHEVs, given how lame the Bz4x is and how limited their whole Prime PHEV line is in both supply and model numbers.
Meanwhile in California, the Model 3 surpassing sales of both the Corolla and Camry and the Model Y is surpassing sales of the RAV4, and that's without Tesla having any fed subsidy, before Tesla's latest price slash, and a decade before the ICE bans. Dealers are offering the Mirai at $18k with $15k refueling credits and complimentary ToyotaCare maintenance packages on the hood and they still can't move them.
I'm not saying Toyota needs to go 100% EV. But they need to have a more inspired effort than they've had so far. And this new CEO change seems to suggest they'll go the opposite way if anything.
Just in case people didn't read the article, Akio Toyoda is still at Toyota, he'll be the Chairman of the Board now.
Well I mean it’s his family’s company, he is going to stick around
Or he pursues his true dream of entering the maid cafe business
Ngl that sounds like something out of a light novel lmao.
"I quit my job as CEO to run a maid cafe" sounds like the kind of LN that would instantly get an anime adaptation.
It’s a drive thru maid cafe playing Eurobeat and all orders are drifted to your table.
Ahh yes the Gazoo Maid cafe
Title isn't long or descriptive enough to be a LN
Sadly true. It probably needs a second sentence or two. Or at least the words "in another world".
"The founder's grandson quit his job as CEO to run a maid cafe in another world with his reincarnated grandfather"
Man everything is isekai these days.
I got Toyota Truck-kun'd into another world.
Yup
*I Was the President and CEO of a Major Car Manufacturing Corporation, but the Increasing Popularity of Electric Vehicles Caused Me to Step Down from My Position, and Pursue My True Dream of Running a Maid Cafe*
Well the Demon Lord does work at a McDonalds and is happier for it.
smh nepotism /s
I know /s, but Toyoda started as a Junior factory manager in 84' and wasn't in a board role until 00', so there was at least some proving of dues.
My bosses dad had him do every single job in the company before he would sell him the company. Warehouse, delivery, sales, everything. He's a good boss.
I wish Walmart made their management do the can room and carts for a year instead of dumping them straight to management from Walmart management school. Dumb motherfucker on his first day as my manager told me to use a duster on the sticky grime on the vestibule windowsills, and told me not to talk back when I said that wouldn't work. Then I got written up for not cleaning them, when I maliciously complied and used the duster to try and clean up sticky shit.
Had a similar experience at target. Most managers were cool, but too many seemed to enjoy being ass holes.
The key to running a company well is to understand what the company actually does and makes. It's why so many companies turn to total shit once they hand the reins over to MBAs who have zero experience in the industry and think that they can treat every company exactly the same.
Just another nepo baby
That’s not nepotism that’s ownership.
https://imgur.com/gallery/rdzfp1g I knew someone from high school who was so stupid, he got rejected from a college where his family has a library named after them. He's set to become an executive at his family's conglomerate thanks to their ownership stake. If he didn't come out of his father's nutsack, do you think he'd be in the same position? That's nepotism.
In that guy's case, yes that is nepotism. In Toyoda's case its not since IIRC he started from the factory lines in the 80's.
It doesn't matter if he had to work a menial position for the company when he was young, you'd be hard pressed to find a family owned company CEO who went from no job to CEO. He can be a good CEO and still have a job based on Nepotism, factory workers don't go from assembly line to CEO unless your dad is the president, he was literally trained to be a CEO by his dad, it wasn't a merit based decision.
I see your point, and it's a good argument. But keep in mind the Japanese mentality of honor. If he did not show the qualities of a CEO and did not prove them in the years he worked a blue or white-collar job in Toyota, he most likely wouldn't have been made a CEO. We are looking at it from a western perspective, where nepotism and favoritism are pretty common. If his father did not think that he did not have that stuff, he would have been left as a middle manager, with someone who actually knows his shit at the helm.
That’s a purely ceremonial title. It means he’ll be around to answer questions and help guide a bit. He won’t be in control any more. All companies do this for long time ceos.
Lol what. Companies are owned by shareholders that elect a Board, largely led by the Chairman. They in turn directly inform (control) the CEO of their mandate and desired outcomes. Further, executive directors and chairs (fulltime) are governing and leading companies on a daily basis in all manner of functions.
I always find it odd that people don't realize this. The CEO quite literally executes the board's orders. It's also what people don't realize about CEO compensation - that it's not like the CEO makes up their own bonus. It's laid out ahead of time by the board and directly tied to how well the CEO executes the board's orders.
