LaHood Inspects Toyota, Remains Skeptic

Bertel Schmitt
by Bertel Schmitt

U.S. Transport Secretary Ray LaHood is in Japan today. He’s looking at trainsets. Japan is bidding on the U.S.A.’s (long in the) future high speed rail network. So is everybody else in the world, including the Chinese. Good luck to both of them. While in Japan, LaHood personally inspected Toyota’s safety facilities in Toyota City to see whether they are up to snuff. You think Mr. “Feet to the Fire” LaHood gave Toyota a clean bill of health? Think again.

According to LaHood, “time will tell.”

“I believe that they have put in place some measures that will enable us at the Department of Transportation to have a better handle and a better form of information if they’re carried out,” LaHood told a news conference in Toyota. “And what I told Mr. Toyoda today, these measures are important measures but I use the American colloquialism: the proof is in the pudding.”

If that sounds a bit ambivalent, or downright dismissive to you, then you are not alone. Quite possibly, the frightened Japanese already convened a conference of their pastry chefs.

Last month, Toyota agreed to pay a record $16.4 million federal fine as penance for delaying a safety recall over defective accelerator pedals. Currently, U.S. regulators are sifting through 500,000 documents to see whether they can assess a second fine, based on the theory that there were two separate defects in the pedals.

LaHood says the research is still ongoing, and that it “will be a while.” The government needs the money. One fine barely pays for a mile of high speed rail.

Honda and Nissan will be next on LaHood’s visiting schedule, says Reuters.

Mr. Secretary: The trains are built by Hitachi and Kawasaki Heavy.

Bertel Schmitt
Bertel Schmitt

Bertel Schmitt comes back to journalism after taking a 35 year break in advertising and marketing. He ran and owned advertising agencies in Duesseldorf, Germany, and New York City. Volkswagen A.G. was Bertel's most important corporate account. Schmitt's advertising and marketing career touched many corners of the industry with a special focus on automotive products and services. Since 2004, he lives in Japan and China with his wife <a href="http://www.tomokoandbertel.com"> Tomoko </a>. Bertel Schmitt is a founding board member of the <a href="http://www.offshoresuperseries.com"> Offshore Super Series </a>, an American offshore powerboat racing organization. He is co-owner of the racing team Typhoon.

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  • Contrarian Contrarian on May 10, 2010

    I would love to see the training, schooling and experience that qualifies this 2nd rate midwestern policy wonk as a safety expert.

  • KingShango KingShango on May 10, 2010

    There seems to be some confusion here. LaHood isn't an engineer or safety expert and he doesn't need to be. Look at his comments "...enable us at the Department of Transportation to have a better handle and a better form of information." Toyota was fined for not handing over information about potential safety issues, not for an engineering mistake or using faulty equipment. Toyota's problems lie with their management and administrative bureaucracy and in that regard Mr. Lahood is, unfortunately, an expert.

  • Akear Akear on May 10, 2010

    Can't this country produce anything anymore? We are basically without a viable autoindustry, now we have to go globetrotting to find somebody to build a rail system for us. I thought the administration was looking into using US railcar's DMU units for high speed routes. With upgrades they are now capable of cruising at 110 - 125 mph. Vermont has been using them for the last five years. http://www.usrailcar.com/ High speed version http://www.usrailcar.com/dmu-specs.php

  • Tedj101 Tedj101 on May 10, 2010

    >>I would love to see the training, schooling and experience that qualifies this 2nd rate midwestern policy wonk as a safety expert.

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