Late in 2009, Toyota Motor Corporation initiated a recall after reports of several vehicles experiencing sudden unintended acceleration, but it turns out that the automakers only real mistake was taking full responsibility. The sudden acceleration of the runaway vehicles was reportedly due to stuck accelerator pedals under floor mats and caused almost 3.2 million vehicles to be recalled. After swapping a reputation of building safe, reliable vehicles for one of infamy, Toyota may be exonerated based on recent studies conducted by the U.S. Department of Transportation which suggest that drivers were at fault for some of the sudden acceleration accidents.

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s investigation examined vehicles that had been in an accident because the sudden acceleration and found that throttles were wide open and brakes were not engaged. The Wall Street Journal reported that these preliminary findings suggest that drivers were mistakenly hitting the accelerator when they meant to hit the brakes.

Fully equipped with the ability to differentiate the gas pedal from the brake pedal, New Jersey drivers are confident in the safety of Toyota vehicles. For Toyota car dealers, NJ residents have continued to flock to the dealership, indicating that they have kept their faith in Toyota. New York residents have also maintained their trust in Toyota vehicles which is evident in the increased sales that the automaker is experiencing that were up as much as 50% in March.

Regardless of if these findings develop further and validate driver error, Toyota has already been exonerated by the general public as evidenced by the Toyota dealers NY drivers continue to flock to. All blame aside, the automaker has since erred on the side of caution, initiating vehicle demonstration programs which intend to put only the safest possible vehicles on the market. The Prius Plug-in Hybrid is currently participating in the program which consists of 150 individuals test driving the vehicles and providing feedback to Toyota to give them the opportunity to work out any kinks before releasing the vehicles to dealers.

Whether it’s driver error or Toyota error, an error doesn’t become a mistake unless you refuse to correct it. With reconfigured gas pedals and newly designed floor mats, Toyota has done their part to prevent turning this error into a mistake.

Toyota Motor Sales will validate their status as a leader in automotive hybrid technology with the arrival of a plug-in version of the Prius Hybrid. Talk of the Prius Plug-in Hybrid Vehicle (PHV) has been circulating for some time now, leaving eco-conscious drivers drooling with anticipation for the PHV’s arrival.

The desire to get your hands on the vehicle may not be fulfilled in the near future, but Toyota didn’t become the front runner in sustainable mobility by procrastinating. As it turns out, the company is as much a leader in the safety of vehicles as they are in the hybrid technology of vehicles.

As a means to put the safest PHV on the market as possible when in goes on sale in 2012, Toyota has lent a very lucky group of 150 people from various organizations a prototype of the PHV to drive for the next 18 months. This will allow individuals to experience how the PHV performs in accordance to every day tasks as well as the longevity of the vehicle’s performance. These individuals will provide Toyota with feedback on the PHV giving Toyota the opportunity to repair any flaws before the vehicle becomes available to the general public.

Much like the current Prius, the PHV uses both electricity and gasoline to power the engine. A lithium ion battery is what distinguishes the PHV from the Prius and allows the vehicle to drive solely on electricity for 13 miles before reverting back to gasoline reliance. The PHV’s battery endures higher speeds than its derivative and can fully recharge in three hours.

The lithium ion battery not only endows the PHV with more power, it also keeps the PHV’s price tag affordable. Instead of a larger battery that needs to be charged overnight, the PHV’s smaller battery requires quick charges more frequently. Toyota believes the smaller battery that charges quicker conforms to every day tasks better than a larger battery that requires hours upon hours to recharge. The PHV’s quick-charge battery has an ultra low cost, which will put the vehicle on the market for a far less price than other automaker’s hybrids.

Your used car dealership of New Jersey, Hudson Toyota, credits the Prius Hybrid’s renowned acclaim to its city fuel economy of 48 mpg and small, compact body, which NJ residents consider essential features for city navigation. The PHV’s extended electric-only drive range and improved fuel economy of 60 mpg are sure to garner the same success as the Prius Hybrid for any local Toyota car dealers NJ residents will visit.

