Case Study Of Toyota Prius

Cole, R. E. (2011). What really happened to Toyota? MIT Sloan Management Review, 52(4), 29-35. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.library.capella.edu/docview/875531966?accountid=27965

Exciting and fun to drive are not the first words that typically come to mind when the car of discussion is the Toyota Prius; but should they be? Most people associate the terms hybrid, conservative, and gas efficient solely with the Prius. However, is this simplistic general consensus of the car an accurate description of what the vehicle actually offers? Is the Prius just a “great car” because it is a hybrid or is it a great car that just happens to be a hybrid. Typically, the criteria used to determine whether a car is great or not is the performance, aesthetics, and the economic value of the vehicle. The Prius is a great car because of its exceptional performance, attractive aesthetics and great economic value.

Toyota was thought to be the best quality car in the 1970s and 1980s but, due to Japanese competition, American car manufactures soon began to close the rankings gap. At the top of their game in 2010, Toyota had to stop manufacturing and order a large recall of automobiles. While leadership was probably considered great at the height of Toyota’s success, changes were obviously needed during the recall period and management needed to be as adaptable to those changing conditions. The only thing regarded as permanent in a market economy is change

Competition is good for producers but better for consumers, more competition in the market means more: ideas, channels of distribution, market stability and competitive (lower) prices for consumers. Ultimately, healthy competition forces producers to offer better products and services at lower prices. Automobiles provide people with “…aspirational value in addition to a basic mode of transportation…” (Reinhardt, Yao & Egawa, 2006) consumers make purchasing “decision based on the styling, color, and concept of the cars in addition to functions and pricing” (Reinhardt, Yao & Egawa, 2006). So far, TMC has been trying to catch up with Honda and Nissan in the ‘innovative’ department. Let’s not forget the criticism the company previously faced for offering its customers “…proliferation of look-alike cars…and following rather than setting a trend” (Reinhardt, Yao & Egawa, 2006).Since, Mr.

Although Toyota invented this new hybrid vehicle more than ten years ago, it did not offer the car to the USA consumers immediately. The main reason was that Toyota was aware of the new technology challenges. While Toyota was on the market research and new product development, other companies were focusing on merger and acquisition. Brand recognition, technology changes and improvement take several years to finish and Toyota wanted to launch a product which has cleared all the possible obstacles such as space, efficiency, speed, safety, weight which can meet all consumers ' expectations.

| * Focuses on environmentally friendly cars. * Technological innovations have given Toyota competitive advantage.

Once the market introduction stage was over for the Prius, other car manufacturers started exploring the hybrid market. These manufacturers consisted of Ford and General Motors. While they were new to the market Honda, an already existing competitor, was coming out with more hybrid models offering one of their best sellers the Civic in a hybrid model. Once this happened Toyota had to take a difference approach for the Prius, now that there was more competition, Toyota needed to distinguish the Prius. Positioning is considered to be what consumers think about your proposed or current products in the market. Toyota needed to come out with a new marketing strategy to distinguish them, in a now crowded market. Toyota decided to present their Hybrid Synergy Drive to the market in 2003. The Hybrid Synergy Drive powertrain was capable of operating on either gas or electric and also both together to give optimum performance and power to the hybrid model. The Toyota Prius earned s few accolades consisting of best-in-class fuel economy and best-in-market fuel emissions performance. Toyota also lowered the costs of their

I feel that these distinctions are important to Americans, only because they want to find someone to blame for economic and social issues. For instance, I have heard ignorant people state that Mexicans are the reason that Americans can’t find jobs. The reality is, that many act like they are too good to clean a toilet or do many of the jobs they are willing to do. Another ignorant statement is that Blacks are more likely to do crime, the reality is that our environment and other factors can influence someone behavior. Instead of finding a solution, we are trying to find someone to blame or prove that we are superior.

main strategy for the North American market is to aim for higher sales, while raising the proportion of locally produced automobiles. Toyota Motor Corp have reached a stage where investments made over the last several years to expand production capacity are beginning to show returns and improved profitability can be expected. Toyota’s goal is to bolster local production through additional investment, and contribute to the regional economy by expanding its operations. At present, our production capacity in North America is approximately 1.25 million units (including our joint venture with GM). However, Toyota Motor Corp plan to boost this to 1.45 million units during 2003.

Automobile industry is faster growing industry nowadays than other industry. Industry analysis by Porter 's five forces can be said that threat of new entrants is low due to huge capital and cutting-edge technology. Suppliers are weak because they are spread all over the world and cannot easily forward integrate. Buyers are weak due to low demand for non-consumer goods (automobile) and high switching costs; moreover, buyers are not able to backward integrate. Substitutes are moderately strong due to different and less-expensive transportation facilities. On the other hand, intensity of rivalry is strong because of major players are dominant in the market by nearly same technology and manufacturing processes, suppliers

The last several years were also tumultuous for the U.S. auto industry. After dominating the market for decades, American automakers had grown complacent about product development. At the same time, rising gas prices and uncertainty about the economy caused consumer preferences to shift from SUVs to more fuel efficient vehicles. Foreign competitors entered the U.S. market offering more reliable, higher quality and more fuel efficient vehicles at a lower price and began to steal market share away from American automakers. In order to remain competitive, U.S. automakers need to focus on increasing production efficiencies and developing innovative product offerings. Firm Analysis

Among midsize SUVs, the Hyundai Santa Fe stands tall. No, it doesn’t sit higher than the competition, rather it possesses certain attributes its competitors don’t offer, namely superior bumper-to-bumper and powertrain warranties.

Toyota is a key player in global automotive market. Its structure constitutes if various production plants in different locations and a very strong branding which helps it capture a major market share. Like other enterprises, Toyota has several strengths and weakness which makes it what it is now. Toyota heavily invests in Research and development which helps it come up reputable product line which is spread out throughout the world because of its strengthening global distribution network however its recent product recalling, loose grip in key geographic areas and wrong allocation of resources shows that even a strong brand like Toyota has its weaknesses.

Natural Forces: with natural forces marketers would be aware of trends, like the shortage or raw materials trend, the increase of population, and the government. with the government putting more emphasis on being environmentally friendly Toyota seems to have taken this to heart seeing as the Prius is one of the greenest vehicles on the market. also with the population tending to gather around more urban settings it is becoming more essential to have a vehicle with better gas mileage with more people commuting back and forth to work.

Since the early 1950’s Toyota has been in the business of manufacturing automobiles as a family operated company. Much of Toyota’s success has come from their ability to adapt to an ever changing market place, in both good times and in bad, while honoring its commitment to product safety and quality. This commitment has allowed them to consistently produce cars that meet or exceed that of their competition, while taking into consideration the impact on our