WSJ: Toyota To Install Brake Override Systems In New Cars

TOKYO (Dow Jones)--Toyota Motor Corp. (7203.TO, TM) will install a brake override system in all new cars world-wide, President Akio Toyoda vowed Wednesday, even as he denied that the world's largest car maker had withheld information from U.S. regulators.
But he said he won't testify before the U.S. Congress at a hearing next week and left vague his plans to visit the country, the company's single largest market. He also offered few details about a new internal panel intended to revamp the company's quality-control issues, and which he said won't meet for another six weeks.
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The uncertainty comes as U.S. officials intensify their probe into Toyota's safety and quality control practices. Regulators, who are facing increasing pressure from U.S. lawmakers, are looking into whether Toyota made its recent string of recent recalls in a timely manner.
Toyoda said he would send Yoshimi Inaba, his trusted lieutenant and the head of its North American operations, to next week's Congressional hearing.
"We will give full support to him at the hearing," said Toyoda. "I am not saying that I am never going to the U.S. I am looking at my schedule and preparing."
He also defended Toyota's disclosure of quality problems. "I don't believe that Toyota is infallible," said Toyoda. "There are problems and we have responded quickly to these issues...we have not been evasive and we have not withheld information."
The company also said Wednesday it is looking into reports of steering issues with its popular Corolla sedan in the U.S., though it said it had received fewer than 100 reports and it was too early to consider another recall.
"With respect to our steering, we have had some complaints but we have not heard what the specific issues are," said Shinichi Sasaki, Toyota's executive in charge of quality control.
Toyoda spoke at his third press conference in two weeks, increasing his public presence amid quality worries that have led to the recall of 8.5 million vehicles world-wide due to problems with gas pedals, floor mats and braking systems. The problems have damaged the reputation of Japan's leading corporate icon.
The grandson of the company's founder, Toyoda appeared less nervous than he was at his first press conference two weeks ago, despite the presence of more than 30 television crews and several rounds of heated questions.
The increasing pressure on Toyota from the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration comes a week before two congressional panels plan to hold hearings on the car maker's troubles.
"We have never been involved in misappropriate conduct," said Sasaki. "There may have been some room for self-reflection and soul-searching, but we have never withheld anything from authorities and this is something we would like to fully clarify with NHTSA as well."
Toyoda said his company would install a brake-override system--which cuts engine power when the accelerator and brake pedals are applied at the same time--to all future vehicles world-wide. The systems are used by a number of auto makers to stop sudden acceleration, a problem that has plagued some Toyota models.
In Japan, the car maker expects that 70% to 80% of hybrid vehicles' braking problems will be fixed by the end of February, after it recalled about 437,000 vehicles in major markets, including Japan and the U.S., to fix problems with antilock braking systems.
The carmaker outlined vague plans to improve quality control management by launching a new global task force, headed by Toyoda. The car maker said the special Committee for Global Quality will hold its first meting March 30 and that it will appoint a chief quality officer for each principal geographical region to make the company more alert to customer sentiment.
Toyoda stopped short of saying what impact the ongoing recall will have on the company's sales and production plans. "I think we can stem [the slide in sales and production] at this point, but it's hard to say," he said.
The quality issue is keeping pressure on the car maker's business in the U.S. Toyota said Tuesday it plans to temporarily halt production at two U.S. plants as it adjusts inventory levels amid a string of recalls. The decision follows the suspension of sales of eight models--including the Camry and Corolla--affected in a U.S. recall over sticky accelerators pedals. Earlier this month Toyota idled some of its North American production lines for a week.
Toyoda Wednesday admitted that the company's rapid growth in the U.S. market led it to compromise on other aspects of its business. "With the rapid growth in production maybe we have not been able to develop human resources skills that are required for a rise in production," he said. "We will come back to the basics once again to pursue the spirit of the just-in-time production system."