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Toyota overtakes GM to lead U.S. auto sales for 2021

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By John BIERS

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Congratulations! I bought a Toyota last November. Their cars keep getting better. The service has been great, too.

10 ( +11 / -1 )

No argument at all.Toyota reliability is legendary.

9 ( +9 / -0 )

The Camry and Corolla have always been big hits in the US followed by the LandCruiser and Lexus.

The Tesla fanboys have nothing to say about this achievement by Toyota.

Maybe Mr. Musk is too busy selling out to China.

Days after Tesla opened a Xinjiang store, White House press secretary Jen Psaki says private sector 'cannot look the other way' when it comes to human rights abuses of Uighur Muslims

https://www.yahoo.com/news/days-tesla-opened-xinjiang-store-011501539.html

8 ( +10 / -2 )

Absolutely no surprise.

Toyota is the best car maker in the world. Toyotas built today - gas and electric - will still be powering along the freeways in 20-30 years - while Teslas and GMs will be broken down alongside them! Toyotas are built to last - GM is built to be replaced after 5 years.

The Highlander SUV looks sensational!

7 ( +7 / -0 )

It's quite simple - in the 90s GM realized how much more profit they could turn if they began drastically reducing the quality of their vehicles.

Toyota has never really bought into the planned obsolescence that has ruined the reputation of US & Euro automakers, and they're beginning to reap the rewards.

6 ( +6 / -0 )

GREAT WORK TOYOTA.

5 ( +5 / -0 )

JayJan. 5  08:45 pm JST

It's quite simple - in the 90s GM realized how much more profit they could turn if they began drastically reducing the quality of their vehicles.

Toyota has never really bought into the planned obsolescence that has ruined the reputation of US & Euro automakers, and they're beginning to reap the rewards.

Planned obsolescence is a sick social phenomina in the US. It's just materialism and 'gotta have' In the 90s Americans have become materialistic, smug, petty yet obedient to the media gods who push everything on them. And they eat it all up. Them dumb yuppies just have to maintain their phony lives and everything is disposable. And that means your cars too.

5 ( +5 / -0 )

Toyota cars are much better, company managed much better while Toyota's execs, still very much overpaid, make far less than GM pig execs.

4 ( +6 / -2 )

Not surprising with gas being about $4/gallon now.

Chevy sells more pickups than cars in the US, as the article suggests. Lots of Americans (mostly men with mustaches) drive heavy duty trucks they don't really need, as the trucks are the frosting atop of the manly image they're trying to project, for the same reason they wear workbooks on days when they aren't at work.

I'm always amused at how many 3/4 ton trucks I see on the road without a tow hitch on the back... so then what the hell do they need that much power for if they aren't towing?

When gas gets this high, they start quietly changing their minds. We saw the same downgrading phenomenon a decade or so ago, both with the truck guys, and the soccer mom Karen-types with their monster 6.0L SUV's.

4 ( +4 / -0 )

I's quite simple - in the 90s GM realized how much more profit they could turn if they began drastically reducing the quality of their vehicles.

Perhaps I've missed the high quality GM vehicles over the decades? The last GM vehicle I road in repeated times was a 1970s Gremlin. A Govt vehicle provided to Dad. It was junk. A few friends had Chevy's which were much better than that Gremlin.

I've test drove a number of Toyotas, but haven't been THAT impressed. They seem utilitarian - like the Japanese version of GM. Lexus rides were nice, but seemed spartan inside. Nearly bought a Toyota during college, but ended up with a Ford.

Most of the family drives either Toyotas or Hondas. Hondas in the US aren't the same as what seems to be sold in Japan. I drive a 21 yr old Acura. Could have bought any popular car at the time - looked at Nissan, Toyota, Lexus, Honda, Mitsubishi, Ford, Subaru, Mazda cars at the time. When my current vehicle needs to be replaced (still getting over 30mpg with a 6-cyl), Honda, Mazda, Subaru will be on my short list, if I don't just switch to uber transportation modes and car rentals as needed.

A 2013 Tesla owner was told that his car issues needed all new batteries to fix - for $23K. Rather than do that, he blew up the car. https://driving.ca/auto-news/entertainment/tesla-owner-blows-up-his-2013-model-s-after-seeing-repair-bill Musk said all those years ago that they planned to make a complete battery swap as fast as performing a fuel fill up (so 10 minutes). That hasn't happened.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

We don't need more cars !

Sigh. Only a city dweller could say something like that. The closest subway to me is about 150 miles away. The closest passenger train station is about 85 miles away but it only goes south from there. To go north by train I have to drive or take multiple busses 105 miles to the west of us over mountain passes to catch a different train. We have bus service to the nearest town three days a week. From that town you can get more buses to bigger cities, but again to get there you can only do so on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. No buses on the weekends. You are also talking two hours to travel the same distance one covers in one hour in their car. There is no schedule bus service within our town. Someone living in a big dense city might be able to get by without a car but if you live in an outlying area far from any big cities or even the next town then you need a car of some sort. I don't see that changing in my lifetime.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

Toyota's and Honda's are great cars I can recall when it was reported that Japan was going to be a economic world power and then the bubble burst. Lets not get to boisterous here because all of the cars aren't made in Japan they are assembled in the US also with a Toyota name on it. If Americans decided to buy GM cars then what! I'm just saying lets enjoy the feat but not get to boisterous. Righto!!!

