USA, February 19, 2010 – The top dog of the United States division of Toyota did not deny that the company is experiencing a loss in credibility. As the fallout from the company's current unprecedented recalls continues to develop, both the public and the federal government continue diving deeper into Toyota's business. Newly uncovered information reveals that the Japanese automaker clearly admitted that it had previously received several dozens of complaints concerning the power steering systems on the Corolla. Toyota's response was simply that action would be taken, if warranted, after further investigation. In addition, loads of questions are centered on the possibility of various other electrical problems.

Bob Carter, Vice President of the Toyota Group, stated yesterday that the systems "have been thoroughly tested." At the Chicago Auto Show last week, he also stated, “We have absolutely full confidence in our electronic systems. We did everything but hit them with lightning bolts.” He confidently rebuts all claims of faulty electrical components. Further, Carter has been battling overzealous critics since the initial recall of 3.8 million Toyota vehicles for reasons concerning unintended acceleration. He called their attention and delving "unwarranted speculation".

That speculation has turned out to be bad news for Toyota since then. Following the October acceleration recall, the company has announced other recalls that make the total vehicle count exceed 8.5 million units. Reasons include faulty accelerator pedals, problems in the breaking systems and more. Carter admits that he misworded his comments in October and promises that Toyota is stepping up all efforts to root out every problem that remains. In addition, the company has voluntarily disclosed other issues that are not at recall level yet. The goal is to keep all operations open to the eyes of the public and allow that same public to watch as the issues are repaired.

Toyota is the largest auto manufacturer on the planet and has been for decades. They have built their stellar reputation on providing innovative, dependable vehicles that perform excellently and maintain their resale value. Toyota spokeswoman Ririko Takeuchi stated yesterday, "We're trying to be proactive. Some consumers are worried, so even if the information doesn't rise to the level of a recall, we are taking this step to restore the company's credibility." Toyota has been actively engaged in a media blitz to represent their apologies and begin restoring consumer faith. US Toyota trading shares have dropped by 15% in the past few weeks.

Other Toyota recall facts:

• Sales have been halted on 8 models found to have accelerator pedal issues;
• Toyota has lost 60% of its sales in the past few weeks;
• Lost sales total roughly 4000 units daily ($100 million every 24 hours);
• Loyal Toyota consumers are now considering other purchasing options;
• There has been a sharp surge in death complaints concerning uncontrollable acceleration in recent weeks;
• Reports say that 34 deaths have occurred since 2000 in now-recalled Toyota models;

Until recently, the Toyota Prius was the planet's best-selling hybrid vehicle. It is now known that Toyota downplayed a report stating that the braking system of the Prius could be inadvertently released after contacting an ice patch or a bump in the road. A quiet, unplanned resolution was administered on the assembly line. And then suddenly, last Tuesday, Toyota the recalled 440,000 units of Prius hybrids from various countries. Carter states, "That's a head-scratcher."

As Toyota continues to battle through numerous issues associated with the various recalls, declining consumer faith, reductions of resell values and more, the company is making all efforts to remain confident, stable and apologetic. Undoubtedly, Toyota will see many changes implemented throughout their wordwide manufacturing, quality control, distribution and customer service systems. It's going to take a lot of work and proving from Toyota to regain their position as the world's leading automaker. They may never be able to do so at all.