Toyota Sets New Assault On GM's Top Spot

Says It Will Seek To Eclipse GM In '08 As Biggest Seller -- If It Hasn't Already

(AP)  Toyota plans to sell 9.85 million vehicles worldwide in 2008, the company said Tuesday, setting an ambitious target despite worries about a slowing U.S. market, as it tries to become the world's top automaker.

Toyota also said it plans to produce 9.95 million vehicles worldwide next year, up 5 percent from this year - the same as the projected annual percentage jump for Toyota's global sales.

Its recent growth has put Toyota Motor Corp. on track to beat General Motors to become the world's largest automaker by sales. GM has said it estimates this year's sales to total 9.3 million vehicles, against Toyota's estimate of 9.36 million sales.

Toyota's growth been based in large part on the popularity of models such as the Camry sedan, Corolla subcompact and the Prius gas-electric hybrid.

Soaring gas prices have dramatically boosted the appeal of smaller, fuel-efficient models that are Toyota's main strength.

General Motors Corp. has been fiercely fighting back, boosting its overseas business, and could still keep the top industry spot, which it has held for 76 years.

GM has not given a forecast for the number of vehicles it expects to produce or sell in 2008. The Detroit automaker has the industry record for annual global vehicle sales, with the 9.55 million vehicles sold by GM in 1978.

Toyota executives on Tuesday acknowledged worries about the U.S. market, which has been hit by the subprime mortgage crisis and soaring oil prices. But they nonetheless projected increasing U.S. sales by 1 percent to 2.64 million vehicles.

They were also bullish about prospects for emerging markets such as China, Russia and South America, while being conservative expectations for Europe, at a 2 percent increase to 1.27 million vehicles, and seeing sales in Japan remain flat at 1.6 million next year.

But Koji Endo, auto analyst with Credit Suisse in Tokyo, said next year will likely prove a challenge even for Toyota, as U.S. economic woes weigh on sales and profits.

But he said the overall optimism for sales growth was "reasonable," given Toyota's recent performance.

"These are targets Toyota is giving, not forecasts, and so they are reasonable," he said.

After the first nine months of this year, Toyota was - at 7.05 million vehicles sold worldwide - trailing GM's sales of 7.06 million vehicles for the same period. The final tally for this year's numbers won't be out until January next year.

GM's spokesman in Tokyo, Michihiro Yamamori, declined to comment, citing company policy to refrain from commenting on its rivals' targets.

Toyota also said it was preparing to start mass producing lithium-ion batteries for low-emission vehicles.

Lithium-ion batteries, already widely used in laptops and other gadgets, are smaller, yet more powerful than the nickel-metal hydride batteries now used in gas-electric hybrids such as the Prius.

Lithium-ion batteries will not be used in the Prius, on sale for a decade and the most popular hybrid on the market, according to Toyota.

The lithium-ion battery will be used in a plug-in hybrid, which would recharge from a regular home socket, and travel longer as an electric vehicle than the Prius. Toyota has started tests on its plug-in hybrid, but has not shown a model using the new battery.

Executive Vice President Masatami Takimoto, who oversees technology, said Toyota has developed the lithium-ion battery to a level that it is almost ready for mass production, although that won't start until sometime after next year.

Toyota President Katsuaki Watanabe said the hybrid will be a pillar of Toyota's growth in the years ahead, and he reiterated the plan to offer hybrid versions of all its models sometime after 2020.

As part of its strategy to be ecological and super-efficient in manufacturing - as well as with its products - Toyota will use solar energy and wind power to reduce global-warming emissions at what it called five "sustainable plants." The facility being built in Mississippi, set to be up and running in 2010, will be one such plant, Toyota said.

[slippy54]

I see a lot of people who say they have driven Japanese cars "for years and years". I used to be one of them until I took a chance and bought a GM product. I have been so pleased with it that I''ll buy another one next time. If you haven''t looked at a GM car or truck I suggest giving one a test drive- you might change your mind too.

[incog-nito]

Here''s an article with ratings by Consumer Reports:

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/03/01/business/NA-FIN-US-Auto-Reliability.php

[incog-nito]

cbscrash07: You''ve got to be kidding. Look at the initial quality ratings by J.D. Power:

http://www.jdpower.com/autos/ratings/brand-quality-ratings/1/1

Here are the dependability ratings:

http://www.jdpower.com/autos/ratings/dependability-ratings/1/1

I can cite other sources like Consumer Reports, etc. Loyalty is a good thing. Blind loyalty is not.

[Syndicate]

GM and Ford both build better cars than Toyota. Toyota recently lost their blanket Consumer Reports endorsement because of Quality concerns. It seems their transmissions can''t handle all the power consumers want. Ford and GM have been taking the top prizes for quality that normally go to Toyota the last few years.

[incog-nito]

When I was in college majoring in mechanical engineering, it was a well-known fact that the Japanese make better products. One reason is that they manufacture parts to a much smaller tolerance level, meaning that the parts fit better together. Another reason is that they use better material, better alloy metals in their engines, etc. so that the engines just wear out less and last longer. American cars have improved since my days in college, but so have the Japanese, and they continue to stay ahead.

[hypnotoad72]

Pity we can''t talk about the vandals who stole those 100lb xmas ornaments, but okay...

I wish GM made better cars. It''s not always as much as putting them together as it is making the core parts TO be put together...

[thgdriver]

I never had any complaints with my American cars Some GM some Ford, Some Chrysler. Mostly Mercury till about 8 years ago. Then I noticed the foreign cars were holding their value longer. My last two cars were Lexus and I am considering another. Take a look yourself, compare a four year old Cadillac against a Lincoln against a Lexus. New, they cost about the same but four years later the Lexus has them beat by a lot.

