Why personally attack a poster? That, IMO, indicates 2 things: (a) you don't have the ability to address the topic which is Toyota's alleged Diesel Cheat (b) Scott the Ratbag has expressed his opinion on Toyota and you dont have the ability to address his post but instead you attack him personally .
IMO Toyota is now capitalising on the reputation/reliability/durability of its past vehicles and like its competitors such as VW, Hyundai/Kia , MB, BMW etc it is struggling to get its design priorities right to meet customers expectations & brand reputation while at the same time meet emissions, fuel economy and safety standards. (hence the Diesel Cheat)
Emission standards such as NOX has wedged manufacturers between meeting the global standards and optimum fuel economy/vehicle performance...the higher the combustion temperatures-the higher the fuel efficiency but the higher the NOX gases.
This has been managed with 2 strategies (a) EGR (Exhaust Gas Reticulation) which reduces the engine's service life and fuel efficiency (b) Add Blue in diesels (Urea) (this is where the Diesel Cheat came in)
In the 1990s the engineering design priorities were: (a) durability (b) reliability
These have been replaced by: (a) fuel economy (b) regulation compliance...emissions, safety , vehicle security etc.
So IMO all the manufacturers , and particularly Toyota, are struggling to live up to their Brand reputations from the 1990s of durability and relyability.
The mix of fuel economy & emissions/safety compliance has meant lighter cars (more plastic & more electronics which has compromised durability and reliability)
Just check out your local repair shop & your local auto-elec and you'll see what I mean.. late model cars hobbled with electronic problems and premature failure of suspension and running grear parts.
So, IMO, Scott is right when he says that Toyota is marketed on advertising and I'd add past brand reputation to that which has comprehensively changed since the mid/late 1990s. (this is why there is a growing interest in Aus in mid/late 1990s JDMs (Japanese Domestic Marketed) in Aus such as the Surf, Crown , Skyline etc etc)
And of course with globalisation, the Toyota you get today has parts/components from all over the world including China unlike the original Toyotas that were totally Japanese
The Toyota commercials (Hilux, Hiace etc) are made in Thailand with some parts made in China and the Kluger is made in the USA but these still rely on the Made in Japan quality reputation.
Toyota's supply chain including its Chinese subsidiaries have been impacted by Covid closures; hence the delays of up to 12 months for some new models.
That said, the Lexus is still probably the best made /mass produced in the world, IMO, but of course its priced out of the reach of the average Aussie buyer and that evidenced by its numbers sold here.
