What a difference a year makes. As the otherwise dismal 2009 got under way for the auto industry, it looked like Toyota, the new global sales leader, was in the driver’s seat. But 12 months later, the hobbled Japanese giant is looking a lot more like the walking wounded.
Few could have anticipated the problems that have befallen the Japanese maker, which ended 2009 with a record recall that was expanded in January, leaving millions of customers waiting for word on when they can get potentially sticky gas pedals repaired.
With Toyota’s reputation for building safe, reliable vehicles in tatters, competitors have taken aim, hoping to gain lost ground. Among the makers who see an opportunity to take market share from their Asian nemesis are General Motors, Ford and South Korea’s Hyundai.
Toyota on Tuesday reported a 16 percent drop in U.S. sales last month, posting its worst result in 12 years, after taking the highly unusual step of halting sales on eight models with the defective part. GM and Ford were among the brands that posted double-digit gains in January.
