Toyota and Congressional Hearings

Abraham Alberto, left, with two of his children Lilia and Douglas stands in his party store holding a memorial poster for his wife, Guadalupe Alberto, who was killed when the 2005 Toyota Camry she was driving crashed in Flint. (Photo courtesy of MSNBC)

Much like Tiger Woods, it now appears Toyota's image doesn't quite match reality. Peter Whoriskey and Kimberly Kindy of the Washington Post report on three deadly crashes involving Toyota's, including one that occurred in Flint:

But in each of those three fatal episodes, the car involved was a 2005 Toyota Camry, a model that the company has indicated is free of the acceleration defects: It has not been recalled for either the sticky pedal or the floor mat interference.

"This raises a huge red flag," said Clarence Ditlow, director of the Center for Auto Safety.

He and other safety advocates have their own suspicions, aroused by a history of glitchy behavior in the electronics that control Toyota's engines.

"Many unintended accelerations do not appear to be explained by floor mats and sticky pedals," said Rep. Henry A. Waxman (D-Calif.), who is holding the Tuesday hearing on the recalls. "One of the key questions we will ask at the hearing is whether electronic defects could be responsible."

Toyota officials declined to comment on the cases because they are in litigation.

The engine that will not die

Frank Oresnik of Catawba, Wis., and his Chevy Silverado, which matches his jacket. (Photo by Curt Knoke)

Speaking of quality control, here's an example from the early '90s brought to you by Christofer Machniak of The Flint Journal:

"A headline-grabbing 1991 Chevy Silverado that's traveled more than 1 million miles -- all powered by its original Flint-made V-8 engine -- will soon be for sale on eBay.

"Current owner Frank Oresnik of Catawba, Wis., hopes an auto collector is interested in preserving the durable pickup truck as an example of American manufacturing quality -- something he says he can't afford to do. The minimum bid is $30,000.

"The engine was built at the former Flint V-8 Engine Plant off Van Slyke Road, which ceased production in 1999 and was demolished in 2000."

A question of quality

Imagine this 1976 V6 Buick Century Special in canary yellow. Now imagine putting 198,000 miles on it over 15 years. My brother lived the dream.

Let's talk about quality.

An earlier post on a pristine Chevy Malibu Classic prompted slick to reflect on G.M.'s seventies-era quality control:

"I will agree in the heyday and that toward the mid to late '70s cars such as the Malibu pictured were produced when the mentality was f*** it, ship it, if they don't like it tough s***...I can remember when a car got close to the 50k mark my dad would get nervous and get rid of that car. Today, GM cars go 200k with relatively few problems, for the most part. Every once in a while a customer will say, 'They sure don't build cars like they used to.' And one of our guy's favorite response is 'They sure don't, thank god."

So we can probably all agree that G.M. cars in the '70s were not exactly finely-tuned machines. The attitude was that you drove the car a few years then got another one. But I have a real world example that's the exception to the rule — my brother's Buick.

The deal in our family was that if you made it through college, my grandparents bought you a new G.M. car as a reward. So when Matt graduated from Aquinas College in 1976, he became the proud owner of a yellow Buick Century.
So here's the scenario. You've got a young Flintoid known to frequent bars like the King's Armor who has friends with names like Bobo and Hooker with a poorly made G.M. coupe. This car's doomed, right?

Not so fast. The Century racked up 198,000 miles before it finally died in 1991. It was a little rusty, but it still had the original transmission and it never needed any major repairs. He sold it to the kid next door as a project car for $1. "It was very reliable even though that was probably the low point of Buick," Matt remembers. "It was fine. It worked."

And that, my friends, is about as enthusiastic an endorsement of a mid-'70s Buick that you're ever going to get. Especially out of my brother.

But what about today's American made cars? Jalopnic.com asked the same question earlier this summer, and home-grown autos got a lot of support from readers who agreed with slick's evaluation. For example:

"I have to put my two cents in on this one, I manage a large GM dealership Service Department, and the shift in quality I have seen in the last 5 years is nothing short of amazing. In a time where 75% of our business was warranty related repairs, now it is less that 25% and trending downward. The biggest struggle dealers now have, believe it or not, is the increased quality has reduced the amount of repair dollars, and with the reduced or extended maintenance the newer vehicles provide, there isn't a lot for us to do. We have been forced to jump on the "fluid transfer" bandwagon just to survive. It is the strangest progression I have seen in the car business in 25 years."

And vehiclevoice.com has a post declaring that crummy American cars simply don't exist anymore. And this was after the writer rented a Chevy Aveo:

"Aside from the looks and bargain basement image, this was easily a car that I could live with day in and day out. Which brings me to a point I had long comprehended in theory but only now really understand. There are no bad cars anymore. Virtually all cars – even the most basic ones out there – are competent and well built. There is no modern equivalent of the Pinto or Vega today; even the most humble car out there will get the job done, and in relative comfort. 

"As such, the product itself is becoming much less of a differentiator these days. Now, design and marketing have much bigger roles in getting people to notice the product. Today, choosing a new vehicle is much more about how it looks and how it speaks to a consumer’s wants and sensibilities than it has been in the past. Automobiles have always been emotional purchases to a degree; today this is even more so the case due to the fact that there are truly no bad cars out there – making emotional attributes all that more important."

With all this good news, maybe my brother will consider G.M. when he buys a new car. But that might be a while. He's still got the Acura Integra he bought in 1991 when the Buick Century went to the great impound lot in the sky. It's running fine, and he says it corners a lot better than the old Buick.