[olebd]

It''s luck of the draw these days because of the open global market. No matter what brand you buy, the parts and pieces come from all over the world and depending on the mood and morale of the assembly crew wherever the thing finally comes together, you may get a solid, reliable vehicle or you may get a vehicle with gremlins inside that looks, smells and tastes like a lemon. I have a Dodge truck right now that is terrible but have seen plenty of old Dodge trucks still rolling down the road.

[incog-nito]

Not to worry, GM will never go down. If necessary the taxpayer will pay for their bailout. Help for poor people = bad. Corporate welfare = good.

[rikedoid]

GM has the people (in the lower ranks anyway) to do a great job. Thier first target should be to dump their current management plus a number of divisions. They need to re-staff that area with educated forward thinkers, who have a mindset to make a decent, durable product and ante up when mistakes happen instead of stonewalling buyers. Forget all this incentive garbage, just do it up right and set intelligent price points. Finally abandon the practice of rewarding pathetic management non-accomplishments with millions of dollars and reinvest that in the company. What they are doing right now has moved this 25-year-loyal-GM-buyer over to...Toyota. The failures on the GM vehicles just didn''t let up, and while the dealerships have been accomodating, their hands are eventually tied by corporate - after all, the dealerships are not a charity. They are (when chosen carefully I might add, with emphasis) another example of good folks in the lower ranks.

[rowdytexan2]

I drove a Mercury Sable to the ground with close to 300,000 miles, one of the best cars I''ve ever owned. But I''ve also had a Mazda MPV that was a marvelous with almost as much mileage on it, till I backed it into a culbert and shoved the manifold into the engine.

Now I have a Mazda Miata that has been a super car! And so much fun to drive! Not a problem with it so far at 80,000 miles.

I''ve had two GM cars that leaked oil in the driveway after 50,000 miles. NEVER AGAIN!

[formrusmcsgt]

I bought a chevy in 1994. replaced the brakes and roters every 20,000 miles. I bought a Ford in 1998, replaced the brakes every 20,000 miles. I bought a toyota this year, lve it and have not had to replace the brakes. The american auto industry has done themselves in with greed.

Posted by liberalameri at 11:49 PM : Dec 25, 2007

You must be one of those who floorboards the gas when the light turns green and then screeches to a halt a block later at the next traffic light.

I bought a Silverado in 2000 and have 165,000 miles on the original pads and rotors....

[tbweb]

Toyota Sets New Assault On GM''s Top Spot

In the Global Economy there is no such thing as Japan(Toyota) versus U.S.(GM)! In the Global Economy its all about "Brand Names" which can technically include resources from anywhere in the World, material and people! I use to always buy American everything but thats a joke because American companies in most cases are buying "low" foreign and selling "high" in the U.S.! Even if you buy American computers and open them up most of the internal parts are from China or Taiwan anyway so why not save and buy directly from China or Taiwan yourself? The same is true with many automobiles which include cheap foreign parts and in most cases cheap foreign or illegal labor too. In the Global economy, buy American is a scam, its all about Brand Names! If you want Americans to make the profits and not foreigners thats a different story, but hardly anything is made in America these days and consumers are wising up and buying direct from a foreign source!

[usayesterday]

It won''t be hard for Toyota to accomplish that task of eclipsing GM.

As the U.S. "Big Three" automakers **** and moan about increased gas mileage standards by 2015, automakers like Toyota and Honda are going to meet that 35 mpg average (if they haven''t already), easily by 2015.

Smart consumers know that Toyota (and Honda) clearly build better cars that are more fuel efficient.

In the near future, GM will be known as the biggest company to file for complete closure bankruptcy in the world...

...and it all could have been prevented with just a little intelligence and foresight by the executives in charge.

[angelcat5]

Well, I don''t know-I certainly will not buy another Toyota. Within the first week of ownership I began to have problems- the ABS light came on ( and they needed to keep it to repair), the center console would not stay closed- repair- the visors split at the seems- repair- and this week I will have to bring it in to have the left quarter window replaced (convertible) since there is something down inside the door wearing the trim and metal off of it- overnight repair since they have to remove the whole back seat and left interior to get to it....so it drives fine. At least its under warranty. Oh and my personal favorite-they will rent me a car to use while the warranty work is being done, how nice.

The car has not held its value - trade in value is horrible.

I''ll go back to Honda or BMW -which I never should have left.

[bahhumbug07]

Good for Toyota! GM has been out of touch with the market for years, and its internal culture has refused to allow for the quality improvements that the market demands, even marginalizing (arguably killing) the Saturn brand in the process. Toyota, meanwhile, keeps doing the things which have made it a leader in the marketplace. For proof, one need only look at any auto issue of Consumer Reports for the last 25 years for an objective comparison.

When will General Motors finally listen??????

[harp1963]

Toyota and the Japanese invest and create more employment in America than our own business leaders do.

There''s something about slave labor in foreign countries that our American business leaders just love. American management doesn''t want anyone elses input because they are arrogant "know it alls" in many instances.

That''s why Toyota is "eating lunch" here in America. I''ve worked in factories my whole life on both sides of the fence. It''s a fact, the cocky arrogant people in leadership positions are allowed, by the lack of input, by the people actually doing the job, to make all kinds of mistakes.

The leaders who communicate well with subordinates and sincerely don''t talk down to them are helped and kept from making the dumb decisions. From what I''ve read, the Japanese truely, sincerely, and culturally honor the working man. This is like magic in the world of continuous improvement.

This paradim is why our President George Bush is the Engineer steering the largest train wreck of a Presidency in the history of America. His arrogancy and lack of true humility ruined him.