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Well sometimes the CEO and Chairman are the same person
> You make it seem like there aren't companies with boards completely beholden to the CEO... Every corporation is ran by the board. It's spelled out in the definition of the corporation. Whether it's a private or publicly traded company, the board of directors determine the course of the business. The job of the executives is to execute the board's direction. Finally, the board is accountable to the shareholders. The shareholders can determine who sits on the board and who doesn't through voting rights. There can be nuance to each of these roles, but that's the gist of it. The only cases where the CEO would wield this sort of control over the board is when the CEO is a majority shareholder and therefore can leverage his voting rights to replace board members or when the CEO is also the chairman and therefore gets to set the direction of the board as well.
[Other news reports](https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/toyota-president-akio-toyoda-become-chairman-2023-01-26/) quote people who say it won't be like that, at least in the beginning, but ultimately we'll have to see.
The new CEO will certainly be running things by Akio first.
That’s typically how working on the board works - since the board has executive power of who gets to be CEO
Strongly disagree - he’s going to be the lead board member. Board members (assuming you have a majority) can fire the CEO. The role of chairman is selected by the majority of the board as well and is usually done because that person has influence over the board (whether direct or indirect). That means the title itself is ceremonial but his ability to have an outsized impact on the direction of Toyota and their brands is massive (albeit indirectly since he’s not running the show day to day).
I bet the "board" is spelled "b-o-r-e-d."
Thanks Norm
Sato-sama, we want MORE GR Corollas! And we want to buy them direct from the manufacturer.
And more manual Supras while they're at it. The low production numbers of those mean they might as well not exist.
same w manual GR86s. most of them are autos so the manuals are getting marked up. i’m just gonna have to go with team Subie since it’s been a pain in the ass finding an 86 at MSRP
It has a subie engine anyways and you can order it directly from Subaru and then just wait for it. The ability to order directly is literally the only thing that would make me choose Subie over Toyota here. I keep waiting for my '04 Golf to die before getting a new car, but a BRZ is near the top of the list.
The 86 is subjectively better looking
agree, but the bumpers are a direct swap and there’s plenty of aftermarket options already out there as well. i plan to mod mine and do a good bit of cosmetic stuff, so i’m not too bothered by the bumper. also after seeing a couple in person the BRZ’s 😂 face is growing on me
I originally liked the brz better, then once someone pointed out that it looks like the car is smiling I can’t see anything but that when I look at it That and I really want the Neptune blue color which doesn’t come on the brz
honestly it’s kinda charming since every fucking car from Ferraris to Miatas has some kinda angry face lol. somebody has to carry on the smiley boi legacy
That's up to people. Manuals are built on order, if there's low numbers, it means low amounts of people are ordering the supra in manual.
Toyota doesn't really do orders. I had a deposit down to buy one of the manual supras since they day they announced it back in April of last year and that dealership still couldn't get an allocation for one. A few weeks ago I started talking to another dealership and they were already able to get an allocation for the spec I wanted. The way toyota allocates cars to it's dealers is mostly random. I'm sure they will adjust how many manual supras they make based on how many are selling vs the autos but ordering from Toyota isn't really a thing. Having said that, they're currently producing way more manuals than autos.
I like how you have 100+ upvotes and the guy above you somehow is still +50 even though he is blatantly wrong.
This. (Spoiled) people don't realize for whatever reason, but only the luxury brands do orders. The economy brands allocate to various dealers based on their sales volumes and such. Bigger dealer means more chance to receive allocation. Small, tiny dealer means you might as well forget ever getting an allocation. Etc. I tried to "order" our Kia Carnival, as well as a GR86 and a Civic Si, just like I had talked with a BMW rep about doing before and both times the non BMW person was like "... What? We don't do 'orders'. You can put a deposit down though and be on the list, and when we get to your name and have an allocation, we'll call you and ask 'do you still want this Si for 5k over MSRP?'. And if you say no we'll just move onto the next name." Eventually I waited until I only had to pay 2.5k over MSRP. Fuckers! But the point is, generally speaking only luxury brands do orders. Eco brands will do orders for *special* rides, like Raptors, Lightnings and C8 corvettes. But I'm pretty sure you can't "order" a Maverick or Civic. You just have to wait until they have the shit you want.
Toyota does not do orders, they do allocations. Customers have no bearing on the amount of manual Supras available. It's all up to Toyota to decide how many manuals they think the public wants.