Last year, one deserving musician signed a record deal thanks to a co-promotion sponsored by Toyota and MySpace. Once again, the joint venture is banking on the interactive internet to increase traffic and ultimately make another musician’s dreams come true. The exclusive promotion, called “Toyota Music Rock the Space 2”, encourages artists to visit the promotion website at MySpace.com/ToyotaMusic and to upload a demo of their music. As musicians upload their music, fans and MySpace users have the opportunity to vote for their favorite demo, post demos from the Toyota page to their own page, and post comments on Toyota’s page.

As the promotion period comes to an end on June 7^th, ten semifinalists will be selected by a music industry panel. Of the ten semifinalists, MySpace users will vote to narrow the list down to five finalists, all of whom will be delegated a portion of media that is intended to enhance the artist’s presence on MySpace. Of the five finalists, one lucky artist will be voted the final winner of the Toyota Music Rock the Space 2 promotion will receive a recording contract with MySpace records and a musical prize package valued at $10,000.

Perhaps the most valued prize that can be won is the spotlight that the social network will cast on the featured musician. Last years winner, a band named “Call the Cops”, accumulated over 60,000 votes and upward toward 60 million demo listens. The publicity alone of the over 75 million MySpace users is enough to make this year’s winner a household name.

While Toyota’s co-promotion will no doubt drive New Jersey residents to check out local Toyota lease specials NJ dealers have to offer, Toyota’s Senior Media Strategist, Kim Kyaw says that the contest isn’t aimed to promote the Toyota name. In fact, Toyota’s participation in the campaign is purposefully reserved as a means to validate their existence on the site and actually engage in the social networking that MySpace offers.

The real purpose behind the contest is to produce a constructive message associated with Toyota that encourages interaction and gives unsigned musicians a shot at attaining their dreams, all made possible by Toyota. Of course, you won’t hear new Rav4 2010 dealers complaining about the increased traffic their website is generating.

Based on the financial results of the last fiscal year ending in March 2009, Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) predicted a consolidated net revenue for fiscal year ending in March 2010 of 16.5 trillion yen and vehicle sales of 6.5 million units. TMC’s financial expectations for this year seemed like a stretch primarily because of the direct hit the automotive industry has taken due to this economy, but also because TMC’s profits suffered a severe decrease from fiscal year 2008 to 2009. Nevertheless, Newark new Toyota dealer was right to be confident in their inventory and in TMC.

As it turns out, TMC was off with their financial forecasts for fiscal year 2010, but being wrong never felt so right. It turns out that TMC underestimated their profits with net revenues totaling 18.95 trillion yen and vehicle sales reaching 7.24 million units. Japan accounts for the majority of the vehicles sold with their sales reaching 2.16 million units followed by North America with 2.1 million vehicles. The remaining 3 million units sold are accredited to Asia, Europe, and other regions. All regions suffered a slight decrease in sales from fiscal year 2009 except for Japan, where vehicle sales increased by 218 thousand units, and Asia, which experienced a 74 thousand increase in units.

While vehicle sales exceeded what was predicted a year ago, they are still about 22% less than the vehicle sales that were achieved in fiscal year 2009. However, the number units sold is still more than TMC expected. Akio Toyoda, President of TMC, stated that they have suppliers and dealers, like Newark Used Toyota dealer, to thank for the more than 7 million vehicle sales this fiscal year.

The consolidated net revenue also suffered a slight decrease of 7.7% compared to fiscal year 2009, but again, numbers still exceeded what was expected. Considering the economic distress of what are usually TMC’s most profitable regions, a much bigger decrease than a mere 7.7% was anticipated.

Following the last fiscal year results, Mr. Toyoda predicted that, because of challenging business circumstances, TMC would suffer from considerable deficits for this fiscal year’s operating income. Again, it’s probably never felt so good to be wrong. Operating income increased from a loss of 461 billion yen in fiscal year 2009 to 147.5 billion yen for the 2010 fiscal year. These numbers reflect a back to back improvement in operating income for all regions.

