HISTORY OF TOYOTA

The Toyota Motor Company received its first Japanese Quality Control Award at the start of the 1980s
and began participating in a wide variety of motorsports. Due to the 1973 oil crisis, consumers in the
lucrative US market began turning to small cars with better fuel economy. American car manufacturers
had considered small economy cars to be an "entry level" product, and their small vehicles employed a
low level of quality in order to keep the price low.

By the early sixties, the US had begun placing stiff import tariffs on certain vehicles. The Chicken tax of
1964 placed a 25% tax on imported light trucks.[31] In response to the tariff, Toyota, Nissan Motor Co. and
Honda Motor Co. began building plants in the US by the early eighties.[31]

In 1982, the Toyota Motor Company and Toyota Motor Sales merged into one company, the Toyota
Motor Corporation. Two years later, Toyota entered into a joint venture with General Motors called
NUMMI, the New United Motor Manufacturing, Inc, operating an automobile-manufacturing plant in
Fremont, California. The factory was an old General Motors plant that had been closed for two years.
Toyota then started to establish new brands at the end of the 1980s, with the launch of their luxury
division Lexus in 1989.

In the 1990s, Toyota began to branch out from producing mostly compact cars by adding many larger and
more luxurious vehicles to its lineup, including a full-sized pickup, the T100 (and later the Tundra);
several lines of SUVs; a sport version of the Camry, known as the Camry Solara; and the Scion brand, a
group of several affordable, yet sporty, automobiles targeted specifically to young adults. Toyota also
began production of the world's best-selling hybrid car, the Prius, in 1997.

With a major presence in Europe, due to the success of Toyota Team Europe, the corporation decided to
set up TMME, Toyota Motor Europe Marketing & Engineering, to help market vehicles in the continent.
Two years later, Toyota set up a base in the United Kingdom, TMUK, as the company's cars had become
very popular among British drivers. Bases in Indiana, Virginia and Tianjin were also set up. In 1999, the
company decided to list itself on the New York and London Stock Exchanges.

Toyota Deutschland's headquarters in Cologne

In 2001, Toyota's Toyo Trust and Banking merged to form the UFJ, United Financials of Japan, which
was accused of corruption by the Japan's government for making bad loans to alleged Yakuza crime
syndicates with executives accused of blocking Financial Service Agency inspections. [32] The UFJ was
listed among Fortune Magazine's largest money-losing corporations in the world, with Toyota's chairman
serving as a director.[33] At the time, the UFJ was one of the largest shareholders of Toyota. As a result of
Japan's banking crisis, the UFJ was merged again to become Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group.

In 2002, Toyota managed to enter a Formula One works team and establish joint ventures with French
motoring companies Citroën and Peugeot a year after Toyota started producing cars in France.

Toyota ranked eighth on Forbes 2000 list of the world's leading companies for the year 2005. [34] The
company was number one in global automobile sales for the first quarter of 2008. [35]

On December 7, 2004, a US press release was issued stating that Toyota would be offering Sirius Satellite
Radios. However, as late as January 27, 2007, Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite radio kits were not
available for Toyota factory radios.[citation needed] While the press release enumerated nine models, only
limited availability existed at the dealer level in the US. As of 2008, all Toyota and Scion models have
either standard or available XM radio kits. Major Lexus dealerships have been offering satellite radio kits
for Lexus vehicles since 2005, in addition to factory-equipped satellite radio models.

In 2007, Toyota released an update of its full size truck, the Tundra, produced in two American factories,
one in Texas and one in Indiana. "Motor Trend" named the Tundra "Truck of the Year," and the 2007
Toyota Camry "Car of the Year" for 2007. It also began the construction of two new factories, one to
build the RAV4 in Woodstock, Ontario, Canada and the other to build the Toyota Prius in Blue Springs,
Mississippi, USA. This plant was originally intended to build the Toyota Highlander, but Toyota decided
to use the plant in Princeton, Indiana, USA, instead. The company has also found recent success with its
smaller models—the Corolla and Yaris—as gas prices have risen rapidly in the last few years.

