2023: A Test of Integrity and Reputation for the Japanese Automotive Industry

In 2023, despite facing a dual challenge of an economic crisis and the unexpected disruptions caused by Daihatsu, Toyota Vietnam has managed to maintain its position as the leading brand in the passenger car market. Through responsibility and perseverance, the Japanese car manufacturer has successfully overcome these difficulties. Most recently, Toyota has announced the delivery of the Avanza Premio MT to its dealerships starting from January 26th, providing an official response for this model in Vietnam.

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Never back down in the face of an economic crisis

It can be said that 2023 is a tough year for car manufacturers in Vietnam. This is a year that brings together many unfavorable factors. From the economic crisis, unstable interest rates, declining sectors such as securities, real estate, to a series of difficulties in vehicle inspection, which have greatly affected the purchasing power of consumers, thereby causing a sharp decline in the overall domestic car market.

The worrying decline of the Vietnamese automobile market began in April 2023 when the sales volume dropped from over 30,000 vehicles in March to just over 22,400 vehicles (a sharp decrease of 47% compared to April 2022). Moving to May 2023, the car sales volume of the overall market continued to plummet.

To revive the market, many car manufacturers in Vietnam have implemented preferential programs with discounts ranging from tens to hundreds of millions of Vietnamese dong. At the same time, the Government has also issued a decree to offer a 50% reduction in registration fees for domestically assembled vehicles from July 1, 2023, to December 31, 2023. However, that is still not enough to help the Vietnamese car market break through in terms of sales volume.

According to the sales report of the Vietnam Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (VAMA), the total sales volume of the overall market in 2023 reached 301,989 vehicles, a decrease of 25% compared to 2022. Specifically, passenger cars decreased by 27%, commercial vehicles decreased by 16%, and specialized vehicles decreased by 56% compared to 2022. As of the end of December 2023, the sales volume of domestically assembled vehicles reached 181,380 vehicles, a decrease of 20%, while the sales volume of imported vehicles was 120,609 vehicles, a sharp decrease of 32% compared to 2022.

Toyota strives to overcome the “double challenge” and become the best-selling passenger car brand in the market. 

Facing and resolving the consequences of scandals, strengthening customer trust

However, in the midst of the surrounding difficulties, Toyota still demonstrates the resilience of a large brand, maintaining production and business activities while overcoming continuous challenges at the end of 2023.

At the end of 2023, Toyota Vietnam continues to maintain its leading position in the Vietnamese passenger car market with a sales volume of 59,207 vehicles (including Lexus), bringing the total accumulated sales volume to over 916,000 vehicles after nearly 30 years of the Japanese brand’s presence in Vietnam.

This result is not surprising as Toyota has been a familiar name for leading the Vietnamese car market in terms of sales volume for many years. The product range of Toyota Vietnam spans across different segments and always receives positive feedback from customers.

The sales figures of Toyota Vietnam are numbers that many car manufacturers dream of, but every long journey has its challenges and obstacles. At the end of December 2023, abnormalities in the testing procedures of the subsidiary brand Daihatsu became the focus of the world. After detecting abnormalities related to the safety testing of Daihatsu prototypes, Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) quickly temporarily halted the production of vehicles by Daihatsu in certain markets until receiving information from third-party independent inspection and certification organizations.

With the principle of “no evasion, no lies, and no distortion of the truth,” Toyota Motor Corporation and Toyota Vietnam (TMV) have taken proactive actions to ensure the legitimate rights and interests of consumers.

In the Vietnamese market, after inspection, Toyota Motor Corporation confirmed that only one related model, the Avanza Premio manual transmission (MT) version, was affected. Immediately after receiving the information from TMC, TMV proactively suspended the delivery of all vehicles produced by Daihatsu from December 21 according to the Andon system (Andon System: Stop – Call – Wait, immediately detect and report incidents, help Toyota’s production activities prevent errors from flowing into the next stage), in order to verify specific information for the Vietnamese market.

After that, TMV reported this case to the management agencies in Vietnam. In fact, the Avanza Premio MT vehicles produced and distributed in Vietnam have been inspected and certified by the Vehicle Registration Department to meet Vietnamese standards and have been issued certificates of technical safety and environmental protection for motor vehicles. Therefore, the Avanza Premio MT model in Vietnam meets the required quality standards, and customers who own this model can use it with peace of mind.

On January 26, Toyota Vietnam officially resumed delivery of Avanza MT to dealers. 

The Daihatsu incident clearly demonstrates the spirit of admitting mistakes and making corrections, and the proactive commitment of the Japanese company. At the same time, the company has also prepared standard procedures such as activating the Andon system to protect the highest customer rights. That is the “trust” of the Japanese people.

2023 ended with many difficulties, challenges, and fluctuations in the Vietnamese automobile market. However, it is hoped that 2023 is just a “trial” of the resilience and reputation of Japanese brands before entering a more vibrant development phase in the near future.

Anh Quân (forum.autodaily.vn)

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