Moving forward, Mr. Toyoda believes that investing in sustainable enterprises will allow Newark new Toyota dealers to experience even more sales moving forward. With a focus on sustainable growth and also on emerging countries, TMC has forecasted that consolidated vehicles sales will reach 7.29 million units for the fiscal year ending March 2011. With such a premise, TMC has modestly estimated a consolidated net revenue of 19.2 trillion yen.

Given the challenging conditions of this economy, particularly for the automotive industry, Toyota’s continuous development is nothing short of amazing. Mr. Toyoda’s progressive intentions for TMC are bound to enhance profits for the fiscal year 2011.

Toyota is taking sustainable mobility one step further with the Prius Plug-in Hybrid Vehicle (PHV), an eco-upgraded derivative of the Prius Hybrid. Despite the Prius Hybrid’s fuel efficiency, ultra-low emissions, and high gas mileage endured by a gasoline-electric motor, Toyota discovered a way to  go even ‘greener’ while enhancing performance.

Used cars NJ dealers feel that drivers are most drawn to the Prius Hybrid’s environmentally conscious allure. While the vehicle leaves less of a carbon footprint on the environment when operating in electric-only mode, it requires gasoline to charge the battery that powers the electric motor. The PHV will also draw electrical power from a battery, but will enable drivers to plug in the vehicle to charge the battery with electricity. The PHV’s ability to supplement gasoline with electricity is a greener alternative which enables the same electric-only mode.

For the residents of Newark, used Toyota dealers say that the Prius Hybrid’s better gas mileage for city driving compared to highway driving is another contributing factor to its success. The Prius PHV is also ideal for city driving as it allows the vehicle to operate in all-electric mode more frequently and therefore conserves fuel. The PHV is capable of functioning in electric-only mode for greater distances and higher speeds than the Prius Hybrid. The vehicle can fully charge in three hours and can cover a distance of 13 miles reaching speeds up to 60 mph.

The PHV’s lithium-ion battery is the pivotal role in the vehicle’s greener distinction and enhanced performance. The battery consists of three battery packs which will supplement each other to expand the vehicle’s electric-only power. The PHV will extract electrical power from one main battery pack until the supply has been exhausted, at which time the vehicle will obtain the electrical power from a secondary battery pack.

With the intent to illustrate what a greener Prius means for sustainable mobility, Toyota has initiated a Prius PHV demonstration program which will extend 150 vehicles to various institutions across the U.S. The goal of the program is to determine how the plug-in conforms to every day activities, to establish if the plug-in presents any obstacles, and to inform potential consumers of what such a technology entails based on first hand experience.

The price of the greener Prius has not yet been released, but Newark used Toyota dealers anticipate a cost in the $27,000 – $34,000 range once the PHV hits markets in 2012.

The 2011 Prius hybrid mini-van is the latest rumored vehicle to accompany Toyota’s developing Prius family. While nothing about the mini-van is official, the vehicle will supposedly share some of the attributes that have made the Prius such a success, retaining the hybrid technology and innovative style of its derivative. With its Prius-based style and technology, the mini-van would not only broaden target markets for Newark new Toyota dealers, but may very well reinvent the commonly held eminence associated with the mini-van.

The vehicle’s ideal figure, which is smaller than the Toyota Sienna yet large enough to qualify as a mini-van, will most likely offer three rows of seating. The spacious interior will allow for additional storage capacity and may seat up to seven people. According to the Nikkei Business Daily, the Prius mini-van will be the first of the Toyota hybrid family powered by a lithium-ion battery pack, which will improve fuel economy and reduce weight. Toyota intends to keep such technologically driven vehicles at a competitive cost by manufacturing lithium-ion batteries internally as a joint venture with Panasonic.

The vehicle’s hybrid technology is one feature that will contribute to transforming the mini-van’s reputation. Another contributing factor that Newark new Toyota dealers anticipate is the Prius-based style of the vehicle. Similar styling would reflect a hip, environmentally friendly driver and a vehicle that passes better as a Prius with mini-van capacity than a mini-van with a Prius platform.

The Prius mini-van would be an environmental step in the right direct for Toyota’s Prius-based hybrid family. The vehicle would not only be the first hybrid mini-van in the U.S., it would also be the first addition to the Prius family line up. Staten Island new Toyota dealers feel that the mini-van would bring balance to the family and offer a more spacious alternative to the Prius hatchback.