186
Birth of Sakichi Toyoda
7
192
Sakichi Toyoda invents Toyoda Model G Automatic Loom
4
192
Automatic-loom patent is sold to a British company
9
193
Kiichiro Toyoda begins research on small gasoline-powered engine
0
193
Automobile Department is established at Toyoda Automatic Loom Works, Ltd.
3
193
The Toyoda precepts are compiled
5
193
The AA Sedan is completed
6
193
Toyota Motor Co., Ltd. is established
7
193
Honsha Plant begins production
8
195
Company faces a financial crisis; Toyota Motor Sales Co., Ltd. is established
0
195
Suggestion System is begun
1
195
The Toyopet Crown, Toyopet Master and Crown Deluxe are launched
5
195 The first prototypes of the Crown are exported to the USA Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A., Inc. is
7 established
195
Motomachi Plant begins production
9
196
Joint Declaration of Labor and Management is signed
2
196
Toyota wins the Deming Application Prize for quality control
5
196
The Corolla is launched Business tie-up with Hino Motors Ltd. begins
6
196
Business tie-up with Daihatsu Motor Co., Ltd. begins
7
197
Toyota Foundation is established
4
197
The prefabricated housing business begins
5
198
Toyota Motor Co., Ltd. and Toyota Motor Sales Co., Ltd. are merged into Toyota Motor Corporation
2
198
Joint venture with GM (NUMMI) begins production in the USA
4
198
Toyota Motor Manufacturing, USA, Inc. (present TMMK) begins production
8
198
The Lexus brand is launched in the USA
9
199
Toyota Motor Manufacturing (UK) Ltd. begins production
2
199
The Prius is launched as the world first mass-produced hybrid car
7
199
Cumulative domestic production reaches 100 million vehicles
9
200
Sichuan Toyota Motor Co., Ltd. begins production in China
0
200
Toyota Motor Manufacturing France S.A.S. begins production in France
1
200 Toyota enters Formula One World Championship Tianjin Toyota Motor Co., Ltd. begins production
2 in China
200
The Toyota Partner Robot is publicly unveiled
4
200
The Lexus brand is introduced in Japan
5
200 Worldwide Prius sales top 1-million mark
8

Toyota Manufacturing - Organisational Structure

Meaning of Toyota
The name Toyota therefore came from the name Toyoda. Toyoda is a family name and Toyota was
therefore the business name. In Japanese, it takes 10 strokes to write "Toyoda" and 8 strikes to
write "Toyota” so it is easier. Also, in Japanese, eight is a lucky number because the kanji used to
write eight has the meaning of endless. By using the name "Toyota", Kiichiro Toyoda was
expressing his hope for endless possibilities for his new company. And so far he and his spirits seem
to be achieving exactly what he sought to achieve.

BRAND EQUITY

Two events transpired yesterday that will further drain Toyota's diminishing brand
equity. NBC alone -- between Brian Williams' Nightly News and Matt Lauer's report on this
morning's Today show -- dedicated more than 6 minutes in the lead positions to the 'runaway
Prius' in San Diego. 

I believe this incident becomes a game-changer in this ongoing story. To hear the 9-1-1 tape, to
'feel' the fear in the voice of James Sikes in this 'near death' experience, creates a far more
visceral connection than we've had up to this point. This is every driver's worst nightmare.

And could Williams have delivered a more lethal blow than he did at the end of the story as he
tossed it back to reporter Phil LeBeau: "In plain English, after seeing a report like ours tonight,
who's going to come in and say 'I want one of those?'"

LeBeau, in turn, estimated the financial damage to Toyota to be in excess of $5 billion -- sure
makes that $100 million that Toyota's 'Safety Group' reported saving in recall parameters (see
below) look like small change.
Here in Minnesota, KARE-TV, the NBC affiliate. carried a tearful interview of a young man
who has served 2 1/2 years of an 8-year sentence he received for killing three motorists when he
plowed into them while driving a Toyota. He always maintained that his brakes inexplicably
failed, but 'expert wintness' testimony helped convince the jury otherwise. Now, Juror #6 has
come forward and publicly supported a re-trial.