2 ( +2 / -0 )

Both of ours must be duds because that has not been my experience.

That’s because they were made in the US. Probably assembled on a Monday morning or Friday afternoon.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

The article refers many times to the critical shortage of computer-chips / semi-conductors, without explaining how this situation has come about - would have been useful to reveal the source of the problems here.....

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Let’s not forget that US models, excluding Lexus, are designed and built in the US. The quality of fit and and service isn’t the same as in Japan. Dealers probably make more money from fixing broken down cars than selling them now.

But its better than the competition and that’s all that counts.

Look at Cadillac. Lots are empty of inventory and who buys a Cadillac anymore?

When you’re running from a bear, you don’t have to be the fastest. Only faster than one guy.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

 The last GM vehicle I road in repeated times was a 1970s Gremlin. A Govt vehicle provided to Dad. It was junk. 

The Gremlin was not a GM vehicle. It was American Motors Corporation, (AMC) who also made the Pacer, Matador and Jeep.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

The Gremlin was not a GM vehicle. It was American Motors Corporation, (AMC) who also made the Pacer, Matador and Jeep.

A Gremlin was basically a shortened AMC Hornet. Not a bad car at all since it was built on the chassis of a larger heavier car. By comparison to its peers of the day it was sturdy and reliable. Its contemporaries the Chevrolet Vega and Ford Pinto were pretty awful. The Gremlin at least had a smooth 6 cyl engine where the Vega (Vegamatic) and Pinto had thrashy and crude four bangers. There was a funny TV add for Gremlins when they first came out where a young lady pulls up to a gas station and this wise cracking pump jockey in a t-shirt and jeans walks around her car and asks in a sort of east coast accent "eh Toots, whadappend to da rest a ya cah?"

1 ( +1 / -0 )

The Camry and Corolla have always been big hits in the US followed by the LandCruiser and Lexus.

2021 was the last year the Land Cruiser was sold in the US. The J200 didn't sell so the US won't receive the new J300 Land Cruiser. The US will have to satisfy itself with the Sequoia.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

The Gremlin was not a GM vehicle. It was American Motors Corporation, (AMC) who also made the Pacer, Matador and Jeep.

I mistakenly thought AMC was bought by GM. It was Chrysler, not GM.

My mistake.

Came across this list a few minutes ago in a fresh post:

Here Are the Top 10 Most Reliable Car Brands (in the US)

Ranking / Vehicle BrandAverage Score

Lexus 76

Mazda 75

Toyota 71

Infiniti 69

Buick 66

Honda 66

Subaru 66

Acura 64

Nissan 63

Mini 60

Source: https://clark.com/cars/most-reliable-car-brands/ which refers to Consumer Reports.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

No argument at all. Toyota reliability is legendary.

Both of ours must be duds because that has not been my experience. Defective coils (6 coils at $106 each plus 5.5 hours of labor to replace the rear coils, had to remove the whole intake, wipers, wiper motor and the mounting deck), blend door actuators fail (dashboard and center console disassembly), MAF and O2 sensors fail (remove the center console again and pull up the carpet to get at the wires running through the floor), little cheap plastic parts on window regulators fail allowing the window to drop, central door locks stop working (or turn the alarm on if you unlock the door with the key instead of the fob that died and requires over $100 to replace). Routine service is unnecessarily difficult and every time you take it to a shop it ends up costing over $1000. Can't replace rear wheel bearings, you have to replace the whole hub. Stupid!

-1 ( +2 / -3 )

That’s because they were made in the US. Probably assembled on a Monday morning or Friday afternoon.

Their fundamental designs are awful. They are made, like so many Japanese cars and motorcycles, to be easy to manufacture but almost no thought is given to making them serviceable afterwards. This is not something confined to Toyota but it seems an across the board problem of Japanese cars and motorcycles.

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

FYI, this cannot be kept because of Toyota's lagging electrification.

For example, GM is set to go all electric by 2035.

Chrysler is pledging to go all electric by 2028.

Hyundai announced the closure of entire gasoline powerplant development department to go all electric and already manufactures the trio of highest rated award winning EVs, Ionic5/EV6/Genesis GV60.

Where will Toyota be in terms of electrification by 2030, the year when automakers are required to sell half of units in EVs in the US?

-5 ( +2 / -7 )

We don't need more cars !

-6 ( +0 / -6 )

yah who cares about that ugaly car

-9 ( +1 / -10 )

Where will Toyota be in terms of electrification by 2030, the year when automakers are required to sell half of units in EVs in the US?

Toyota will go Chinese for EV. This is ironic for Japanese ultranationalists.

https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/exclusive-toyota-turns-chinese-tech-reach-its-electric-holy-grail-2021-12-02/

GM is going to be dominant in the EV in the future.

-9 ( +0 / -9 )

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