plus 3, Toyota crisis control making things worse? - Dubuque Telegraph Herald

Toyota crisis control making things worse? - Dubuque Telegraph Herald
Motorcar Parts of America, Inc. (MPAA) Chairman, President and CEO to ... - Stockhouse
Toyota Plans Media Blitz To Calm Customers - WSB-TV Atlanta
Owners of dead GM brands have few reasons to worry - Reno Gazette

Toyota crisis control making things worse? - Dubuque Telegraph Herald

Posted: 01 Feb 2010 07:55 AM PST

LAKEWOOD, N.J. -- Toyota has launched a media campaign to bolster its reputation for quality as nervous customers confront dealers across the country about faulty gas pedal systems.

Crisis-management experts said the recall of millions of cars and trucks isn't the Japanese automaker's only problem: its message to Toyota owners -- delivered in ads Sunday in 20 major newspapers -- isn't as clear and reassuring as it needs to be.

Today, the head of Toyota's North American sales division, Jim Lentz, is scheduled to appear on NBC's "The Today Show" to detail the company's plans for a fix. Federal regulators have approved Toyota's plan to start sending parts to dealers.

Toyota's black-and-white ads Sunday characterized the halt in sales and production as a "temporary pause" to put customers "first." The ads don't give details on how the pedals will be fixed or when customers can expect a remedy.

The company has said the recall of about 4.2 million cars and trucks is related to condensation that builds up in the gas pedal and can cause the accelerator to get

stuck. Dealers say the fix involves slipping a shim into an area where springs push the gas pedal back to its resting position.

"They are trying to do the right thing," said Alexander Edwards, president of automotive research group Strategic Vision, of the ads. "But what's going on isn't stated very clearly and that causes more uneasiness with customers."

Larry Smith, of the Institute for Crisis Management in Louisville, Ky., said "The ads are intended to buy Toyota a bit of time, to ask people to give them a chance."

What matters now is "how Toyota expresses its plan and executes the repairs," Smith said. However, he said, the ads likely had to be placed on Friday, before Toyota received the go-ahead for its planned fix from federal regulators.

"They are a really good company, and there is no reason they should not snap back from this," Smith said.

At Earl Stewart Toyota in North Palm Beach, Fla., sales initially dropped off after the recall announcement but began to rebound by the weekend. General manager Stu Stewart said he'd even sold some cars in recent days that have the faulty gas pedal system. Customers will just have to wait for the cars to be fixed before picking up their new vehicles, Stewart said.

At Toyota World of Lakewood, N.J., sales manager Joe Glidden said they had received many calls from customers with questions about the recalls. But he said customer traffic had only slightly decreased since the gas-pedal recall was announced Jan. 21.

Customer Herb Jackson, shopping at the Lakewood showroom for a new Prius gas-electric hybrid -- which is not one of the vehicles that was recalled -- said he's still confident in the world's biggest automaker.

"I don't plan on changing horses," said Jackson, who has owned many Toyotas over the years.

Other customers are checking out Toyota's competition, however.

In Pittsburgh's northern suburbs, Richard Bazzy, owner of two Ford dealerships, saw increased traffic on Saturday and noticed more Camrys and Corollas driving onto his lots. But he also said it has yet to turn into increased sales from Toyota customers.

Bazzy said the Toyota troubles should get customers to at least consider Detroit's improved cars.

Industry analysts expect Ford to be among the beneficiaries of Toyota's troubles because some of its models have recently received good quality scores from third parties such as Consumer Reports magazine.

Rob Larson, a sales manager at Larson Ford in Lakewood, said he hadn't seen an influx of disaffected Toyota customers so far. But he expects to see them soon as more people learn about incentives being offered by Ford, such as $1,000 to Toyota, Lexus, Scion, Honda or Acura drivers who trade in vehicles or have leases expiring by June 30. GM and Chrysler are offering similar deals to lure Toyota customers.

At Hyundai Giant in New Port Richey, Fla., CEO Scott Fink said dealers are having trouble figuring trade-in values on Toyotas, wondering if they will drop even after they are repaired.

He said it's too early to tell if there will be a mass exodus from Toyota.

The recall widened beyond Toyota over the weekend. France's largest automaker, PSA Peugeot Citroen, said it was recalling 100,000 cars across Europe to change accelerator pedals on two models designed and produced in a joint venture with Toyota. The recall is a "preventive" measure, Peugeot said, adding that there has been no evidence of accidents or safety problems linked to the pedals.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said on its Web site that it opened an investigation last Tuesday into CTS Corp., the manufacturer that supplied the faulty gas pedals to Toyota. The agency wants to find out whether CTS notified other gas pedal customers of the recall and if other automakers have received reports of similar problems with the pedals.