I believe Toyota is now fighting for its very survival. Up to this point, the story has focused
largely on negligence, with the acknowledgement that all automakers have recalls. Now, the
inability to properly repair affected cars raises the issue of competency: simply put, can Toyota
build and maintain a safe car? That now becomes the central question. And there can be no more
fundamental -- and devastating -- question to ask of an automaker.

I closed my original blog with a metaphor of brand equity being like a piggy bank -- always open
for deposits and withdrawals. Well folks, this little piggy is shrinking quickly. Another 24 hours
like this and we may be down to a couple strips of bacon.

BRAND LAUNCHES

TOYOTA KIRLOSKAR Motor launched the latest generation of Prius in India at the Auto
Expo 2010 in New Delhi on January 7. The Altis CNG was also launched along with Innova
CNG and Camry Hybrid were put on display to lend further emphasis to Toyota’s
commitment to the environment.
 
Speaking to the media about this latest launch, Mr. Sandeep Singh, DMD-Marketing, TKM
said: “Through the launch of the Prius, Toyota is keen to demonstrate its commitment to
offer the latest eco-friendly automotive technology to its customers in India. Since
becoming the world’s first mass-produced hybrid vehicle in 1997, the Prius has received
worldwide acclaim, the Prius today is the most successful hybrid in the world with
cumulative sales of nearly 1.5 million. We will continue to popularize environmentally
friendly vehicles in India to further our efforts to help save the environment.

The word prius in Latin means ‘to go before.’ The car stands true to its name. It comes
equipped with the latest technology Toyota Hybrid System II (also called Hybrid Synergy
Drive). The car also gives world-leading fuel efficiency, thanks to its excellent aerodynamic
performance.
The third generation Prius comes with three driving modes – Power, Eco and Electric Vehicle
(EV). It is also loaded with a bevy of dynamic features that together make the car an
environment friendly pleasure.
 
Only a limited number of the Prius will be available in India. The two available variants will
be priced at 26.55 lakh and 27.86 lakh, ex showroom,

BRAND CAMPAIGN
  Campaign will leverage print, TV and online media
 Aims to establish an emotional connect with Indians
across states, cultures and languages
 To communicate Toyota's promise of Quality to its
customers across India

August 3rd, 2010 :- Toyota Kirloskar Motor announced today the launch of its brand new
corporate campaign Toyota 'Q' Promise. The Toyota 'Q' Promise (or Promise of Quality) is a
corporate brand-building initiative by Toyota in India, targeting consumers across the country,
and will run on print, online and TV media. An extension of Toyota's corporate message of
Quality Revolution, the campaign aims to reach out to and connect with the Indian masses, thus
reinforcing Brand Toyota across consumer segments.

Commenting on the campaign roll-out, Mr Sandeep Singh, Deputy Managing Director

(Marketing) TKM, said, "The Toyota 'Q' Promise campaign aims to build and sustain an
emotional connect with Indians across states, languages and cultures. In the run up to the launch
of our new compact car Etios late this year, we'd like to reiterate our promise of Quality in all we
do, be it our products, manufacturing systems, after-sales service, internal HR practices or CSR
initiatives. The emphasis will be on using cultural insights and local languages to create a long
term brand recall for Toyota, leveraging everyday relationships that involve trust and
commitment."

'Q' Promise is a holistic statement of Toyota's intent and commitment to the Indian people and
features five promises based on the following topics:

 Product and Manufacturing

 Safety
 Sales and Service
 Trust
 Employee welfare and skill development

The common creative element that runs through the campaign is a thread or 'dhaaga' - a symbol
of Toyota's commitment to every Indian. The thread is representative of Toyota's 'Customer First'
philosophy, which is at the core of all Toyota systems and products.

