Toyota U.S. Policy Maker Doesn’t Believe White House Hands-Off Promise
08-07-2009, 10:34 PM
#1
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Toyota U.S. Policy Maker Doesn’t Believe White House Hands-Off Promise
Pisses me off....Toyota was never concerned about a level playing field before...
http://wardsauto.com/home/toyota_policy_maker_090805/
http://wardsauto.com/home/toyota_policy_maker_090805/
TRAVERSE CITY, MI – Count Josephine Cooper, Toyota Motor Corp.’s top Washington-based policy maker, among those skeptical of the U.S. government’s claim it won’t promote American auto makers at the detriment of foreign brands.
“Ron Bloom said (in his speech here), ‘We don’t intend to get into policy and all of those things,’” Cooper, group vice president-government affairs for Toyota Motor North America Inc., tells Ward’s in an interview on the sidelines of the annual automotive conference here.
“It’s easy to say that, but somebody said you need to be a little paranoid. And I think I’m more than a little paranoid about this.”
Cooper says Toyota just 10 days ago fought a last-minute provision inserted in an Energy and Water Appropriations Bill that specified “vehicles purchased by the Department of Energy and Distribution can only be Ford (Motor Co.), (General Motors Co.), and Chrysler (Group LLC).
“If there’s too much of that protectionism and ‘Buy American’ that gets woven into a lot of the legislation going forward, it could be even more detrimental to Toyota than (it already has been),” she says.
There also are some tax provisions in Washington being “interpreted” in a way that’s going to put Toyota and other auto makers at a disadvantage. “Because of the government involvement (in the auto industry), it will be a challenge to follow everything that’s going on to be sure it remains a level playing field.”
Cooper worries “well-intended” politicians and other political leaders unintentionally may favor domestic auto makers because of a pervasive “rooting-for-the-home-team” mood in the country right now.
Earlier at MBS, Sean McAlinden, chief economist for the Center for Automotive Research, said he believes government will try to craft policy favoring the Detroit Three “because they have a vested interest.”
Cooper says an auto fatigue of sorts is being felt in Washington, but GM, Chrysler and the auto industry, in general, still are hot topics at social events.
At one such occasion, she expressed her displeasure over President Obama’s plea for consumers to buy American during his April 30 press conference announcing Chrysler’s bankruptcy, telling White House Senior Adviser David Axelrod Toyota “makes American cars; we make cars in America; we have American employees, 35,000 of them.”
Cooper says Axelrod told her, “‘We know that. We’ve just got to get through this bankruptcy.’”
She also has proposed a meeting between Obama and Toyota executives, which has yet to occur.
However, Cooper and Toyota U.S. sales chief Jim Lentz have met with the White House Auto Task Force on the issue of monetary support for struggling auto suppliers.
“Ron Bloom said (in his speech here), ‘We don’t intend to get into policy and all of those things,’” Cooper, group vice president-government affairs for Toyota Motor North America Inc., tells Ward’s in an interview on the sidelines of the annual automotive conference here.
“It’s easy to say that, but somebody said you need to be a little paranoid. And I think I’m more than a little paranoid about this.”
Cooper says Toyota just 10 days ago fought a last-minute provision inserted in an Energy and Water Appropriations Bill that specified “vehicles purchased by the Department of Energy and Distribution can only be Ford (Motor Co.), (General Motors Co.), and Chrysler (Group LLC).
“If there’s too much of that protectionism and ‘Buy American’ that gets woven into a lot of the legislation going forward, it could be even more detrimental to Toyota than (it already has been),” she says.
There also are some tax provisions in Washington being “interpreted” in a way that’s going to put Toyota and other auto makers at a disadvantage. “Because of the government involvement (in the auto industry), it will be a challenge to follow everything that’s going on to be sure it remains a level playing field.”
Cooper worries “well-intended” politicians and other political leaders unintentionally may favor domestic auto makers because of a pervasive “rooting-for-the-home-team” mood in the country right now.