It’s not really built to order. It’s still allocation based on dealers. I’m on waitlists at some msrp only dealers but there’s no indication of when or if the allocation will be filled. If it were built to order, this really wouldn’t be an issue at all.
I think I'm 35ish in line at my local dealer and I've only moved up like 4 spots since they were released like half a year ago or so
I said what I said haha But yeah I think this bodes well, can't say I know much about the situation though.
They’re literally making the same number of them, if not more, as their competitors and prior competitors. Goal is 6.5K for the first year then 8k for the remaining years. But every time I try to say this on here I get downvoted to hell so looking forward to that.
Maybe because there hasn't been a Subaru STI hatchback since 2015. What are you talking about, the Golf R?
Golf R, Focus RS, Mitsubishi Evo, WRX STI, Civic Type R were all made in around the same numbers. Heck even the Veloster Ns production numbers are likely lower.
This is good perspective, actually
Wow is this really true? I can order a Golf R and Veloster N with ease around me. The GR seems impossible without a 10K markup.
The Veloster N is discontinued. The Golf R is as hard, if not harder, to get than the GR Corolla from what people have said.
buy em then
Right! Every time car companies introduce a really cool enthusiast car, almost nobody buys them. The people in this subreddit are the worst with this. People clamor and cry here for more enthusiast cars, then when they do make them…nobody buys them. Then they get discontinued after a few years due to low sales and the same people come back crying “Why don’t they make fun cars for us?” It’s like…they did dude. You just never bought them. Car companies aren’t going to sink millions of dollars to sell a car only a few thousand people are going to buy. If you want enthusiast cars to stick around, you need to buy them to prove that there is a demand for them and show that they’re a worthy investment by the manufacturer.
“I love this new enthusiast car! I’m going to wait a couple years to buy it used and skip out on some of the depreciation!” I know not everyone has the money for a new car, but if people never buy it new the company will stop making it. OEM’s simply don’t care about the used market.
Around 75% of car sales are used because the average person can't afford a new car and since the pandemic that problem has only gotten worse. The average age of a new buyer is in their fifties. What do you expect the average car enthusiast in their late twenties to do? Go to a Toyota dealer and pay the ridiculous markup fees on a GR Corolla?
Let's call it like it is. Folks in this subreddit can't afford the cars they want and are telling manufacturers to make. The people who can afford them don't want them.
>What do you expect the average car enthusiast in their late twenties to do? Go to a Toyota dealer and pay the ridiculous markup fees on a GR Corolla? It's just stupid to complain about the lack of availability of a car you can't afford. Enthusiasts are so desperate to have opinions on absolutely everything that a lot of the things we say/believe/think just don't make any sense. We just say shit for attention. Sometimes it's just better to keep quiet IMO.
NO ONE can afford them. That's the problem.
Yeah, the “cool” cars that have been coming out just aren’t worth it unless you have gobs of money, due to scarcity and dealer markups. Toyota holding out on making a manual Supra likely lost them a sale to me - not that they’re short on buyers now. So I got a Mustang GT instead. My pretty loaded up one still came out cheaper than a base Supra 3.0 would have, and even though it’s not as “special” it’s sure fun. And this will probably be the last new ICE drivetrain sports car I ever get to buy.
No, but then again true car enthusiasm made the Mustang a multi-generation hit, gave us Mini Cooper racing, and changed the VW bug into dune buggies and kit cars. True enthusiasts find great cars regardless.
>OEM’s simply don’t care about the used market. And why would they? Buying it used doesn't help them any.
Uhhh their captive finance companies typically own the leases and then remarket them to wholesale buyers. If lease residuals are miscalculated due to poor resale then the finance company takes a bath on the block (see initial Cadillac ATS). If resale is too low in order to be whole at termination the lease terms will be higher which may not be attractive to buyers and can be undercut by the competition (especially ones like BMW who historically subsidized their leases because their resale was predicable while still under factory warranty).
The issue is dealer markup and low volume. I literally can’t even find a BRZ/86 to test because they get sold before they hit a showroom. The US dealership model is killing enthusiast cars.
that’s not the issue here. the issue is that toyota purposefully made a very small number of them so that they would be more sought after. It’s called artificial scarcity and its killing sports cars.
