Auto February 20, 2007
Toyota’s changing demographic
| I suppose a better way to put it would be “Toyota’s expanding demographic.” That is, at least, what they’re going for as of late. Most notably, they seem to have their sites set on blue-collar America with their 2007 Tundra pickup. |  |
Previously labeled as “almost full-sized,” the Tundra never really caught my eye until this year; according to Toyota’s execs, there’s little to link the new Tundra to its 2006 counterpart (it’s now five inches taller, four inches wider, 10 inches longer, includes a V8 option, and can tow 10,800 lbs).
Additionally, last year became the final All-American NASCAR when Toyota made its debut entry this year, which “predictably stirred up some debate among racing enthusiasts and evoked some red, white and blue patriotism.” Many people don’t seem to like the fact that Toyota, a Japan-based company, is digging it’s way deeper into American culture.
In a jab at Toyota, Jack Roush, a NASCAR team owner, said “Americans shouldn’t buy Japanese cars.” (Elaboration on that thought here.) However, Jim Press, Toyota’s president for North America, had other thoughts. From an article at Yahoo News:
“We are an American company,” Jim Press said in an interview recently, noting that many of the cars Toyota sells in the US contain more American-built components than cars built by the US Big Three.“If Toyota is an import car then Chrysler is an import: it’s owned by a German company,” Press said.
Toyota has also been fighting back with a series of print and TV ads touting its US$13 billion investments in 10 US plants and employment of more than 35,000 Americans across the country.
It was a big shift for a company that traditionally focused simply on its products.
“The problem is people in Detroit are trying to define us and I guess we’re trying to define ourselves,” Press said.
*Update, 8-10-07: As of August 3, 2007, Chrysler is back in American hands.
Perhaps I’m a victim of their well-thought-out campaign strategies, but my image of Toyota has recently changed for the better. In thinking about the purchase of a new full-sized truck, I wouldn’t have considered Toyota even last month. Now, however, they’ve got my head turned in curiousity.
If they want to keep me from drooling over a gorgeous Dodge, however, they’ve still got work to do.