The pedal recall is separate from another recall involving floor mats that can bend and push down accelerators. The two recalls combined affect more than 7 million vehicles worldwide. While the multiple recalls, investigations and image troubles are disheartening for Toyota owners, for now many still remain loyal.

"They're going to be fine," Stacey Krupski, of State College, Pa., said as she parked her Toyota Saturday. "And I would most likely guarantee the fact that my next car will still be a Toyota."

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Motorcar Parts of America, Inc. (MPAA) Chairman, President and CEO to ... - Stockhouse

Posted: 01 Feb 2010 08:09 AM PST

ADVISORY, Feb 1, 2010 (GlobeNewswire via COMTEX News Network) --

What:

Selwyn Joffe, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Motorcar Parts of America, Inc. (MPAA) will visit NASDAQ MarketSite in the heart of Times Square and preside over the NASDAQ Closing Bell.

Where:

NASDAQ MarketSite -- 4 Times Square -- 43rd & Broadway -- Broadcast Studio

When:

Tuesday, February 2, 2010 at 3:45 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET

Contacts:

Gary S. Maier 310-442-9852 gmaier@maierco.com

NASDAQ MarketSite:

Jolene Libretto (646) 441-5220 Jolene.Libretto@NASDAQOMX.com

Feed Information:

The Closing Bell is available from 3:50 p.m. to 4:05 p.m. on AMC-3/C-3 (ul 5985V; dl 3760H). The feed can also be found on Ascent fiber 1623. If you have any questions, please contact Jolene Libretto at (646) 441-5220.

Radio Feed:

An audio transmission of the Closing Bell is also available from 3:50 p.m. to 4:05 p.m. on uplink IA6 C band / transponder 24, downlink frequency 4180 horizontal. The feed can be found on Ascent fiber 1623 as well.

Facebook and Twitter:

For multimedia features such as exclusive content, photo postings, status updates and video of bell ceremonies please visit our Facebook page at: http://www.facebook.com/pages/NASDAQ-OMX/108167527653

For news tweets, please visit our Twitter page at: http://twitter.com/nasdaqomx

Webcast:

A live webcast of the NASDAQ Closing Bell will be available at: http://www.nasdaq.com/about/marketsitetowervideo.asx

Photos:

To obtain a high-resolution photograph of the Market Close, please go to http://www.nasdaq.com/reference/marketsite_events.stm and click on the market close of your choice.

About Motorcar Parts of America, Inc. (MPAA):

Motorcar Parts of America, Inc. is a remanufacturer of alternators and starters utilized in imported and domestic passenger vehicles, light trucks and heavy duty applications. Its products are sold to automotive retail outlets and the professional repair market throughout the United States and Canada, with remanufacturing facilities located in California, Mexico and Malaysia, and administrative offices located in California, Tennessee, Mexico, Singapore and Malaysia. Additional information is available at www.motorcarparts.com.

About NASDAQ OMX:

The NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc. is the world's largest exchange company. It delivers trading, exchange technology and public company services across six continents, with approximately 3,700 listed companies. NASDAQ OMX offers multiple capital raising solutions to companies around the globe, including its U.S. listings market, NASDAQ OMX Nordic, NASDAQ OMX Baltic, NASDAQ OMX First North, and the U.S. 144A sector. The company offers trading across multiple asset classes including equities, derivatives, debt, commodities, structured products and exchange-traded funds. NASDAQ OMX technology supports the operations of over 70 exchanges, clearing organizations and central securities depositories in more than 50 countries. NASDAQ OMX Nordic and NASDAQ OMX Baltic are not legal entities but describe the common offering from NASDAQ OMX exchanges in Helsinki, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Iceland, Tallinn, Riga, and Vilnius. For more information about NASDAQ OMX, visit http://www.nasdaqomx.com. *Please follow NASDAQ OMX on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/pages/NASDAQ-OMX/108167527653) and Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/nasdaqomx).

This news release was distributed by GlobeNewswire, www.globenewswire.com

SOURCE: The NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc.

NDAQA

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Toyota Plans Media Blitz To Calm Customers - WSB-TV Atlanta

Posted: 01 Feb 2010 07:55 AM PST

Automaker Aims To Bolster Its Reputation After Recalls

Updated: 10:57 am EST February 1, 2010

Comment On This Story ››

LAKEWOOD, N.J. -- Toyota has launched a media campaign to bolster its reputation for quality as nervous customers confront dealers across the country about faulty gas pedal systems.

