America, Toyota should move forward together

Toyota has been reminding consumers it is “Moving Forward” for years. The motto is supposed to embody the company’s “passion for innovation,” but of late there has been little trust in the car giant’s commitment to excellence.

As more than eight million vehicles have been recalled during the past few months, it’s no surprise Toyota’s reputation has been struggling.

The cars affected range from the reliable Camry, which suffers from sudden acceleration problems, to the environmentally friendly Prius, which has been found to have faulty breaks.

These design flaws likely contributed to 100 incidents, 17 of which were crashes that resulted in five deaths. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood described the situation as “an urgent matter.”

Clearly, any company — even one well-regarded by the public — would be battling a PR nightmare from the fallout of such a massive recall. Toyota is certainly looking at an uphill struggle if it wants to make amends — but they are on the right track.

Toyota is taking responsibility for having produced vehicles that are not safe.

In the face of mounting customer concern, threats of government investigations and the reality of a congressional hearing, the company is doing what it can to remedy things.

It’s exactly what we, as Americans, want to see from Toyota. It’s no secret the Camry is one of the best-selling cars in the industry and has won multiple awards. It’s a good car, and Toyota is a good company. It appears the fallout from this debacle has been cushioned by the fact that this country wants to fall in love with Toyota again.

That’s why it was a good step for Toyota’s president, Akio Toyoda, to testify before U.S. lawmakers about the recall. By continuing this level of transparency, the company can hope to “move forward” with the American public at its side.