At this point, you no doubt have heard about the public beating Toyota is taking regarding the massive recall of its popular Prius hybrid cars, and all other cars with faulty acceleration pedals and floor mats.

After much pressure from Congress, several automobile safety groups and the North American Toyota offices, the company decided to recall upwards of 5.3 million vehicles (so far) to replace the faulty pedals.

These pedals cause the affected cars to accelerate out of control, potentially harming the driver, passengers and people in other vehicles on the road. Several floor mats have also been recalled for getting stuck in the acceleration pedal, causing the same uncontrolled acceleration.

So aside from the obvious, why is everyone making a big fuss about this incident? Because Toyota has known about these faulty pedals since 2008, when reports first came in from several European countries.

Photo Courtesy MCT

When asked why they didn’t replace the pedals in America with the knowledge that they were faulty, they simply said they had not realized until October that the pedals in cars made in the U.S. used the same material as those in Europe. However, both regions receive pedals made by the same supplier.

So while new models in Europe are being fixed, cars in America and Japan are still being produced with the faulty pedal. This all due to a lack of communication and accountability.

For decades, Toyota has been a leader of the automobile industry. Since its introduction into North America (met with harsh criticism), Toyota has taken pride in its quality-over-quantity ideals that have made their Camry and Corolla models so popular.

However with the expansion of the company, and the addition of the “alternative” Scion brand, as well as “going green” with the Prius models, Toyota has been criticized for slowly abandoning the philosophy that made them so successful.

With this recent chain of events, many Toyota “die-hards” are starting to rethink their loyalties. So, what can Toyota do to fix this situation?

Blame drivers for not using their product correctly like they have done in the past? Well, they learned that lesson when oil sludge would build up in several model’s of cars in 2002 and Toyota blamed the drivers for not getting the recommended oil changes. This only caused a flurry of complaints and lawsuits.

However, in 1989, when defects began to arise in early model Lexuses, what did they do? They went to customers’ homes to retrieve the defective cars, gave the owner a rental, and then returned the Lexus back to the house, repaired and all for free.

It seems Toyota has lost its direction and reputation, especially in terms of customer service and producing a quality product.

To get back on track and to rebuild its image, Toyota must do some bold but simple things. Own up to their mistakes, and repay its customers for any damages done.

Coming out of the gate by saying they did not know there was a defective product, when they knew there was clear evidence against them, was a terrible mistake. Toyota should have immediately apologized and then quietly, but efficiently, recalled any cars produced with the defective pedals or mats, while changing the cars on the production line.

If the “we didn’t know they were faulty in North America” line is actually the truth, and not just a line, then Toyota needs to seriously rethink its companies structure and communication methods.

Last but not least, anyone injured because of the defective product should have more than just their car replaced, they should be fully compensated to avoid any lawsuit.

What was once an industry leading company that set standards for all automobiles must now get back in line and learn from its mistakes, and learn fast. Realistically, a lot of good people most likely lost their jobs over this recall, and those that made the real mistakes due to lack of communication most likely will not.