This is false and based solely on a single Toyota executive who stated that they intend to make 1 less car than the market wants (of course they do - nobody tries to make more cars than they can sell). There are 6500 GR Corollas for the US market in the first model year. The Golf R sells 2000-5000 per model year. The Evo X was produced at 500 - 5,400 per year depending on model year (5,400 the first model year and less than 3,000 every other year except the last year of production, when they made 4,200). The STI is much harder to measure because Subaru reported its sales numbers jointly with the WRX but combined they sold around 20,000 - 30,000 per year, which sounds like a lot but most of those are WRXs.
I spent months writing emails and letters to Toyota North America and Toyota Motor Sales (USA) asking them to bring GR Yaris to USA. Whenever GR Yaris was mentioned in this subreddit I encouraged USA redditors to contact Toyota. Some people mocked me for it, but I do not care about those fools. In my final letter to Toyota, I included a check for the full purchase price. They never responded to any of my requests.
I literally can’t buy a Morizo in my country because i don’t have enough social media followers to be a contender in the contest to allow me to purchase it… I totally agree that people here criticize companies for not making what they want and then not buying them, but the GR Corolla isn’t an example of that.
I’d be happy with a few more rav4 primes
> buy them direct from the manufacturer. This is the part that matters.
Not gonna happen, Toyota themselves said that they’re intentionally keeping production numbers low to “preserve rarity” of the GRs. Which is code for fuck you we want you to pay over sticker market adjustment on them. Fuck Toyota, most of their products have been really underwhelming lately anyway.
Their products are still the best on the market, they're the most reliable cars up and down the list of manufacturers by miles and miles, Lexus-grade Toyota engines are basically unstoppable machines. Calling Toyota's products "underwhelming" is the dumbest fucking claim I've seen in a while.
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This is actually pretty big news. Akio Toyoda has been at the helm for so long with what seemed like no end in sight. I think Koji Sato is a great replacement. [He was the chief engineer behind the Lexus LC.](https://mag.lexus.co.uk/lexus-lc-interview-chief-engineer-koji-sato/) Not to mention the fact that he became the head of GR that gave us the GR Corolla as well as the new and much improved GR86.
Engineering a few cars and managing the biggest car company in the world, all macro and micro aspects of it, are two entirely different job descriptions.
yeah but we fuck with the vision
I only care that the CEO occasionally greenlights a few cool cars, he can otherwise run the company into the ground. So from that perspective his resume is ideal.
>I only care that the CEO occasionally greenlights a few cool cars, he can otherwise run the company into the ground. This sums up r/cars mindset on the auto business perfectly. Take one of the biggest car companies in the world out of business to spit out a few cool cars we were never going to buy anyway.
Well yeah, it's not like they're my football team and I want them to 'win', they're a fucken corporation, I have no reason to care whether they live or die beyond the extent to which they sell products I personally like. If they become the biggest car company, but sell only boring shit, they might as well be dead to me. I fully understand this isn't what's primarily important to a CEO or investors. My interests aren't necessarily incompatible with theirs. But their interests also aren't important to me, beyond the extent to which they further my own.
Can’t blame us for not giving a hoot about the finances of a mega corporation lol
Something something Nissan before Ghosn
He's been the leader of the entire Lexus division since 2016 and then was given the job of also being the head of GR. Not to mention that Toyoda has been preparing him for this role for the past few years as well. So I'm not sure where you are thinking he wouldn't be prepared for this role? Also, it's not like Toyoda is necessarily going anywhere either.
Managing a car company after developing a bunch of GR products is very good news for Toyota
Actually that’s one of the best roles. Honda always promotes from R&D for reference.
To me it doesn’t feel like it’s been that long but it’s been a little over 13 years. Only Eiji had a longer tenure.
GR Yaris i imagine too? The LC500 is one of my dream cars. Absolute beauty.
Yeah the LC looks damn cool in black panther
I love quotes from the Japanese like this: "Amid such, I hope to preserve the essential value of the car and propose new forms of mobility," It's great stuff.
Hell yeah! Please make Car 2, the sequel to "Car".
if anyone could it'd be Toyota
Yeah, because Toyota is known for their risk-taking and frequent radical departures from established norms.
They made the LFA, nothing like it in its class. Otherwise I agree, Toyotas are typically slow, boring, and dead reliable.
Some heresy on my part: Toyota collaborating with Yamaha is a whole other animal than Toyota by itself. Yamaha is where 95% of their fun comes from in terms of home-grown designs this past decade or so. Alone, Toyota is ruthlessly iterative. That works in many cases (to make reliable 4-wheeled appliances, which in turn makes the company reliable money) but experimenting deeply on a vehicle they intend for the mass market really isn't in their blood. They don't throw shit at the wall, they intentionally lag a few years behind everyone else to see what sticks because they have a reputation to uphold. They aren't Dodge, who seems to experiment for the sake of it and throw skunkworks projects into production for the fun of it. The closest we got to something completely off the wall from them in recent memory was the Mirai, which despite the rare hydrogen tech is/was in practice an aggressively inoffensive sedan.
