Toyota holds top spot as the world's top automaker

The world's biggest automaker continues to achieve, despite setbacks 

The AP announced yesterday, that Toyota sold 8.42 million vehicles globally in 2010, narrowly remaining the world's top automaker ahead of General Motors amid recall woes in the key North American market.


GM also released a new tally Monday for its global 2010 sales, at 8.39 million vehicles, slightly fewer than Toyota's number. Toyota Motor Corp. dethroned General Motors as the world's No. 1 automaker in worldwide vehicle sales in 2008 - a position GM held for nearly eight decades. 


How has Toyota been so successful? 


Toyota spokesman Paul Nolasco says, it's because "Our objective is to become No. 1 with the customers." Back in 1957, when Toyota opened its first American car dealership, Ford and Chevy dominated the market. Now, more than 50 year later, Toyota has earned top marks from experts and customers alike for quality and innovation.


Last week, U.S. News asked David McGee, author of How Toyota Became #1, to highlight some of the reasons for Toyota's success. McGee stated that Toyota has achieved long-strides in long-term planning by not responding to trends, fads, or quarterly numbers. When the Toyota Hybrid debuted ten years ago, a gallon of gas cost a mere $1.50, but the iconic hybrid, of course, turned out to be a breakthrough vehicle, and Toyota sold its 1 millionth Prius in early 2008.

Toyota is also studiously speedy and can move a product to market faster than almost all of its competitors. But only once it decides to build the car after  throughly exhausting research, and after making sure that all the major stakeholders agree on a course of action. 

The recalls

But how has Toyota remained on top, amid the recall of some 10 million cars from 2008 - 2010? During the recall crisis, Toyota was criticized as being slow in responding, but its image largely held up outside the U.S. 


Toyota's global sales, including truckmaker Hino Motors Ltd. and Daihatsu Motor Co., which makes small cars, rose 8 percent from 2009, driven by solid sales growth in China and other Asian nations, the Japanese manufacturer said. 


In December, Toyota agreed to pay $32.4 million in fines to the U.S. government to settle the investigation into its handling of two recalls. The latest settlement was on top of the $16.4 million fine Toyota paid earlier. 


So how will Toyota remain on top in 2011? 
We can only wait and see. 

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