Digg Dialogg lets you submit your questions to notable leaders and luminaries. Rather than editors or journalists, the Digg community decides the most popular questions to be posed in the interview. Read More
With the recent controversy surrounding the Toyota vehicle recall, Jim Lentz, President and Chief Operating Officer of Toyota Motor Sales, USA, is answering the Digg community's top questions for a very timely and topical Live Digg Dialogg. He sat down with Digg for a special LIVE Dialogg broadcast to provide perspective on what happened, what they're doing about it and what consumers need to know about the recall.
This Digg Dialogg was streamed LIVE to the Internet on February 8, 2010.
Jim Lentz is the president and Chief Operating Officer of Toyota Motor Sales, USA. He is responsible for sales, marketing and distribution for Toyota, Scion & Lexus vehicles in the United States, in addition to overseeing all corporate matters in the company. He has been with Toyota since 1982, when he joined as the merchandising manager for the Portland region, and has held various roles within the company since then. Lentz holds a bachelor’s degree in Marketing and Economics as well as an MBA – Finance from The University of Denver.
Question #2: How far along is Toyota on moving into some truly gas free cars in the future? Are these kinds of vehicles even possible or feasible in our current lifetime?
(+207 diggs, submitted by adamrl07)
Question #3: I was a General Manager of one of your largest dealerships in the US. I was aware that this problem dates back to 2004. In fact, there was a death involved in a sudden acceleration incident at an Atlantic City Hotel in a Camry that our dealership sold. At this point is Toyota's position going to change as to the dates involved?
(+184 diggs, submitted by rlulov)
Question #4: When will Toyota start making hybrid cars that aren't ugly as sin?
(+122 diggs, submitted by drunkCatholic)
Question #5: A former Toyota attorney has stated the company has known about these issues for at least three years, yet did nothing. He charges that Japanese Toyota executives instead covered up the problems. Are these charges true? And, whether or not they are, there are reports that Toyota has known since 2007 of the gas pedal problems. Why wasn't this dealt with sooner?
(+114 diggs, submitted by JeffCole55)
Question #6: It has been years since Toyota had a sports car (Supra) available for sale in North America. Are there any plans to bring back the Supra or come out with a new affordable sports car?
(+108 diggs, submitted by FAHQ2)
Question #7: Mr. Lentz, I’m currently in the market for a new car, and until the recalls, the 2010 Prius was at the top of my list. I’m now back to square one and researching other manufacturers’ hybrids. While Toyota’s issues with acceleration and braking issues may be isolated, it has become clear that your company did not address these issues proactively or in a timely fashion. What is your message to non-Toyota drivers who may still be interested in your cars, but are very concerned about Toyota’s response to the current crisis?
(+107 diggs, submitted by Traut1Ca)
Question #8: In the world of today, why does Toyota still produce 5 types of SUV's, is that not excessive?
(+104 diggs, submitted by fastguyrules)
Question #9: Toyota has electronic data recorders in the cars -- yet they refused to release the data when I was in a crash, and it would have proven that the accident was not my fault. So I lost my car, my health and thousands of dollars. And now you say you can't track down the cause of this problem. Why not release the electronic data?
(+98 diggs, submitted by tuffy777)
Question #10: Did you hear about Steve Wozniak's software problem with his Toyota Prius?
(+61 diggs, submitted by Echuu)
over 3 years ago
Hey all! Thanks for watching Digg Dialogg! This week, we've got actor Adrien Brody. http://ow.ly/1Qjif
