Toyota no more world’s biggest car maker. General Motors takes over the reigns

General Motors

Toyota Motor Corp. is no more the global leader among automakers. The Japanese automaker was pushed down to third spot after Volkswagen who secured the second podium place. The leader now is General Motors who takes over the reigns from the Toyota. General Motors was at the top of the standings for a decade before Toyota Motor Corp took over.

But, the recent earthquake and tsunami had a big impact on the automakers activities not just in Japan but around the globe. General Motors announced its quarterly earnings and came out with surprising results. The earthquake-hit automaker helped General Motors nearly double its profits in the second quarter. Net income for the quarter to June rose 89 percent to a better-than-expected $2.5 billion, or $1.54 a share, from a year earlier, the company said.

2010 Toyota Prius Hybrid

Total revenue grew $6.2 billion to $39.4 billion, with pre-tax adjusted profit in the key North America division up $600 million to $2.2 billion. GM returned to a $102 million profit in Europe, from a loss of $160 million a year earlier. In its international operations division, which includes the giant emerging economies India and China, earnings were up $100 million, while Latin America returns were down by the same amount.

Earlier it was thought, the European auto giant, Volkswagen would take over as the world’s biggest automaker but the surprising comeback by GM now puts the German company in second place. Apart from the natural disasters, the recall saga that haunted also contributed to Toyota’s debacle. The recalls that amounted to 1.8 million vehicles worldwide did damage the company’s reputation. Which even the Toyota management accepts to have taken a hit.

2011 Chevrolet Volt

In a bid to regain the customers confidence, Toyota will embark on a new and aggressive promotion strategy. This will start with the launch of the new Toyota Camry sedan. The new car is expected to be showcased at the Frankfurt motor show later this year. Toyota will be keen to get back to pace with other manufacturers to regain its top spot but, the journey for the this ain’t gonna be easy.

Since, the Japanese industry is still coming to terms with the situation after the devastation that left most of the island nation’s industry crippled. The effects of the catastrophe will be felt for years to come and only time will tell when the Japanese automakers will bounce back. Till then, General Motors will be happy to rule the auto market. The quarterly results of the American automaker also suggest that the American car market is slowly inching towards recovery after the slowdown and recession.

2011 Toyota RAV4

One more factor that contributed to GM’s growth is the new products that the company launched in the recent months. General Motors sure seems to have learned its lessons after the slowdown. The automaker invested in the research and development of new, products that were safe for the planet. Americans are now asking for more fuel-efficient automobiles and this is what GM tried to to provide. GM engineers were concentrating on providing efficient products with low-emissions which was the need of the hour.

The Chevrolet Volt pitted GM directly against Toyota who were already selling the Prius in huge numbers. The new environmental laws too have contributed to forcing automakers to rethink. Now, even stringent fuel economy standards have been announced. US President Barack Obama, announced new automobile fuel-efficiency standards las that require an average 54.5 miles per gallon by 2025. So, in the long run, the automaker who will be able to innovate to keep up with the ever changing world we live in, will be at the top of the standings.

Via AFP

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August 6, 2011 | By Tushar Kelshikar · Tags:

Comments

One Response to “Toyota no more world’s biggest car maker. General Motors takes over the reigns”

ashwin on August 8th, 2011 10:18 am

SAIC-GM-Wuling minivans set to enter India market: After reading the article, I would like to say that if S G M W are really trying to enter in the minivan segment they have to over come the lagging portion of eeco and venture. Like the width of both the van is not good you feel like sitting in a rickshaw ther is no space for three ADULTS. To my view the minimum width should be over 1700mm, the leg, knee, thigh room is also cramp, there should be ample space for all the three rows, where as the luggage space, this can be kept on top or say provision should be available. People in India buy mini van who have big joint family, which is there in India. Secondly I stay in Mumbai and from mumbai people trvel to Goa, Ratnagiri say Kokan region, which takes 8 to 12 hrs depending upon the distance, so when you travel, passengers should not get fatigue or tired at the end or say should not feel, that their B… have become pancakes. So I request Wuling to have a minivan built which is SPACIOUS ( LEG, KNEE & SHOULDER ROOM)in all the rows (3), good posture seats for long drives. A good ac like Venture (personal ventilation) Last but not the least gooooood mileage and sufficient lighting for driving at night. As per my view let the van be 70 to 80 % on luxury side, as people in india will go for it only for long interstate / city drives along with their family on long vacation. Regarding using as a Taxi, its upto the company. But please DO NOT REPEAT VENTURE / EECO SPECIFICATION, where first and middle seat are cramp and are not recommended for long drive, but eeco fulfills this need but lags in power and comfort safety. Eeco is tall and hence on highway it tends to swing on turns and feels unsafe.
Hope SAIC-GM-Wuling (SGMW) will look into this and come out by DIWALI 2011. And am sure I will go for it provided…….. under 5 lakhs or around.
You can call me for a (comman man) view on this van
All the BEST.
Thanking you,
Regards

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