Would you feel save driving a Toyota?

[Ephchap]

Count me in the "Buy American" Camp. Yes, I do know that some Toyotas and Hondas and others are now being manufactured in the US, and yes, I do know that many of the parts of the cars assembled here in the US come from overseas (even the American car companies), but the bulk of the car is built here ... and at least my money is going to a US company. Buying a Toyota made here does help put some Americans to work at those factories, but the foreign company is still getting the money - our American money.

I know - different opinions. As they say, different strokes for different folks.


All that aside, even though I wouldn't have bought a Toyota on principle, I definitely wouldn't buy one now - safety issue, resale issue, and the fact that they knew and were trying to hide it. There have been many automotive recalls through the years by all car companies, but Toyota has not stepped up and accepted responsibility until forced to, and even now, are trying to sidestep the issue.

Deb

 

[ctmom05]

We have a 2008 Toyota Yaris 2 door hatchback. We got it when Toyota was the #1 car company.

We've been pleased with the car's performance and reliability, as well as the fact that it is economical to run. I feel as safe in this car as I would in any other; it has given us no cause for concern.

 

[Nancy]

I love Toyota. I will buy American when they make them as well as those non-American cars made in America. Don't shoot me but I have tried to buy American for years now and have yet to find one built as well or having the same resale value as the foreign. Just now they are starting to listen to the public and give us more options. But I still haven't found anything comparable. We just went to the new car auto show here and I looked at all the American cars hoping to find one that I liked as well, nope. The ones I did like were $40,000-50,000. After looking at all the cars I went back to two of the cars we have in this family, a Honda CR-V and a Nissan Rogue They are still the nicest with the best fuel economy for the money.

Back to Toyota. I owned a Highlander for eight years and dearly loved it. It had 100,000 miles and probably would have gone for another 100,000 but it needed a lot of maintenace and decided to trade it in while we could still get a good trade-in value. I got $8,000 on an eight year old vehicle that still looked great both inside and out. I would buy another Toyota today but the Highlander was now too big for me and I didn't want the Rav-4 because of the tire on the back. I like my CR-V, but not as much as my highlander. I still like it much better better than anything else I saw out there. I am confident that Toyota will fix their problems and I guarantee they are not the only car manufacturer with that problem. Already Ford has admitted they have had similar problems. As more cars are run by computers we will see more of these problems int he future I believe.

by the way, that runaway vehicle that supposedly the police had to help stop, it was most likely a hoax. There was a news conference the other day that brought up some serious doubts with the driver, who filed bankruptcy several days later and did not follow the instructions of the dispatcher when she told him what to do to stop it. He lied about bringing the vehicle into the dealer previously. They have tested the vehicle over and over and the override feature which stops the car when you step on the brake and gas at the same time worked each and every time. He is now being investigated.

Nancy

 

[TerryJ2]

I LOVE MY PRIUS! It's only a yr old, and my 2nd Prius (traded it in for a newer one after 5 yrs).
I am not on the recall list (believe me, I called them when I heard the news!)
Having a dad who was a professional sports car racer, and having taken the BMW safe driving course last yr, I feel reasonably safe that I could survive sudden acceleration.
I have had the accelerator stick before, on one of my dad's cars, when I was about 17. He watched the road while he told me to reach down, lift up the gas pedal, and pull the piece of metal up with-my fingers. After we got home, he fixed it. I wish I could ask him what he did ... he's got Alzheimer's now and doesn't even remember he used to race, much less work on his own cars.

Every and any car can have mechanical problems. Never, ever take any car for granted, whether it's a heap of junk or a top-of-the line prizewinner.

Frankly, cell phone use, mostly texting, and drunk driving are far more dangerous. Out of the approximately 40,000 US road deaths per year, about half are caused by drunk driving.* (I see that it's 32%. Still, 11,773 is WAY more than the 35 people killed by Prius and Lexus accelerator issues.)

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) 37,261 people died in traffic crashes in 2008 in the United States (latest figures available), including an estimated 11,773 people who died in alcohol-impaired driving crashes. Drunk driving fatalities accounted for 32% of all traffic deaths last year, that is, on average someone is killed in an alcohol-impaired driving crash every 45 minutes in the U.S. (Source: NHTSA/FARS, 2009)


I'll get off my soapbox now.

*I have to close this window to double check the stats and then come back and edit.

 

[GoingNorth]

Fran, I wish I could've "spoken" with you before you got the van. Chrysler vans are NOTORIOUS for transmission problems and have been for many years (so have some of their cars)

 

[judi]

Well, they are now questioning the veracity of that man's claim that his accelerator was stuck.

My husband drives a 2006 Prius and I have a 2008 Highlander Hybrid.

No problems ever! We both drive a lot - I have 70k on my SUV and its only 2 years old.

Think its an isolated incident (if it happened at all).

 

[Fran]

GN, I have heard that since I bought it but it is the only one that the seats fold into the floor which work for the dogs on a road trip. Both transmissions issues and the massive leak in the moon roof have been repaired on the dealers' dime. So I'm plugging along. If I have another transmission problem I will dump it. I can't afford to be traveling and have it lock up again. Thanks for the input.

by the way, we got a used lincoln (first lincoln) and we absolutely love it. It's a great small SUV(similar to a Ford explorer) but it is surprisingly wonderful. I'd buy another one if they still made them.

 

[GoingNorth]

Fran, I'm glad at least that so far the repairs have been on the dealer's dime. My late father in law was a former gov't employee and we used to get Plymouths at auctions to use as second cars.

Back in the nineties, when we needed a van to haul cats to cat shows, we were already warned off the Chrysler vans. Instead we got a Ford Winstar that while it had a good tranny, had a bad electrical system and leaked around the windshield.

 

[totoro]

I love my Toyota Sienna that we bought in Indiana and was made in Indiana.
Most of my husband's family grew up in Northern Indiana working in the steel industry and watched the Automotive Industry get worse and worse... most of us can think of many many reasons why.
Part of the reason Steel Plants in Northern Indiana and Illinois have shut down or had to stop production is because of the American Car Industry.

I don't care where my car is from as long as it is well made. I met a few guys who worked in the Toyota plant in IN they liked it much better than their GM jobs.