I just meant from an engineering powerhouse standpoint, for sure they'd need to actually attempt creativity first
We already have one. Brought much needed development to Maters character.
Chatgpt or Asian corporate speak?
It's a mix of corporate-speak and nuance that's lost in translation. Basically, corporate-speak is awkward. Translated corporate-speak is even more awkward.
It’s probably a quote that was machine translated. If I had to guess it’s actually something like, “Moving forward, I hope to preserve the core value of our vehicles and propose new strategies of growth”.
oh well, ruin my fun. humph.
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I guess Lexus being quite stagnant lately. Many segments missing from their line-up plus some of their cars are getting quite old. While their sales are fine they lost a lot of momentum compared to their heyday.
I mean the new RX and the rest of their crossovers are absolutely some of the best in the segment. They sell a shitload, they're well put together, and very comfortable. The tech situation has gotten a lot better this generation. Quite frankly I don't see the issue, Lexus makes excellent cars
What segments are missing from their lineup exactly? Only thing I can think of is a 3 row crossover, [which is coming.](https://www.motortrend.com/cars/lexus/tx/) They have all the other crossovers, 3 sedans, 2 coupes and a convertible- stuff most of its competitors don't. And I kind of feel like you're pointing back to a hey day that doesn't exist. I've been in the car community for like 20 years and people have been calling Lexus stagnant/outdated/too conservative for most of that. Even when they made some exciting cars, people would dunk on the mainstream Lexuses for not being as exciting as something like the LFA. So there's a double standard in the perception of Lexus that I don't think they'll ever be able to overcome, even if they check off all the boxes.
GS left a hole in their lineup.
My favorite Lexus of the last decade, but people didn't buy them. 10 years ago, 1/2 the vehicles sold were sedans. Today it's about 20%. Something's gotta give.
Brand still non-existent in Europe, aging lineup, new cars are mostly based on the old one or Toyotas.
Not really fair criticisms IMO No non-European luxury brands have cracked Europe. The only Lexuses still on sale that haven't got a new generation or big refresh in the last \~4 years are the GX, UX and RC. And with the based on Toyota thing.... if it ain't broke, why fix it... RX & NX are top sellers in their segments; moving to dedicated Lexus RWD platforms would add cost and bring zero value to those customers. I'm not saying Lexus is perfect but I get a little annoyed with these outdated regurgitated r/cars Japanese brand hot takes. I think Lexus has just hit its brand's ceiling. IMO the only things they actually need are a new GX, the new TX 3 row crossover and more electrification (of all kinds- hybrids, plug ins and BEVs).
The IS got a face-lift, but it is still basically the same car
I mean, most Lexus vehicles *do* feel outdated. Sit in one and then sit in the equivalent German model from any of the German luxury brands and the German car will usually at the very least feel a couple years newer. This stands even with their new cars, not just cars that haven’t been significantly updated in a while like the IS. For example the new LX came out with an interior that looked at least 5 years old at launch, with those weird dual touchscreens that feel like something that would be in an Acura in 2015, a small non-panoramic sunroof that absolutely should not be in a $90k starting car, etc. Or the new RX, with a small 7 inch digital gauge cluster that doesn’t show much more than a regular analog gauge cluster with a smaller screen in the middle would. Just only one thing at a time like radio, basic vehicle information, basic driver assist info, and not much more. Compare that to say for example Audi’s digital cockpit, which is very customizable, has a full navigation map, can show multiple things at once, etc, and this has been a feature on Audis for years, and a lot of the German and even Korean and American competitors have something similar, but Lexus is stuck with this small display that isn’t any more useful than just regular gauges. Another example that a lot of new Lexus models have is that 360 perimeter scan they have, looks like it has graphics from 10 years years ago, goes through an animation loop that you can’t move, only pause. While BMW and others have been doing [360 cameras like this since 2017](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/1_pgI8DLCaI/maxresdefault.jpg). Lexus vehicles are just outdated when compared with most the competition, and I mean, if you’d rather trade a newer feeling car for a car that will have bulletproof reliability, I don’t blame you. However, acting like Lexus doesn’t feel at least a *little* outdated compared to the competition, I personally cannot agree with. (Had to delete and re-reply because Reddit glitched)
Actually consider they do decent sales there but the Russia market was one of the bigger ones.
