Toyota chief deeply sorry: Company perhaps grew too fast (2nd Roundup)

By Chris Cermak Feb 23, 2010, 21:48 GMT

Washington - Toyota President Akio Toyoda plans to tell US lawmakers on Wednesday that he is 'deeply sorry' for accidents caused by faulty models and admit that the world's largest carmaker may have grown too fast for its own good.

'All the Toyota vehicles bear my name,' Toyoda, who is the grandson of the Japanese company's founder, said in a written statement released Tuesday, ahead of his testimony before the House Oversight Committee. 'For me, when the cars are damaged, it is as though I am as well.'

Toyoda suggested the carmaker may have been focused more on expanding volume than ensuring safety in the past few years, saying Toyota's 'priorities became confused' as it grew in capacity.

'Toyota has, for the past few years, been expanding its business rapidly. Quite frankly, I fear the pace at which we have grown may have been too quick,' Toyoda said.

'I regret that this has resulted in the safety issues described in the recalls we face today, and I am deeply sorry for any accidents that Toyota drivers have experienced,' he said.

US lawmakers at a separate hearing earlier Tuesday charged that Toyota had failed to assure the safety of its vehicles and was ignoring ongoing problems with its electronic systems that may still be causing cars to accelerate unintentionally.

Toyota has recalled more than 8 million vehicles worldwide over problems with sticking floor mats and accelerator pedals in a series of models, as well as faulty brakes in its hybrid Prius.

Toyota was the second most popular carmaker in the US last year, but the recalls prompted a tumble in sales of more than 15 per cent in January and have eroded the carmaker's reputation for quality.

Lawmakers also faulted US regulators for failing to quickly investigate the complaints of Toyota drivers. At least 34 deaths in the US have been connected to accidents possibly caused by unexpected, uncontrollable acceleration, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

'Toyota failed its customers and the government neglected its responsibilities,' said Congressman Henry Waxman, chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. He called for 'fundamental reforms' of Toyota's management and of the NHTSA.

Toyota's US operations chief, Jim Lentz, said he was confident the recalls had solved the bulk of the company's safety problems. But he acknowledged there may still be some unexplained reasons for the unintended acceleration of Toyota models reported by some drivers.

Toyota has not identified any problems with its electronics systems. But asked by Waxman if the recalls to date had completely solved the issue of uncontrolled acceleration, Lentz responded: 'Not totally.'

Lentz's appearance before the House Energy and Commerce Committee on Tuesday marked just the start of US lawmakers' investigations into Toyota's conduct. Toyoda was set to testify Wednesday and more hearings were to be held by other committees in the coming week.

The NHTSA is also investigating Toyota's recalls and other safety concerns, and has demanded documents from the company detailing what - and when - they found out about consumers' safety complaints.

Toyoda will say Wednesday that he takes 'full responsibility' for faults in the company's vehicles. Toyota 'will work vigorously and unceasingly to restore the trust of our customers.'

While many US lawmakers slammed Toyota for their response to the safety complaints, other legislators cautioned against unfairly targeting a foreign company. Toyota also employs tens of thousands of workers in the United States.

'I don't believe ... that we should go on a witch hunt,' said Congressman Joe Barton, a Republican. 'We should actually try to find out in the true and best sense of protecting the American people ... if there's a problem (and) what Toyota's going to do about it.'

Rhonda Smith, a consumer, offered a tearful account to the committee of her 'near death' experience in 2006. She was travelling on a highway in Tennessee when her Lexus 350 ES suddenly accelerated to more than 160 kilometres per hour, and she could do nothing to stop it.

The car eventually came to a stop after a terrifying ride of nearly 10 kilometres, she recounted. Smith said she was convinced the problem was electronic and accused Toyota of not taking her seriously.

'Shame on you Toyota for being so greedy and shame on (regulators) for not doing your job,' Smith testified.

Some lawmakers and car experts said Toyota had yet to investigate a more serious problem with its electronic throttle control system that might also prompt its cars to accelerate unwanted.

David Gilbert, a professor at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, testified that he had been able to replicate a fault in the electronics that caused a Toyota to start accelerating uncontrollably.

Lentz said that an outside firm hired by Toyota had also replicated Gilbert's experiment, but he questioned whether it could actually happen on the road. He added that the experiment was also successfully conducted on the car of a competitor.

US Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said government regulators also had yet to identify a Toyota-related accident that could be directly attributed to faulty electronics, though a review was ongoing.

'We stand ready to ensure prompt action on any additional defects that we have reason to believe are present,' LaHood said in written testimony to the committee.