Earlier at MBS, Sean McAlinden, chief economist for the Center for Automotive Research, said he believes government will try to craft policy favoring the Detroit Three “because they have a vested interest.”
Cooper says an auto fatigue of sorts is being felt in Washington, but GM, Chrysler and the auto industry, in general, still are hot topics at social events.
At one such occasion, she expressed her displeasure over President Obama’s plea for consumers to buy American during his April 30 press conference announcing Chrysler’s bankruptcy, telling White House Senior Adviser David Axelrod Toyota “makes American cars; we make cars in America; we have American employees, 35,000 of them.”
Cooper says Axelrod told her, “‘We know that. We’ve just got to get through this bankruptcy.’”
She also has proposed a meeting between Obama and Toyota executives, which has yet to occur.
However, Cooper and Toyota U.S. sales chief Jim Lentz have met with the White House Auto Task Force on the issue of monetary support for struggling auto suppliers.
08-08-2009, 10:22 AM
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Funny that, not even a year ago Toyota was hawking itself as "an american company" with the whole NASCAR bs being the icing on the cake.
But all of the sudden, when they stand to lose anything, they're as Japanese as Honda and chopsticks.
Hopefully americans aren't dumb enough to fall for this, but I doubt it.
But all of the sudden, when they stand to lose anything, they're as Japanese as Honda and chopsticks.
Hopefully americans aren't dumb enough to fall for this, but I doubt it.
08-08-2009, 09:15 PM
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Funny that, not even a year ago Toyota was hawking itself as "an american company" with the whole NASCAR bs being the icing on the cake.
But all of the sudden, when they stand to lose anything, they're as Japanese as Honda and chopsticks.
Hopefully americans aren't dumb enough to fall for this, but I doubt it.
But all of the sudden, when they stand to lose anything, they're as Japanese as Honda and chopsticks.
Hopefully americans aren't dumb enough to fall for this, but I doubt it.
08-09-2009, 08:06 AM
#11
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Join Date: Dec 1999
Posts: 538
So Josephine Cooper of Toyota, please enlighten us when in history the Japanese government has offered US automotive manufacturers it's tax dollars to help sell cars in domestic Japan? Matter of fact let's broaden it, when have Japanese tax dollars ever been used to support US based automotive manufacturing. And no funding Toyota's battery development for Hybrids that are imported and sold into the US with revenue coming back to the mother land doesn't count.
We're all waiting.....
We're all waiting.....
08-09-2009, 08:43 AM
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Posts: 538
The Japanese central bank has manually intervened into currency markets to make Japanese products ripe for export and has done so for 15+ years. Our government is weak to do anything about it, as we need Japan and China to continue purchasing our treasury bills so we can fund yet more government waste and drive up our deficit. So Japan has us buy the nuts so thus we knowingly allow this to happen. Up until mid 2008 the Yen was trading at around 110 per USD. This allowed the the Japanese a basic monetary subsidy for every vehicle it imported into the US. Figures have it around $2500 for low end models, up to $15,000 for luxury SUV's (think Lexus). Funny in the 6 months of press coverage of the domestics being bankrupt this issue gets zero attention. So much for investigative journalism.
So amazing as our economy started crashing, along with volume dropping the USD got considerable weaker, trading at 80'ish Yen per USD. This killed the baked in financial subsidy the Japanese companies were taking advantage. Heck Toyota lost more money in Q1 2009 than did GM. How's this possible for Toyota who was suppose to be the best of the best. Well little does the press or general America for that matter really care, but Toyota and the others lost their secret cash cow. They've gained some of their leverage back recently with the Yen trading at 95'ish per USD.
Kind of amazing when the touted best of the best Toyota suddenly goes to losing more money than the bankrupt GM.
So yes protectionism, the Japanese leverage it to the hilt. The weak Yen keeps the Japanese market free of most all import competition to it's domestic market and positions their manufacturing for export. Sure BMW and Mercedes and a few token other manufacturers sell a few vehicles there, but in total they are peanuts in comparison to the Japanese domestic share.