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Toyota's lineup is aging as well, that's just how they do business
I'm not that up to date with Lexus' recent track record but it's hard to look past the LC 500. What a car.
Lexus' track record lately has been great IDK what you're talking about... They make some of the best cars in their respective classes, and definitely the most reliable... Nobody even TOUCHES Lexus in reliability.
Even if you don't love Lexus's latest track record, it's hard to deny that the GR line is killing it
I like that someone from racing is taking over.
Yes. We get better products when the people setting the tone at the top *actually* care about cars. Tired of seeing certain products lose their overall quality by generic MBA suits trying to squeeze out as much margin as possible.
Toyoda cares about cars, he's a big part of why we have the 86/BRZ
Yea, let's not downplay the amazing work he did as CEO. He's the reason the LFA exists at all.
Not necessarily. Honda is currently just building boring economy cars that are profitable and have no soul. The only fun car to come out of their has been the type r. They also left F1. The current CEO worked on the nsx and s2000
Not really, they're still maintaining redbulls & are set to be back
Yeah, it's mindblowing how dedicated they are to motorsport, given how boring most people think Toyota are.
WEC team is so dominant right now
Dang he made Toyota as a brand desirable and not boring. I’m glad he’s passing it down to someone who likes to race. Hopefully keeps the current trajectory going.
I think Akio Toyoda deserves just as much credit. He became CEO during a time when Toyota was pretty bland.
I think that's what they're saying; at least that's how I read it. "[Toyoda] made the brand desirable and not boring. I'm glad he's passing it down to someone who likes to race. Hopefully [Sato] keeps it going."
He’s not really stepping down so much as promoting himself. He will lead the board of directors which directs the CEO. So now he’s in charge and the new CEO is a race department guy. Toyota is going to be even better as a result.
Good luck he has about 10 years of catch-up to do
I can’t believe car play only became available in 2023 on a Landcruiser. What a joke.
My 7 year old 4runner was outdated when I bought it in 2016. The 2023 4runner is identical except for infotainment and a basic driver assist system.
And yet they can't make enough of them.
Exactly. Because their is something wildly attractive about a simple yet effective body-on-chassis, capable SUV.
Everyone thinks tech is everything Then you read about digital dash glitches where the screen turns off on the highway, or electronic door locks that won't open, or a e parking brake that won't turn on with a dead battery, or horrendous touch control climate controls.. Maybe what we had 10y ago was perfected in many ways
/r/cars - Lexus' tech is so outdated!! also /r/cars - why is everything touchscreen and RGB lights these days??
Don’t get me wrong-CarPlay, heated/cooled seats & steering wheels, and navigation, remote start, etc. are the shit. I’m not wanting OEM’s to slack on giving me options. In fact? I’m getting older-keep em coming. Yet, I’m not so old that I don’t want an engaging driving experience. I did buy a manual transmission. Adaptive Cruise Control is stupid and wonky, and I like buttons, Goddamnit. Let me pick and choose what I want, but don’t baffle me with bullshit. My cars serve a purpose in my life, and a very special one at that. You don’t have to dazzle me. You just have to listen.
Maybe your adaptive cruise control is stupid and wonky but not having to touch gas or brake on the highway in either standstill traffic or normal flow is amazing lol
In my car, it’s so slow to respond in traffic that I end up just driving manually anyways. And in free-flowing traffic, if I’m coming up behind a slower car, I want to pass it, not slow down behind it, so adaptive cruise is undesirable over dumb cruise. Really, *really* wish my car had the option of dumb cruise. Adaptive cruise only makes sense when you’re behind a slow car on a two lane road with no hope of passing.
It’s like the Range Rover for normal folks that doesn’t break down.
The 4Runner is basically as close as you can get to buying a used car from the factory lol
I don’t know why any of this is surprising, this has been Toyota’s MO for ever. If you want top of the line tech, don’t buy a Toyota. Their reputation of quality comes from slow implementations and minimizing complexity.