Crisis-management experts said Sunday that the recall of millions of cars and trucks isn't the Japanese auto maker's only problem: its message to Toyota owners -- delivered in full-page ads Sunday in 20 major newspapers -- isn't as clear and reassuring as it needs to be.

On Monday, the head of Toyota's North American sales division, Jim Lentz, is scheduled to appear on NBC's The Today Show to detail the company's plans for a fix. Federal regulators have approved Toyota's plan to start sending parts to dealers in the coming days.

Toyota dealers over the weekend said there has been a noticeable drop in customer traffic and sales, though they have faith that customers loyal to the brand before last week's recall will not abandon it altogether. Dealers selling U.S. brands have seen more Toyota drivers in their lots than usual, but for now those visits haven't translated into many new customers.

The company has said the recall of about 4.2 million cars and trucks is related to condensation that builds up in the gas pedal assembly and can cause the accelerator to get stuck. Dealers say the fix involves slipping a shim into an area where springs push the gas pedal back to its resting position after a driver has eased off the gas. Toyota has not commented on the repair.

Larry Smith of the Institute for Crisis Management in Louisville, Ky., said "The ads are intended to buy Toyota a bit of time, to ask people to give them a chance."

But what matters now is "how Toyota expresses its plan and executes the repairs," Smith said.

Cutting the company some slack, Smith said the ads likely had to be placed on Friday, before Toyota received the go-ahead for its planned fix from federal regulators.

"They are a really good company, and there is no reason they should not snap back from this," Smith said.

"I don't plan on changing horses," said Jackson, who has owned many Toyotas over the years.

Other customers are checking out Toyota's competition, however.

Bazzy said the Toyota troubles should get customers to at least consider Detroit's improved cars.

At Hyundai Giant in New Port Richey, Fla., CEO Scott Fink said dealers are having trouble figuring trade-in values on Toyotas, wondering if they will drop even after they are repaired.

He said it's too early to tell if there will be a mass exodus from Toyota.

"They're going to be fine," Stacey Krupski of State College, Pa., said as she parked her Toyota Saturday. "And I would most likely guarantee the fact that my next car will still be a Toyota."

____

Tom Krisher reported from Detroit. Associated Press Writers Brian Skoloff in North Palm Beach, Fla., Genaro C. Armas in State College, Pa., Dinesh Ramde in Milwaukee and David Koenig in Dallas contributed to this report.

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Owners of dead GM brands have few reasons to worry - Reno Gazette

Posted: 01 Feb 2010 08:17 AM PST

NEW YORK -- Pontiac? Goodbye. Saturn? So long. Saab? Off to the old junkyard in the sky.

Those are the three brands that General Motors Co. is shutting down as it remakes itself into a smaller, nimbler and -- it hopes -- profitable automaker.

But just because the brands are disappearing doesn't mean their owners will be left out in the cold, even after the dealerships that sold them their vehicles shut their doors.

For owners wondering what the end of the brands means, here are some answers:

Question: What happened to Pontiac, Saturn and Saab?

Answer: Shutting down Pontiac had been part of GM's restructuring plan since early last year. It had hoped to sell Saturn to the auto dealership chain Penske Automotive Group Inc., but Penske abruptly backed out of the deal last autumn.

GM had planned to sell Saab to a Swedish race car manufacturer, but that deal also collapsed in late 2009. GM has begun dismantling the brand, though it is still hearing offers from other buyers.

Q: Should I be worried if I own one of those vehicles?

A: Owners of those vehicles have little reason to worry, at least when it comes to getting their cars and trucks serviced, GM spokesman John McDonald said. As it did when it shut down Oldsmobile in 2004, the automaker will continue to honor existing warranties on all Pontiac, Saturn and Saab vehicles. GM's standard warranty is five years.

"People should feel very comfortable that they will be able to have their vehicles serviced," McDonald said.

Q: Will GM have the parts to continue providing service for that long?

A: GM has enough spare parts to last the life of all warranties on vehicles from discontinued brands, McDonald said.

It probably has enough to last even longer, he said. In addition, many GM vehicles share similar parts that will remain compatible in vehicles from shuttered brands.

However, he cautioned that parts shortages could arise many years down the road on some specialized components. Think headlights, taillights, engine grilles -- mostly cosmetic parts that are specific to a single model.

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