Incentive Program Spurts Toyota’s March Sales By 40%

By Donald Griffith on April 4, 2010, 6:30 am

It’s ironic that during these tough economic times, an executive at Toyota (NYSE:TM) announced that its March sales increased by 40% due in large part by the incentives it produced in the early part of the month. One of its biggest sellers was the RAV4 SUV (a small-sized SUV) which tripled from February to approximately 24,000, according to Toyota Group vice President, Bob Carter.

Carter added that a small percentage of Toyota’s increase in sales came from customers who were likely to purchase Toyotas in the coming months and suggested that a significant number of buyers were “waiting it out” until the bad media frenzy had died down.

Customer Incentives

As a means to entice customers to pay a visit to their dealerships and invite them into their showrooms, Toyota offered 0% (zero percent) financing on all recalled models, free maintenance, and low leasing rates, despite the recall of approximately eight million cars and trucks. The incentives are to end on Monday, April 5, according to Carter, but he added that some of these incentives would continue into Spring, which would include free maintenance for return customers.

Recalls And Repairs

October 2009 marked the beginning of the company’s recalls in an effort to repair gas pedals which were causing unintended acceleration and to fix brake problems in their most popular big-seller automobiles, including the Camry, due to complaints made by Toyota patrons.

 

Approximately two million cars and trucks have been repaired by Toyota dealers in the United States alone, and the dealers are repairing approximately 50,000 vehicles by attaching metal shims to the accelerators. They are also shaving down the pedals to prevent them from getting trapped under the floor mats. Toyota is putting the blame on faulty mechanical issues and denies that its electronics were the cause of the malfunction.

Related posts:

1. GM Announces Incentives While Toyota Scrambles
2. Yet Another Toyota Recall – This Time Trucks
3. ES Sedan Leads Lexus’ Sales To 24% Gain
4. As Toyota Recalls 8 Models – Stock Takes A Beating
5. Toyota Forecasts Much Higher Operating Profit In Until March 2011