The duration of the campaign is from August to October 2010 and it will end in an eight page
insert in leading dailies across India.

BRAND ESSENCE

owever, there was an apparent discrepancy. There had been this wide, long-standing recognition
of Toyota as the premier automobile manufacturer in terms of the unmatched combination of
high quality, low cost, short lead-time and flexible production. And Toyota's operating system—
the Toyota Production System—had been widely credited for Toyota's sustained leadership in
manufacturing performance. Furthermore, Toyota had been remarkably open in letting outsiders
study its operations. The American Big Three and many other auto companies had done major
benchmarking studies, and they and other companies had tried to implement their own forms of
the Toyota Production System. There is the Ford Production System, the Chrysler Operating
System, and General Motors went so far as to establish a joint venture with Toyota called
NUMMI, approximately fifteen years ago.

It was from observations such as these that Kent and I started to form the impression that despite
all the attention that had already been paid to Toyota, something critical was being missed.
Therefore, we approached people at Toyota to ask what they did that others might have missed.

SWOT Analysis Toyota

Strengths.
 New investment by Toyota in factories in the US and China saw 2005 profits rise, against
the worldwide motor industry trend. Net profits rose 0.8% to 1.17 trillion yen ($11bn;
£5.85bn), while sales were 7.3% higher at 18.55 trillion yen. Commentators argue that
this is because the company has the right mix of products for the markets that it serves.
This is an example of very focused segmentation, targeting and positioning in a number
of countries.
 In 2003 Toyota knocked its rivals Ford into third spot, to become the World's second
largest carmaker with 6.78 million units. The company is still behind rivals General
Motors with 8.59 million units in the same period. Its strong industry position is based
upon a number of factors including a diversified product range, highly targeted marketing
and a commitment to lean manufacturing and quality. The company makes a large range
of vehicles for both private customers and commercial organizations, from the small
Yaris to large trucks. The company uses marketing techniques to identify and satisfy
customer needs. Its brand is a household name. The company also maximizes profit
through efficient manufacturing approaches (e.g. Total Quality Management).

Weaknesses
 Being big has its own problems. The World market for cars is in a condition of over
supply and so car manufacturers need to make sure that it is their models that consumers
want. Toyota markets most of its products in the US and in Japan. Therefore it is exposed
 to fluctuating economic and political conditions those markets. Perhaps that is why the
company is beginning to shift its attentions to the emerging Chinese market. Movements
in exchange rates could see the already narrow margins in the car market being reduced.
 The company needs to keep producing cars in order to retain its operational efficiency.
Car plants represent a huge investment in expensive fixed costs, as well as the high costs
of training and retaining labour. So if the car market experiences a down turn, the
company could see over capapacity. If on the other hand the car market experiences an
upturn, then the company may miss out on potential sales due to under capacity i.e. it
takes time to accommodate. This is a typical problem with high volume car
manufacturing.

Opportunities.
 Lexus and Toyota now have a reputation for manufacturing environmentally friendly
vehicles. Lexus has RX 400h hybrid, and Toyota has it Prius. Both are based upon
advance technologies developed by the organization. Rocketing oil prices have seen sales
of the new hybrid vehicles increase. Toyota has also sold on its technology to other motor
manufacturers, for example Ford has bought into the technology for its new Explorer
SUV Hybrid. Such moves can only firm up Toyota's interest and investment in hybrid
R&D.
 Toyota is to target the 'urban youth' market. The company has launched its new Aygo,
which is targeted at the streetwise youth market and captures (or attempts to) the nature
of dance and DJ culture in a very competitive segment. The vehicle itself is a unique
convertible, with models extending at their rear! The narrow segment is notorious for it
narrow margins and difficulties for branding.