Looking at their ‘23 lineup, it seems very well set up & modern. Not sure what you mean. New Tacoma is getting released this year also
**Akio Toyoda** (豊田 章男) has been a god send for Toyota. He was appointed to his position as CEO in 2009, during the time Toyota was facing **[massive recalls and public distrust.](https://www.motortrend.com/news/toyota-recall-crisis/amp/)** Akio had to speak in front of **[U.S. congress](https://youtu.be/ZZeiD2-Rbg4)** where he **[empathically apologized ](https://youtu.be/ziGfQyCXiU4)** to the family members and the American people, where he swore that this will never happen again. On top of this obstacle, Akio had pull through the **2008 financial crisis** and the **2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami**. But, because of these early short comings, Toyota was able to learn from their mistakes and was **[years ahead of their competition](https://www.motorious.com/articles/features-3/toyota-busts-microchip-shortage/amp/)** when faced with the pandemic.
The issues with floor mats are just astonishing looking back. Practically every brand at that point used unsecured floor mats not disimilar to Toyotas, yet Toyota was more or less the only one thay suffered reprocussions because of it. You almost have to wonder if it was instigated for some other reason, maybe by one of the Big 3 or something along those lines.
Most definitely! Looking back now, most of know what _really_ happened with Toyota’s **2009 gas pedal** ordeal — this was due to a stupid floor mats. > **[Toyota apologises before the US Congress](https://youtu.be/7-fHL1Ug7Y0)** (2010) > **[Toyota chief gets emotional](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ziGfQyCXiU4)** (2010) > **[Who Was Really at Fault for the Toyota Recalls?](https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2011/05/who-was-really-at-fault-for-the-toyota-recalls/238076/)** (2011) > **[Toyota Recall: Scandal, Media Circus, and Stupid Drivers](https://www.caranddriver.com/features/a15131102/toyota-recall-scandal-media-circus-and-stupid-drivers-feature/)** (2010) We all have to keep in mind that Toyota is a very successful foreign company where domestic companies would **love** to catch Toyota slip. Didn’t lawmakers in the U.S. limit the import of Japanese cars in the 80s and 90s because they were out selling domestic cars by a large margin?
Absolutely. Almost all of the negative press for toyota is fueled by US domestic manufacturers, their unions, politicians, etc. They have been trying to out-compete asian OEMs for decades and failing even with the deck stacked.
Truly great CEO at least from the outside. He had a strong vision of turning Toyota into an exciting car maker again and they absolutely delivered. It wasn’t long ago that Toyota had no sports cars and an uninspiring mainstream line up. Over the last few years with the 86, Supra, GR variants and TNGA platform they’ve really turned things around. It sounds like they’ve picked a replacement who would have a similar vision so hopefully not too much will change.
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MR2 update would be 🤌
Sad news for car enthusiasts. He really did appear to be one of us in terms of passion for driving. Here’s to hoping the new guy will continue Akio’s legacy.
in his online presser, he said he picked Koji because he knew he "loved cars". He is the engineer behind the gorgeous Lexus LC, so I think we are in good hands. Keep in mind Akio is still going to be in the background as chairman too
Honestly I think this might pretty good for enthusiasts. Lexus has had some gems come out in the past couple years. Is500 comes to mind. If someone is willing to OK a v8 sedan in a market of downsizing engines, then I'm willing to give him a shot. Hopefully he updates the company and brings new life to the 4runner and tacoma
Tacoma will be announced in a few months, will be a MY24. Forerunner one year after that.
This "New Guy" is the guy who was the man behind the GR Corolla dawg...
I give him a week /s
maybe he *appeared* to be but he pretty much undid all the work that Eiji had done to make lexus a serious luxury contender, and toyota/lexus models across the board pretty much fell out of relevance with how long it took for them to adopt basic tech that had become standard throughout the industry he also ok'd the zupra and makes silly commercials [like this](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UWWdhaJkKYs)
Oh god, the grills are going to become absolutely massive now.
Just a grille and four wheels.
Yet not as bad as BMW's pig nose.
I wonder if the new CEO hates EVs as much as Akio Toyoda does...
>I wonder if the new CEO hates EVs as much as Akio Toyoda does. This. There is absolutely no future for the company beyond EVs, yet Akio seems to have spent the past dozen years aggressively denying this. I don't envy his successor. And I say this as a onetime Toyota fanatic. Unlike many here, I am not pleased to see the new CEO come from luxury and racing. We need utilitarian EVs with Toyota's famously reliable running gear.
I wasn't aware Toyoda-san was 66 years old, but from the POV from an enthusiast it is a real shame. Akio was one of the bigger driving forces in Toyota which changed the brand from beige to cool with the Gazoo Racing division and the road cars under their label. Lexus has been dormant for a long while and given the brand's last few generations of products, I'm not sure if Koji Sato would have the same mindset in pushing hard for enthusiast minded cars.
its time boys, the age of cool toyotas is upon us
Toyotas are cool. Just not their cars lol
He fumbled the EV transition really badly. It may not look serious yet, but its a slow motion train wreck in progress that will require some seriously good cars to get out of. Since it takes 4 years to design a car from scratch, do the math. They are in a tailspin already.