Despite the limited details, it is safe to say that eco-conscious, cost friendly traits are features in a car that will never go out of style. Staten Island new Toyota dealers expect the mini-van to join the Prius line up sometime in 2011 and anticipate a price comparable to current Prius models.

Toyota recently posted strong sales numbers in March that increased 35% over the previous year, besting both Ford and GM for that time period.  Wait, wasn’t there something in the news recently about Toyota vehicle recalls north of 2 million, government testimonies, and a collapse in public faith over the Japanese automaker that used to always finish first in brand loyalty polls? 

Well, yeah, there was that.  And U.S. regulators fined Toyota $16 million for knowingly hiding these defects and keeping them from the public at first.  The law states that automakers must notify the government within five days of determining a safety issue exists in one of its vehicles.  The $16 million fine was the maximum penalty under current U.S. law and the largest ever levied against an automaker (previously the largest amount was $1 million against GM in 2004).

During this crisis, Toyota’s sale figures did indeed drop in January and February.  If you happened to drive by a New York or Newark new Toyota dealer you might have thought the blizzards covering the Northeast this year were the reason the showrooms were so empty.  But, as the auto industry is not the type of sector that passively waits out storms, literal or figurative, to rectify the situation and put drivers back in their showrooms, Toyota launched a strong incentive program for March.  They offered zero percent financing, subsidized leases, and two years free maintenance.  And according to those March sales, it seems to be working.  So well, in fact, that the incentives program was extended through April.

This is surely one of the first bits of good news for Toyota this year, but with almost everything there’s a catch.  And for Toyota, according to CNBC figures, the true cost of this incentives program was $2,256 for March (up from $1,565 in March ‘09).  Some industry experts say Toyota will have a difficult time cutting back the incentives but also a difficult time extending them.  So, in the future when Toyota has to  scale back incentives, will they have sufficiently recaptured their target consumer base, or will, a Newark used Toyota dealer find the lot piling up this summer with no storm left to blame?  Stay tuned.

The FT-CH hybrid concept car, debuted at the North American International Auto Show in January 2010, is Toyota’s latest commitment to sustainability and advanced technology. The hybrid concept car shares the same hybrid power train technology that drives the Prius hybrid and is said to be the onset of an entire line of hybrid vehicles. The eight-vehicle family will utilize a variety of advanced hybrid technologies resulting in battery electric vehicles, hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, and plug-in vehicles in addition to the prevalent gas-electric hybrid system. While currently nothing more than a concept, Newark New Toyota Dealers anticipate introducing the FT-CH and various models of the hybrid family to car buyers in the next three years.

Among Toyota’s next generation hybrid family is the FT-CH hybrid, which can best be distinguished from the mid-size Prius by its “CH”, or compact hybrid, specification. While the FT-CH is 22 inches shorter than the Prius and has a wheelbase that is 6 inches shorter, it is less than one inch smaller in width and retains the comfort and capacity of a mid-size vehicle. The innovative, sharp style of the FT-CH, inspired by the 8-bit generation, was designed to appeal to young drivers. Its sleek shape and headlights mounted just below the windshield offer a modern take on retro style.  The car’s design isn’t merely for visual appeal, it’s also advantageous. Not only is the smaller frame ideal for city dwellers, the FT-CH, lighter in weight than the Prius, is promised to be more fuel efficient with miles per gallon approaching 65.

Newark Used Toyota Dealers are confident that the proven success of the Prius will carry over to Toyota’s new eight-vehicle hybrid family, which will contribute to Toyota’s aggressive goal of selling one million hybrids a year. In addition to its style and eco-friendly technology, Newark New Toyota Dealers rely on the FT-CH’s more affordable cost to lure residents. Priced at $22,000, the FT-CH is significantly less than other hybrid vehicles and may easily become the most in demand vehicle in its class.

As Toyota’s family of hybrids continues to grow, they remain committed to enhancing electric mobility while reducing cost. With all that the FT-CH model and its future family members have to offer, the only problem it poses is that it can’t get here soon enough.