Threats.
 Product recalls are always a problem for vehicle manufacturers. In 2005 the company had
to recall 880,00 sports utility vehicles and pick up trucks due to faulty front suspension
systems. Toyota did not g ive details of how much the recall would cost. The majority of
affected vehicles were sold in the US, while the rest were sold in Japan, Europe and
Australia.
 As with any car manufacturer, Toyota faces tremendous competitive rivalry in the car
market. Competition is increasing almost daily, with new entrants coming into the market
from China, South Korea and new plants in Eastern Europe. The company is also
exposed to any movement in the price of raw materials such as rubber, steel and fuel. The
key economies in the Pacific, the US and Europe also experience slow downs. These
economic factors are potential threats for Toyota.

LATEST NEWS OF TOYOTA

 NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Toyota Motor Corp. said it was recalling 1.33 million Corolla and
Corolla Matrix vehicles on Thursday, citing problems in engines' electronic control units that have
allegedly led to three accidents.

Toyota Motor Philippines Corporation (TMP) has advanced technical education with the introduction
of the Toyota Automotive Education Program (TAEP) in the Asia Pacific region.

TORRANCE, Calif.—Toyota Motor says its sales fell 12 percent in August compared with July, as
buyers nervous about the economy stayed away from showrooms.

Toyota Canada Inc. said Tuesday it was telling its dealers to temporarily suspend the sales of
eight of its most popular vehicles as it tries to deal with a massive recall that has now escalated
to almost unprecedented levels.

Read more: http://www.nsnews.com/cars/Toyota+halts+sales+models/2489829/story.html?

id=2489829#ixzz0yTreEakS

FUTURE PLANS

In 2009, Akio Toyoda took control of Toyota as President. He almost immediately claimed to
drop his predecessor’s 2002 plan to have 15% of world market share — up from 11% in 2002
— and said that Toyota would change its priorities to focus on high-quality, affordable cars.
Toyota’s current global capacity is ten million vehicles per year, but the company said it plans to
drop its capacity (though it has not). Akio Toyoda said that rapid growth had strained Toyota’s
resources and resulted in overcapacity. On the other hand, when Toyota sales slowed, he
immediately restored rapid growth by slapping large rebates onto Toyota hoods, so it's hard to
know how seriously to take these statements.

The next generation 2010 Toyota Prius was a thorough redesign, with a bigger gas engine and a
larger body. Around model year 2011, the plug-in version with superior lithium-ion batteries
should show up. A hybrid-only sedan will be exclusive to Japan for the time being.

The Corolla remains largely unchanged until around 2012-13; the Matrix will reportedly be
replaced by the Toyota Blade. Hybrid power is expected for the new Corolla. The next upgrade
for both vehicles should be around 2013.

Avalon is due for a refresh in 2011 or 2012, with a hybrid arriving about a year afterwards. The
Solara will reportedly continue only as a convertible.

A V-8 powered Supra has been turned down; Toyota might argue that the Lexus IS-F is the
Supra heir apparent.
A new Subaru based Toyota to enhance the company’s dowdy image is planned for 2012 or so;
the Toyota version would be rear wheel drive, while Subaru would get its usual all wheel drive.
The main Toyota input would be on sheet metal. The FT-HS hybrid would sport a 3.5 liter V6
and electric motor for a total of 400 hp along with (possibly) Subaru's all wheel drive.

The Yaris will be redesigned for 2012. Even with higher gas prices, Yaris has not really caught
in with Americans (though the name might be a factor).

Low cost vehicles: Toyota was interested in growing its share of the ever-larger Indian market
as well as expansion in China. A low cost vehicle would slot in below the current Scion line but
above the infamous Tata. The ideal is for a reliable, low-cost car

, using existing parts where possible but based on a clean-sheet platform; it would probably be
sold under a different brand name, with a dedicated sales channel, to avoid diluting Toyota's
refined image. Two models are being planned, a four-door sedan similar to the Dacia Logan; and
a “people mover” similar to the Renault Kangoo. It is unknown whether Akio Toyoda will give
this plan his full support.

BRAND MANAGEMENT ASSIGNMENT

Submitted by

R.Dinesh