Chile Forum

I found this article on line and I was wondering if it registers on anybody's BS. meter.
According to news reports, the recall could extend across Europe as well.
Can anyone provide other examples of events that seem not to effect Chile?
SANTIAGO -(Dow Jones)- Toyota Chile rules out safety flaws in any of the vehicles it has sold in Chile between 2005 and 2010, the company's marketing and planning director Patricio Sarabia told Dow Jones Newswires.

Earlier this week, Toyota halted sales of most of its popular models in the U.S. because of safety concerns. It recalled millions of vehicles in the U.S. last week following growing reports of unintended acceleration.

Meanwhile, Toyota Motor Corp.'s (TM: 76.94, -0.72, -0.93%) quality concerns in the U.S. have spread to China, with a potential accelerator pedal flaw prompting the recall of more than 70,000 RAV4 sport-utility vehicles sold in China.

"To date, there have been no indications that there are any security flaws with the vehicles Toyota sells in Chile," Sarabia said.

During the last five years, Toyota has sold 13,334 Corolla; 5,790 RAV4; 472 Camry; 44 Tundra and 14 Sequoia model vehicles in Chile, according to the executive.

The Camry, RAV4 and Corolla models were built in Japan for the Chilean market, while the Tundra and Sequoia cars were manufactured in the U.S. for the Latin American market, he added.

Toyota reports on its Web site that the accelerator pedal recall and suspension of sales is limited to its 2009-2010 RAV4, 2009-2010 Corolla, 2009-2010 Matrix, 2005-2010 Avalon, certain 2007-2010 Camry, 2010 Highlander except hybrid models, 2007-2010 Tundra, and 2008-2010 Sequoia division vehicles.

Copyright © 2009 Dow Jones Newswires

Either explanation seems fairly plausible to me. Cars are certainly sometimes built in different countries to different standards. On the other hand, whilst I'm sure the Chilean government would take this seriously, the financial implications for the manufacturer if found liable in an individual case or two would probably be trifling here. But I reckon if the Chilean government caught a whiff of what you're smelling they would look into it and slap them with a big fat fine.

James.

Perhaps the Toyota legal department calculated that Chile's limited laws related to class action lawsuits and lack of any sort of real punitive damages means it is simply more cost effective to let the peddles stick.

I would be interested in seeing a breakdown of number of cars recalled in countries around the World vs. those countries average damage awards / cost of litigation.

On the other hand, LAN reported solid earnings this year, not as good as 2008 but solidly in the black. It's considered to be one of the few investment grade airlines.

On the third hand, Citigroup is increasing ownership of Banco de Chile. They must have an optimistic view of Chile. Maybe they're trying to attract business from expat Americans and facilitate banking.


C,mon, folks. This is not intended to be a negative, bash Chile thread, just a place to note occurrences that seem to contradict the present norms.

Zenth wrote:During the last five years, Toyota has sold 13,334 Corolla; 5,790 RAV4; 472 Camry; 44 Tundra and 14 Sequoia model vehicles in Chile, according to the executive.

The Camry, RAV4 and Corolla models were built in Japan for the Chilean market, while the Tundra and Sequoia cars were manufactured in the U.S. for the Latin American market, he added.

Really, 472 Camrys were manufactured *differently* just for Chile over five years with a custom braking system? Seems a bit hard to believe. The Camry is a high-volume vehicle and Chile is a tiny market.

Toyota retirará más de 60.000 vehículos de América Latina por falla en el acelerador
http://www.emol.com/noticias/tecnologia ... cia=396734

Let's see how long Toyota Chile sticks to their story.

here we go: http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-201 ... theadlines