A tearful Toyota president Akio Toyoda formally apologized for deadly auto defects that have driven the world’s top carmaker into crisis, and vowed to rebuild shattered global faith in the firm.
“I am deeply sorry,” Toyoda on Wednesday contritely told angry US lawmakers in English at the outset of more than three hours of tough questioning sure to shape the fate of the global empire his grandfather founded 70 years ago.
After stoically facing the grilling from lawmakers, Toyoda showed the stress of the crisis when addressing a handful of the 178,000 people who the firm says are linked to Toyota and its dealerships across North America.
PHOTO: REUTERS
“At the hearing, I was not alone,” Toyoda told them, his voice straining with emotion, “you and your colleagues across America, around the world, were there with me.”
“Words cannot express my gratitude,” he said struggling to keep his composure.
Toyota has said it will now overhaul its quality control measures, placing greater weight on views of consumers and non-Japanese experts than in the past, creating a new US safety post, and requiring its executives to do test drives, he said.
And it will, before the end of this year, install a system in all new North American vehicles that allows a brake signal to the engine to override an accelerator signal, said a top Toyoda deputy, Yoshimi Inaba.
Toyoda stressed his personal connection to overhauling the Japanese auto giant, telling the House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Government Reform: “My name is on every car.”
“You have my personal commitment that Toyota will work vigorously and unceasingly to restore the trust of our customers,” he said.
Three US congressional panels have launched investigations into incidents of sudden unintended acceleration blamed for nearly 40 US deaths and tied to the recall of some 8 million Toyota vehicles worldwide.
Lawmakers and some drivers who survived Toyota crashes have charged the auto giant with ignoring complaints and incorrectly blaming accidents on floor mats that jam accelerators or on sticky pedals, while ignoring possible electronic problems.
Toyoda, who switched to Japanese to answer lawmakers’ questions and sat mostly stonefaced through the ordeal, said through an interpreter he was “absolutely confident” electronics were not the root of the problem.
Democratic Representative Marcy Kaptur denounced what she called “sudden-death acceleration” and demanded “where’s the remorse?”
“To some degree it seems like we’re having a hanging before the trial,” said Republican Representative Mark Souder, adding: “I’m not saying you’re not guilty” but that “there’s a lot yet to be decided.”
Representatives sharply criticized US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) regulators, saying they had reacted sluggishly to the problem despite nearly 1,000 complaints.
Toyoda’s testimony was carried live on Japanese TV.
Highlighting the high stakes of Toyoda’s appearance, Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama said after the grilling that he expected the firm “to pay full attention to safety and to keep improving what must be improved because it concerns people’s lives.”
He had earlier told reporters in Tokyo that Toyota would regain trust, “without making this issue a major economic problem between Japan and the United States.”
US Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood told angry lawmakers Toyoda’s appearance was a “game-changer” that showed the world No. 1 automaker was no longer “safety deaf” to overseas complaints and concerns.
Toyoda, 53, blamed a “too quick” expansion by Toyota, which dethroned General Motors in 2008 as the world’s top automaker, for slipping safety standards and said he felt the crisis personally.
“For me, when the cars are damaged, it is as though I am as well. I, more than anyone, wish for Toyota’s cars to be safe and for our customers to feel safe,” he said.
In Japan, Transport Minister Seiji Maehara announced a probe of Toyota’s issues with the sudden spikes in speed but stressed that “Toyota does not receive more complaints than other carmakers,” considering its market share.
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