Many Toyota owners tout brand despite recall

Carolyn Said, Chronicle Staff Writer

Tuesday, February 2, 2010

Even as Toyota finally announced a fix for the huge recall that has dented its once-pristine reputation, Bay Area Toyota owners largely said they're unfazed by the situation

"I'm not upset; I've had four Toyotas and they all lasted beyond 250,000 miles," said Elaine Hui of Alameda, who was waiting for an oil change on her 10-year-old minivan at dealership One Toyota of Oakland on Monday. "I will never go to another brand; I'm a faithful customer."

Toyota on Monday said it is shipping replacement parts to dealers to repair the sticky gas pedals that could cause cars to accelerate unintentionally. That problem last week forced the company to recall 2.3 million cars, halt sales of eight popular models and take the extraordinary step of halting production at most of its North American factories. The recall came several months after Toyota first received reports of the problem. Congress plans hearings to investigate the delay.

Loyal consumers

"This is embarrassing for us to have this kind of recall," said Jim Lentz, president of U.S. Toyota sales, in a conference call with reporters on Monday. "But it doesn't mean we lost our edge on quality."

Consumers seemed to agree, as more than a dozen people responding to an informal Chronicle e-mail survey said they still trust Toyota and will stick with the brand - with the significant exception of people who actually had experienced a problem.

"I think the hysteria over the recall is getting out of hand," wrote Claire Horn of Tiburon. "I own a 2006 Toyota Highlander whose gas pedal has never misbehaved. In fact, I love the car."

But analysts and automotive experts were harder to convince.

"On the communications side, Toyota didn't live up to its standards," said Rik Paul, automotive editor of Consumer Reports in Yonkers, N.Y. On Friday, the magazine, which has long championed Toyota vehicles for their performance and reliability, temporarily suspended its recommendations for the eight recalled cars. "There was so much confusion surrounding this on both the consumer and dealer level that fed into consumer fears. That probably hurt their reputation as much as the defective part."

Some lose trust

Customers who had experienced problems said they had lost trust in Toyota.

Aaron Bennett drives his 2008 Prius 40 miles each way from his home in Cloverdale in Sonoma County to Navarro Vineyards, the business he co-owns in Philo (Mendocino County). Last summer, he experienced "sudden and unexpected acceleration while passing on a two-lane highway," he said.

He was able to stop by pushing hard on the brakes and pulling off to the side of the road. His dealership insisted there were no mechanical problems, he said. The Prius was involved in an earlier Toyota recall for a problem with floor mats trapping the accelerator; it is not involved in the current recall.

"It has certainly affected my decision to purchase a Toyota again," Bennett said. "I feel that both recalls are red herrings for a larger issue they either can't figure out or are unwilling to own up to."

Dealers, who of course depend on Toyota for their bread and butter, said their customers remain loyal.

"Most people have been very understanding and know that Toyota is still a good company," said John Horton, owner of San Francisco Toyota, and a 40-year veteran of selling and servicing the cars. "I haven't talk to anybody that's freaked out." Of 300 cars on his lot, 90 are currently segregated because of the recall.

Brad Barnett, general manager and co-owner of One Toyota of Oakland, a gigantic dealership that opened for business on Monday, after buying and rehabbing its site near the Oakland Coliseum and hiring more than 100 workers, said he sees the current situation as an opportunity.

Making things right

"I know Toyota will do everything they can to make sure the customers are taken care of," he said. "We expect a field technical supervisor to train the (mechanics) probably this week. We have 51 bays so have a lot of capability - technicians, space, time - to help people quickly and efficiently. We only have 68 vehicles out of 300 that are on the stop sale list."

Michelle Kreb, a senior analyst in Detroit with car-buying site Edmunds.com, said she expects Toyota's sales - which will be announced today - to suffer a significant impact.

"We think their market share will be the lowest since 2006," she said. "As long as the stop sale continues, we think they'll lose about 75 percent of their sales. It won't be lifted all of a sudden one day but just as dealers fix those models in their inventory."

Toyota recall

For information about the gas pedal recall, go to www.toyota.com/recall or call (800) 331-4331.

Toyota says car owners should wait to call their dealers until they receive a letter from the company. Owners experiencing accelerator issues should call immediately. Toyota recommends firm, steady pressure on the brakes - not pumping them - in the event the accelerator sticks.

The vehicles affected are North America-manufactured 2009-2010 RAV4, 2009-2010 Corolla, 2007-2010 Camry, 2010 Highlander (RAV4, Corolla, Camry and Highlander vehicles with vehicle identification numbers beginning with "J" were made in Japan and are not affected by the recall); and all 2009-2010 Matrix, 2005-2010 Avalon, 2007-2010 Tundra, 2008-2010 Sequoia.