If you ask any motorist about the most reliable brand, then Toyota will be named, if not first on the list, then at least in the top five. The company seems to have convinced us that the strongest, most reliable, unbreakable, and proven cars are produced only by Toyota, even though many argue whether Toyota’s or Honda’s reliability is the top. Toyotas haven’t always been reliable. In the 60s, they were vulnerable to rust and looked unfavorable compared to Chevys and Fords. It took them decades to earn a good reputation.
Instead of listing the best models, the Indy Auto Man experts from a car dealership in Indiana reveal what Toyota does to differentiate itself from competitors.
Committed to working in harsh environments
They say any car will last long if you take care of it. But the Toyota will last, no matter who’s behind the wheel. This is largely because Toyota vehicles, especially those assembled in Japan, have higher tolerances than similar American vehicles. If an ordinary automaker produces parts with an accuracy of up to 0.06 inches, then a Japanese-assembled Toyota will be manufactured with an accuracy of up to 0.01 in.
Toyota understands the operating conditions of cars in developing countries: the lack of roads, car services, certified equipment, spare parts, and a culture of car ownership. In such countries, a car is not a demonstration of status but a workhorse. The Tacoma, Tundra, and Hilux pickups and SUVs travel many more miles in any condition than fashionable sedans and crossovers plying the asphalt between a boutique and a coffee shop in European cities. In developing countries, owners do not have the opportunity to change the engine oil every 6 thousand miles. That’s why Toyota models keep going.
Careful work of engineers
The LS400 marked the beginning of Toyota’s premium division, Lexus. It may be the most famous example of Toyota’s mind-boggling development cycle. Before the first LS400s hit the market, their total cost was estimated at approximately a billion dollars. 1,400 engineers, 60 designers, 2,300 technicians, and another 200 support workers participated in the development. From start to finish, the process took approximately five years, resulting in one of the most reliable luxury cars available. However, this is not the only thing that distinguishes the LS400. It set the tone for Toyota’s luxury brand, showing potential buyers that they could expect more than a premium logo. This is one example of how Toyota built audience trust in its products. In modern marketing, this would be called a demonstration of expertise.
Attentive attitude to customer opinions
In Japan, there is a shared approach to continuous improvement across all fronts, from the factory floor to the boardroom to customer service. In 1982, the company created a customer service division. Its purpose is to manage customer feedback and transfer information about them to the development teams. This helps Toyota fix bugs and develop new models and iterations.
Lots of tests before releasing the model
During pre-production testing, Toyota checks the assembly and examines welds, rivets, and bolts in the suspension and body parts. A specimen is randomly selected from the assembly line and destroyed with a pneumatic chisel. In the same way, engines are selected for testing at constant speeds: they are accelerated from idle to 6 thousand revolutions 200 thousand times in a row, simulating 40 years of operation in one test. Temperature tests, x-rays, and even weather tests on interior components to ensure the interior plastics and panels don’t crack in winter all result in a car proven to go to hell and back in one piece before it goes to market.
Quality management system
Toyota adheres to the so-called automation with human intervention. Mass production of a car with more than 30,000 parts requires robots to do much of the heavy lifting, but its production system follows a process of constant quality control along the way.
Before automation, workers accomplish all tasks that can be done manually so that they know what they need to do. Any deviation in production leads to a complete stop of the line, automatically or by human command. When the problem is resolved, the conveyor resumes operation. This ensures that the plant does not produce thousands of defective parts.
For example, during assembly, a worker tightens bolts using an automated machine, which simultaneously tightens all parts using torque and controls the tension force. At the end of the assembly line, an inspector checks each bolt to ensure everything works correctly. Each connection is then checked again by a senior inspector. If an employee ever makes a mistake, he is immediately removed from the production line and sent back to training or assigned to another job. Toyota employees are rarely fired; they are retrained again and again until they become perfect. Some of the most experienced ones can (and do) work anywhere on the assembly line because they know every detail of the chain, right down to the final inspection.
Well-established supply chains
Toyota was founded in 1937. At the end of August 2024, the manufacturer will turn 87 years old. Toyota has established long-term relationships with suppliers over such a long-term business in the automotive world. In Japan, It’s current suppliers started as subsidiaries and became independent.
In addition to self-grown companies, Toyota cooperates with world market leaders. Thus, one of the new suppliers was Tesla Motors, which signed a $100 million deal to supply power units for the RAV4 EV.
All these factors help Toyota gain a reputation as a manufacturer of the most reliable cars. The main thing is that Toyota is not trying to change the course of its development, jumping from one trend to another. Unlike other manufacturers, Toyota did not change its development course to electrify its lineup. Many years ago, the company said that the future of environmentally friendly transport lies in hybrid and hydrogen models. And now Toyota doesn’t have to justify why it can’t rush to convert all its models to electricity, like JLR, GM, or Mercedes-Benz.
That’s why those who want to buy a used car in Indiana or any other state can opt for Toyota and receive many years of driving without much expense on repairs.
