Crisis Management Experts Eye Toyota
By ED DEVLIN, CBCP
There’s an old expression, “Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it” (attributed to George Santayana). I couldn’t help but think of that saying when I read a headline in my Jan. 28 hometown news-
paper, which read: “Toyota’s reputation for quality tarnished by
a defect.”
The article went on to review the issue Toyota was dealing
with regarding “sudden acceleration.” Toyota has been trying to
determine why accelerator pedals become stuck. There are con-
cerns that this problem has been the cause of a number of acci-
dents, even some deaths. First, Toyota said that accelerator pedals
could become lodged under floor mats, causing sudden accelera-
tion. Now, Toyota is saying that the actual gas pedal mechanism is
causing the accelerator to become stuck regardless of whether the
vehicle contains a floor mat. Toyota said, “In certain rare cases,
the gas pedal mechanism wears down, causing the accelerator to
become harder to press, slower to return or, in some cases, stuck.”
In a letter to federal safety officials, Toyota said the problem
appeared to be related to the potential build-up of condensation
on sliding surfaces in the accelerator system that helps drivers
push down or release the gas pedal.”
Toyota spokesperson John Hanson said the automaker does
not yet have a solution to the latest problem but is working to
develop one. Hanson said the company is unaware of any acci-
dents or injuries due to the gas pedal problems associated with
the recent recall, but could not rule it out for sure. He said the
recall “came together very quickly,” and said Toyota will soon be
contacting owners directly about the matter.
Why did I start the article with Santayana’s quote? The quote
reminded me of the “Audi sudden acceleration crisis” of 1986.
Twenty years ago, an automaker experienced a similar situation, its auto was accused of “sudden acceleration.”
“The Audi 5000 had been an automotive success story.
Between the time of its introduction in 1978, the car
was the flagship model for Audi’s American distributor,
Volkswagen of America. In fact U.S. sales more than
doubled by 1985. Then Audi 5000 drivers complained
that the car would accelerate, often with devastating
results. The accidents have been strikingly similar. The
car idles normally in the “park” position, but when the
automatic transmission is shifted into “drive” or “reverse,”
the car suddenly accelerates without warning. Drivers try
braking, but the car fails to stop before hitting cars, trees,
walls, or people. Despite the growing number of accidents
blamed on the Audi’s sudden acceleration, Audi AG -- the
West German affiliate of Volkswagen that makes the Audi
5000 – has steadfastly denied that the car is defective”
(from an article in May 1987 by Thomas Walthen).
Instead of letting the owners of the Audi 5000 know that the
manufacturer was investigating the issue to determine the facts,
instead of telling their story as they discovered the facts, and
of fixing the problem should they have found any, they took an
aggressive position. They responded by consistently blaming the
cars’ drivers for the mishaps. They lost customers’ confidence.
When a company loses their customers and prospects confidence,
they’re going to lose sales.
A headline in the Jan. 31 edition of the Philadelphia Inquirer
said, “Toyota to start shipping parts to fix gas pedals. Toyota has
recalled 4. 2 million vehicles worldwide because the gas pedal
systems can get stuck. The company said the problem is rare and
is caused by condensation that builds up in the gas pedal assem-
bly. Toyota said that not all the models listed in the recall have
the faulty gas pedals, which were made by CTS Corp. of Elkhart,
Ind., Models in Japan, and some models built in the U.S., have
pedal systems made by another parts supplier, Denso Corp. which
function well.”
As I write this column, a question comes to mind, “How will
crisis management experts grade Toyota’s efforts in handling the
gas pedal crisis?”
More importantly to Toyota, how will their customers (includ-
ing my wife and me) look at their products in the future?
v
Ed Devlin, CBCP, has provided business recovery planning consulting services since 1973
when he co-founded Devlin Associates. Since then, Devlin has assisted more than 300
companies in the writing of their business recovery plans and has made more than 800
seminars and presentations worldwide.