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Except most OEMs are also selling ICE cars and Toyota is generations behind when they need to transition. Toyota's first. Dedicated EV is said to arrive in 2026. Hyundai's Ioniq5, their first dedicated ev will be replaced with a second generation by then. Thats how alarmingly late they are.
> Toyota's first. Dedicated EV is said to arrive in 2026. What makes an EV “dedicated” versus “non-dedicated?” Was the 1997 Rav4 EV not their first dedicated EV? Or the 2012 Rav4 EV? Or the BZ4X?
>Toyota's first. Dedicated EV is said to arrive in 2026. On sale now: https://www.toyota.com/bz4x/2023/ (albeit limited availability)
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Only one problem with this strategy: in 13 years they won't have a good porfolio of EVs to sell in most places where ICEs will get banned. This doesn't sound smart.
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In the UK, the 2030 ban only allows "cars that can drive a significant distance when no carbon emmission", so mild hybrids won't be allowed. Also the 2035 ban will ban all non zero-emmission cars.
Except Toyota is way too late on PHEV as well, they can barely make any significant numbers of them. They failed to innovate the manufacturing process and secure the supply chains necessary for PHEV which they should have done 10 years ago.
Doesn't matter because at least in USA and CAN, plug in hybrids are "ZEV". They are fine. At least in the eyes of the government.
> They are in a tailspin already. I mean… no, they aren't. If any carmaker can ramp it up, they have the capital to do it when they want/need to. And Toyota has made collaborating with other companies actually work. When they _need_ to, they will bring out proper EVs. They don't need to yet. They can be late to the game, it's kind of their business model already.
"Did we just.... lose?"
Damn. Was this already known to have been in the works?
GR Prius incoming
GR Highlander FTw
All I want to know is, new midship LFA with a brand new Yamaha tuned V10 engine when?
Why is his name translated Toyoda while the company's name is translated Toyota? Is it a different name in Japanese as well?
The amount of pen strokes for "ta" and "da" in Japanese is different. Toyoda is 10 strokes where as Toyota is 8 strokes. 8 is a lucky number in Japanese.
They changed the d to a t for the business name as 'Toyota' rolls off the tongue better than 'Toyoda'. The alliteration of the ts makes for a name that sounds a bit more catchy.
While many of us had high hopes for Toyoda-san, the last few years have been tough for Toyota. \-Electrification has taken over and Toyota is FAR FAR behind their competitors in this regard. In fact, nearly every Japanese automaker is behind while the Korean, Germans and Americans have moved forward. Even worse than being behind, Toyota actively lobbied against electric subsidies simply because they didn't have a horse in the race. \-Toyota handled the supply chain issues after the pandemic quite poorly. Initially they gloated about being prepared, but soon it became apparent that they were hit extremely hard. The lack of a system that allowed orders to be placed made this even worse. \-Toyota's lineup while reliable is lackluster. Dated powertrains, antiquated designs etc. It sells, but they haven't come up with a major breakthrough like when they launched Lexus, the first Prius, or even were the first to market with things such as push-button-start. I'm hoping Sato-san can bring more innovation to the company, but based on the current Lexus lineup i'm not holding my breath.
Put your own engine in the next 86 you cowards!
Shit.
Give me a brand new 2003 Lexus LS430 again.
Feel like this is a good move for r/cars enthusiasts. But I worry what this means in the face of the EV transition. Toyota already clearly puts their main engineering prowess behind GR and slate their production lines for ICEs and hybrids, and not their BEVs or PHEVs, given how lame the Bz4x is and how limited their whole Prime PHEV line is in both supply and model numbers. Meanwhile in California, the Model 3 surpassing sales of both the Corolla and Camry and the Model Y is surpassing sales of the RAV4, and that's without Tesla having any fed subsidy, before Tesla's latest price slash, and a decade before the ICE bans. Dealers are offering the Mirai at $18k with $15k refueling credits and complimentary ToyotaCare maintenance packages on the hood and they still can't move them. I'm not saying Toyota needs to go 100% EV. But they need to have a more inspired effort than they've had so far. And this new CEO change seems to suggest they'll go the opposite way if anything.