Should Toyota Communicate Better?

It seems to me that if there are a few issues at the outset of a launch that Toyota would be all over them. Even if the issues are more rare it seems to me that the best marketing and assurance of Toyota's brained for reliability would be best served through better communication. For instance things that require a software update (i.e. front sensors in snow and being able to turn it off easily or perhaps other software issues - don't have mine yet so just know what I've seen) would be easy.

I'm sure Toyota is aware of all the boards/pages that are out there and the thoughts and feedback from customers. I'm a big fan of information sharing and in the end it promotes your brand more to communicate, even if there are faults. Some stats might help too - how many turbos have had a problem? Be up front, acknowledge little issues, and provide a timeline or reassurance. A little communication goes a long way.

Also - maybe that exists somewhere and I'm not aware of it, but haven't stumbled across anything official. Just my evening rant.

 

Totally agree, if they came out and said it was a bad batch of parts that were made for 6 days or something like that it would put a lot of potential customers fear to rest. In another post a customer at a dealership was told it's a bigger problem and production has been halted. If it is a bigger issue I can see Toyota wanting to chalk a production "delay" up to supply chain issues so they can sweep this under the rug. I believe they will fix it the best they can but a little info would help.

 

Not a lot of people know about these issues and they intend to keep it that way, hoping to fix it quietly and not scaring off potential buyers. IMO

 

Not related to 3rd gen, but communication for the 2021 power steering recall is non existent currently. To my knowledge, Toyota has not notified anyone of this recall. This issue causes a complete loss of power steering which could be very dangerous. I am sure Toyota wants to have the inspection and fix in hand prior to notifying people, but due to the dangerous situation, it notice should have been sent to owners.

 

"Boy, sure am glad I didn't buy that 2021 Tundra and got a 2022 instead. Those 2021s are a death trap!" (Sorry, can't resist poking a little fun at all those "sure am glad I kept my 2007-2021" folks and the "I'd never buy a new model" people.) But seriously, loss of power steering can be a very dangerous situation in a heavy vehicle. I hope they sort it out before someone gets hurt.

 

Not specific to Toyota, but I would love to see more communication from just about EVERY company. Nowadays, it seems like every company just wants to keep every negative thing under the rug for as long as possible. Companies only tend to "course correct" when the issue gets picked up by the mainstream media or when it turns into a legal battle.

I would respect Toyota so much more if they just came out & said, "Hey everyone...Toyota is suffering from a stressed supply chain like most other companies right now. We were recently made aware of an issue from our supplier of wastegate actuators used in the all-new 2022 Tundra. We're working to understand the size of the issue & exactly how many trucks are impacted. We believe this to be a relatively small portion of our current production so we do not anticipate having to initiate a model-wide recall. We have made our dealer network aware of this. If you experience any issues, please contact your local Toyota dealer. We stand by our product and our class-leading reliability. If you experience an issue with your Tundra, Toyota is committed to making it right."

I would respect the hell out of Toyota (or any company) that just did a press release like this. It doesn't admit guilt or place blame, but it lets the public know that Toyota is aware of the issue and is committed to fixing it. It would remove anxiety from most potential buyers and reassures the current owners.

 

This will never happen and just not with Toyota.

 

Right, because that means people are actually honest and more importantly, they take ownership of their responsibilities regardless of whether or not there's positive or negative feedback associated with it. Stop the silence! I can't stand the "hope it goes away" attitude with ignorance.

 

Sometimes things aren’t as bad as Internet forums make them out to be. How many people are driving around with a leaking cam tower and have no idea? But read about it on a forum and all of a sudden people think they have a leak and demand a fix.

The power steering issue is a problem though. Even if only a few are affected, it could be deadly.

These forums are a very small percentage of actual owners.

 

Taking ownership in this world means admitting fault - which opens your company to litigation from every angry customer with a lawyer. It's all about protecting the $.

 

No doubt, that why everything is F'd up, and it's all about the blame, instead of a solution, especially when lives are potentially at risk.

 

If everyone wasn't sue happy in this world things might be different.

 

And that is the point. Thank you. Any model year can have problems. People should not jump to conclusions about the turbos or the cam towers or the steering or injection pump failures (I'm talking to you, 2007). Toyota has a rep for dealing with them. The internet has led to people wanting instant answers and instant fixes -- and, of course, wild speculation. In time, we will have accurate info on how many vehicles are involved in any problem and what they did. Be patient. (Except with steering problems-- that's a different story). And I'm glad for those who got good 2007 Tundras. The first hit on an internet search:

The fact that some 2007 owners are so pro-Tundra despite this tells you Toyota will handle it.

 

Motorbiscuit is part of the problem,what makes you value any one source for this info more than another?

Maybe Toyota needs Therapy to learn how to communicate better?

 

I don’t value Motorbiscuit. There are lots of opinions out there and they probably have their own agenda. I used it as an example. Most opinions are based on very few facts and very much speculation. The guy with a 2007 that has never been in the shop has one opinion based on one experience and yet extrapolates that single data point to a generalization. Happens constantly on here. I haven’t had any problems with my 2022, but I’m not arrogant enough to say that means the 2022s are all wonderful. Toyota hasn’t released much info yet on turbos. To say that is irresponsible or some grand cover-up is grandiose speculation. Patience is a virtue.

 

I see exactly what y’all are saying. If all of the companies were up front and said there was a problem. There would be a placebo effect and the dealerships would be overwhelmed with nonsense. You know, kind of like COVID and hospitals.

In my opinion, it’s all about their response to a problem when we bring our vehicle in with an issue. I’ll be upset when I bring it in, but once I explain my issue and they respond with ok that shouldn’t be a problem. They go on by stating, we actually have some experience with that problem and we should be able to have your vehicle back to you within the day. I know that response is exaggerated but you get what I’m saying. I’d except that all day long and have the confidence in their process.

Toyota has surprised me so far. My wife has a 21 Highlander that we haven’t any issues out of so far. I drive a 22 Tundra SR5 TRD that’s currently torn apart at the dealership. My issue is new and they have no idea what’s wrong, but the higher up’s of the higher up’s are on this thing like stink on poo (supposedly). I respected the fact that they threw their hands up and said idk what’s wrong. There was a plan in place, they got me a loaner and sent me on my way.

 

For sure it is really just too soon to get the bus out to throw anyone under and Toyota usually makes things right and we all know there will be a shakedown period that should take a lot longer than this on an entirely new platform and vehicle.

 

^^this

In my company we can't even get our internal counsel to give us a solid opinion or direction on anything - they hire outside counsel. Our lawyers don't even want to take responsibility for an internal position on something - they want to pass it off to another lawyer. If management got a wild hair and decided to "communicate honestly" a lawyer would prevent it.

 

imo, like the military, every company wants to keep it in house and fix the issues at the lowest level possible. they aren't going to the media and exclaiming of potential catastrophes making it bigger than it could be at every little thing and losing money.

but when a problem arises, it's brought to them by the consumers. and the amount of consumer issues determine their response. that's why to me, right now anyways, the waste gate issue is minimal and isolated.