The one thing Japan does have of which we've lost our way is pride in country. Japan exploits this pride with every opportunity. Here in the US we've become and public commonwealth with no real pride or enthusiasm for our country or our people. We won't be better off in the long run with this mindset.
Heck in this country it's offensive to some that the American flag is flown at a university or such. So what do we do? We take it down as to not be offensive.
Last edited by Derek M; 08-10-2009 at 10:14 AM.
08-09-2009, 12:23 PM
#13
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Join Date: May 2003
Posts: 93
The one thing about the Japanese that I admire is when their executives screw up, they fall on their swords. When our executives screw up, they cover it up long enough to cash out as much as they can, and then steal the rest.
08-09-2009, 12:48 PM
#14
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Location: Albany, NY
Posts: 10,287
Huge. The Japanese auto market is the only large vehicle market that holds around a 90% share of it's own market.
The Japan central bank has manually intervened into currency markets to make Japanese products ripe for export and has done so for 15+ years. Our government is weak to do anything about it, as we need Japan and China to continue purchasing our treasury bills so we can fund yet more government waste and drive up our deficit. Up until mid 2008 the Yen was trading at around 110 per USD. This allowed the the Japanese a basic monetary subsidy for every vehicle it imported into the US. Figures have it around $2500 for low end models, up to $15,000 for luxury SUV's (think Lexus).
So amazing as our economy started crashing, along with volume dropping the USD got considerable weaker, trading at 80'ish Yen per USD. This killed the baked in financial subsidy the Japanese companies were taking advantage. Heck Toyota lost more money in Q1 2009 than did GM?. How's this possible for Toyota who was suppose to be the best of the best. Well little does the press or general America for that matter really care, but Toyota and the others lost their secret cash cow. They've gained some of their leverage back recently with the Yen trading at 95'ish per USD.
Sort of amazing when the touted best of the best Toyota suddenly goes to losing more money than the bankrupt GM.
So yes protectionism, the Japanese leverage it to the hilt. The weak Yen keeps the Japanese market free of most all import competition to it's domestic market and positions their manufacturing for export. Sure BMW and Mercedes and a few token others sell a few vehicles there, but they are peanuts in comparison to the Japanese domestic share.
The Japan central bank has manually intervened into currency markets to make Japanese products ripe for export and has done so for 15+ years. Our government is weak to do anything about it, as we need Japan and China to continue purchasing our treasury bills so we can fund yet more government waste and drive up our deficit. Up until mid 2008 the Yen was trading at around 110 per USD. This allowed the the Japanese a basic monetary subsidy for every vehicle it imported into the US. Figures have it around $2500 for low end models, up to $15,000 for luxury SUV's (think Lexus).
So amazing as our economy started crashing, along with volume dropping the USD got considerable weaker, trading at 80'ish Yen per USD. This killed the baked in financial subsidy the Japanese companies were taking advantage. Heck Toyota lost more money in Q1 2009 than did GM?. How's this possible for Toyota who was suppose to be the best of the best. Well little does the press or general America for that matter really care, but Toyota and the others lost their secret cash cow. They've gained some of their leverage back recently with the Yen trading at 95'ish per USD.
Sort of amazing when the touted best of the best Toyota suddenly goes to losing more money than the bankrupt GM.
So yes protectionism, the Japanese leverage it to the hilt. The weak Yen keeps the Japanese market free of most all import competition to it's domestic market and positions their manufacturing for export. Sure BMW and Mercedes and a few token others sell a few vehicles there, but they are peanuts in comparison to the Japanese domestic share.
The one thing Japan does have of which we've lost our way is pride in country. Japan showcases this in which there is opportunity. Here in the US we've become and public commonwealth with no real pride or enthusiasm for our country or our people. We won't be better off in the long run with this mindset.
