New Toyota chief expects more losses

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Akio Toyoda, the newly-appointed president of Toyota Motor Corp, expects it will take be at least another two years before the company turns a profit.

Speaking at his first press conference since taking over the role, Toyoda said: "We want to do everything possible to avoid a third consecutive year of losses."

The company posted a loss of Yen461bn (£2.91bn/$4.8bn) for the last financial year and forecasts a further loss of Yen850bn for this year. Its worldwide vehicle production fell by 38% last month, to 501,685.

Toyoda, who is the grandson of the company’s founder, plans to weather the storm of the global recession without cutting full-time jobs. Hopefully that will also include those at its F1 team in Cologne, Germany.

Toyoda has not indicated any potential consequences for the company’s Formula 1 team, which has competed since 2002 without winning a race.

Team principal John Howett has played a major role in the Formula 1 Teams’ Association, and has rejected rumours Toyota may pull its team if certain performance objectives (believed to include winning a race and finishing in the top three in the constructors’ championship) are not met.

Read more: Toyota F1 team information

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Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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6 comments on “New Toyota chief expects more losses”

  1. I wouldn’t be surprised to see an exit by Toyota atthe end of this season an announcement that it will leave by end of 2010. That is unless a miracle happens and they win.

    1. Sush Meerkat
      26th June 2009, 18:41

      doesn’t the whole FOTA FIA deal means they have to commit till 2012 regardless?.

  2. Well, they could make a deal with Williams to become partners and not just engine suppliers. In that way they would still be present in Formula 1…

  3. They will at least be there for 2012 I think

    1. They will at least be there for 2012 I think

      Only the ‘teams’ have so far given any sort of indication that they have ‘commited’ until 2012.In the present circumstances none of them are likely to say ‘Well we just don’t know,the cost of competing in F1 could just be too much for us to continue competetively’.

      None of the ‘parent’ companies from any of the teams have so far given any indication that they are willing to continue in F1 until 2012.But I’m sure that if any of them had done so there would be enquiries from here,there and everwhere asking ‘why is it that you can still afford to run an F1 team,but you made me and thousands more like me redundant about a week ago!’

  4. Toyota customers have been experiencing record financial losses of their own!

    See the following links for more information:

    http://www.toyotaoilgel.com
    http://www.uc2.blogspot.com
    http://www.petitiononline.com/TMC2003/petition.html

    Follow “toyotasludge”on Twitter.

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