Page 174 - Toyota Under Fire

RESPONSE AND THE ROAD TO RECOVER Y

all of Toyota’s quality processes and provide feedback on any gaps
or areas where quality practice could be improved. A former sec-
retary of transportation in the Clinton administration, Rodney
Slater, was tapped to lead this committee.
Of course, Toyota also had to be concerned about sales of its
vehicles and the financial health of its dealers. On top of the finan-
cial help that it offered dealers to help them with recalls and the
week of stopped sales, Toyota launched its largest sales incentive
program in history in March and April, according to Edmunds
.com. The average incentive on a vehicle moved from $1,700 to
$2,400, a 40 percent increase (still about 40 percent below the in-
dustry average). The main differences were zero percent financing
and two years of free scheduled maintenance, covering items that
are normally not covered (such as oil changes). Those incentives
helped to bring people back into the dealerships. Edmunds.com’s
Jeremy Anwyl notes, “People bought into the story that Toyotas
were on sale, and that doesn’t happen very often. That brought
a lot of people in—people who didn’t believe there was a serious
problem. Obviously if you don’t think a car is safe, it doesn’t mat-
ter how much money you’re offered. You’re not going to buy it.”

Getting ahead of the Story
The cliché prescription for crisis containment is to “get out in front
of the story.” Certainly Toyota wasn’t in front of the story as it was
reacting to the crisis in late January and early February. However,
several events at the end of February and the beginning of March
that at first seemed to further the negative story around Toyota
actually helped to turn the tide for the company. First, in late Feb-
ruary, ABC News broadcast a story on the eve of the congressio-
nal hearings that featured Southern Illinois University Professor
David Gilbert, one of the witnesses at the hearings. During the

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