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I guess with four dealer networks totaling 4900 dealerships it's not as dramatic as it sounds.I've always found it a bit odd that they have separate dealer networks often selling the same car with only minor differences.I suppose one has to have a better understanding of the Japanese market to make sense of it. Too bad about the loss of jobs,though.

".....as sales slumped partly due to a declining population and dwindling interest in cars among the young generation. "

What a shocker there... Does Toyota make anything even remotely affordable that isn't a complete appliance these days? I'm sorry to any 'Yota die hards, but they have fallen huge in the excitement department and become the king of bland.

It isn't just Toyota that's suffering from falling sales in Japan. All car makers are hurting, partially because of the economy, but mostly because young people in Japan aren't buying cars any more. They'd rather have iPhones and the internet. Not only are cars expensive to buy in Japan, but there's the cost of getting a license (which is very expensive in Japan), insurance, maintenance, and parking. So why should young people bother with that when they've got a perfectly good mass-transit system and they can text their friends? Oh, and let's not forget the declining population in Japan which isn't helping sales any.

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My JNC: 1983 Subaru GL wagon
My JNM: 1979 Yamaha XS Eleven

A Japanese friend once told me that the manufacturers thought that with 3x the dealer networks, they could sell 3x the cars. Water-tight logic, that.



It's not just Toyota. Japanese youths are too busy playing with smartphones and fashion to fiddle with cars

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In the "Team Toyota" magazine Toyotageek was kind enough to send me a copy of Akio Toyoda was asked in an interview what his thoughts were on young people loosing interrest in cars.He replied:"We,the automakers,should verify whether young people are veering away from cars,or if we are veering away from them."
I've said it before,and I'll say it again:that fellow has a mighty good head on his shoulders.

Toyota sold the Celica, the MR2, the Supra, the Paseo, the Corolla TS and some other rather cool cars here, but now, there are no cars for younger people left to buy!

The Yaris TS is not available anymore, the Auris is an old-men-car, the Corolla Sedan too, no Celica/MR-2/Supra aso. to make Toyota interesting. I know of a rather huge amount of people that drove Toyotas in the past but are driving other brands with more interesting cars (VW Scirocco, BMW 1-series, Mazda MX-5 ...) now. Toyota wants to be the sensible car-maker with environmentally friendly cars, but they are loosing a lot of customers this way, only old people will remain buying Toyotas.

What is needed,in my humble opinion,is both proper sportscars(MR2,Celica,Supra)and an injection of passion and excitement into all the models and very significantly;affordable fun cars for the young and/or budget-minded buyers. Akio Toyoda seems to be keenly aware of this,and I think he's got what it takes to see his ideas through.

That is a mighty nice quote.

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I trust Akio Toyoda.

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My JNC: 1983 Subaru GL wagon
My JNM: 1979 Yamaha XS Eleven

Good deal.

Exactly. Toyota needs to start building more interesting cars again. Although, the Paseo was a kinda lame commuter chick car.

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1987 Nissan "Datsun" S12 200sx XE notch
1988 Acura Da3 Integra RS
1981 Toyota Te72 Corolla
1983 Toyota Ae72 Corolla