Since 2006, Twitter has become a way of life, and is one of the most popular social websites in the world.  Everyone from normal people, to celebrities, to important executives have a twitter account that allows them to “tweet” what is currently happening in their life.  Even businesses have their own Twitter accounts, and the popular car manufacturer Toyota, is staying ahead of the game by creating their own Twitter account.

According to the LA Times, this move is to help get some positive publicity back in light of the recent recall disaster.  Several of the latest posts include, “5 Reasons to Buy a Toyota” and “Toyota rolls out 0% financing incentive plan.”  Toyota is hoping that drivers will respond, especially those looking for new cars at Newark Toyota Dealers.

I for one, believe this to be a brilliant tactical move for Toyota.  Firstly, as the LA Times said, Toyota is in need of a shot in the arm in publicity to help boost public opinion of the company.  In a recent interview with the LA Times, web strategist Jeremiah Owyang said: “In the social sphere, it’s often best to be proactive during a crisis, to let the market know you’re listening, and centralize the discussion around your brand, giving the brand more opportunity to guide the conversation…Yet don’t be fooled, on the social sphere the illusion of power is quickly dispelled, as everyone can have a say.”

Secondly, Twitter is an invaluable promotional tool that gets over four billion Tweets per quarter.  To put that in ball park terms, if one person goes to Twitter every time they Tweet, then Twitter gets four billion visits per quarter, which translates roughly into 43,835,616 visits per day.  If Toyota can gain any kind of percentage of that amount of traffic in sales, then they can hope to increase their business dramatically.

The timing of this move is also perfect, as used cars from New Jersey will be a popular item,  as well as new cars from Newark Toyota Dealers, because with the spring will come a need to by new cars to cruise around in the great weather, and with their new Twitter account, Toyota is sure to take advantage of the situation.

The paradoxical truth of successfully moving forward is to have a short memory while remembering the lessons of the past.  Toyota, the beleaguered Japanese auto giant, hopes to do just that as they attempt to recover from what was, frankly, a disastrous end to 2009 and beginning of 2010.  The numbers don’t lie: since fall, Toyota has recalled 8.5 million vehicles worldwide, over 6 million in the U.S.  As many as 52 deaths have been linked to crashes caused by accelerator and braking problems.  Sales fell by over 9% in February.  Perhaps apropos, a Toyota speeding out of control because of its “sudden unintended acceleration,” unable to stop because of a sticking brake pedal, could serve as both a literal and metaphorical summation of Toyota’s problems over the past few months.     

But the folks over at Toyota are nothing if not savvy—you don’t ascend to the automaking elite if you’re not—and in March they broke with prior practices and announced they would be offering incentives to help bring the buyers back to the heart of their business, the Chicago and Memphis showrooms, the Richmond and Newark used Toyota dealer.  They said there would be zero percent financing and subsidized leases on many of their popular vehicles, and free maintenance for up to two years for all customers, heady moves and all extremely enticing for a public still reeling from an underperforming economy now going on several years and looking for relief when it comes to purchases. 

So far these incentives seem to be working, if the numbers coming out of the Chicago and Memphis showrooms, off the New York, Reno, Cleveland, and Newark New Toyota Dealer lots are accurate: North American sales in the beginning of March were reportedly up 50% from the previous March, a broad jump that could more than compensate for the poor sales figures from January and February, the months central to Toyota’s plight thanks to Toyota executives appearing and testifying before Congress, when bad news was the only news.  Even if sales figures were to level out to 30% by the end of March, as the excitement created by the incentive boost trails off as some are predicting, this would still be a major victory for Toyota.

But one particular pitfall to this rescue mission noted by some industry experts is the sustainability of the incentives (they have recently announced they will continue most of them through April) and what Toyota will do when they can no longer afford to offer them. A delicate question for sure and one that is on the mind of the Newark New Toyota Dealer and dealers all over the country, but Toyota’s response to the initial flood was apparently dynamic enough to seal the holes and it’s hard not to believe that the brain trust doesn’t already have a plan in place that is mindful of the past yet looking toward the future.