Toyota Loses Ground to the Competition (Business Week)

Summary: While Honda (HMC) held on to its lead in Strategic Vision’s annual vehicle value survey, Toyota (TM) fell in the rankings, winning only three categories, down from seven in 2005. Hyundai and General Motors (GM) both gained ground, winning three categories each, and sharing honors for the best small SUV (GM’s Saturn Vue and Hyundai’s Tucson). GM was the only domestic car manufacturer to win any category. According to Strategic Vision’s president Alexander Edwards, Honda’s "perceived reliability and durability" has helped it create the strongest brand equity. Toyota’s brand equity comes in second, but suffers from a perception that they are not innovating as fast as other brands. The best performing company in the survey was actually luxury car maker BMW, but they are not considered to have a complete line of vehicles.
Related links: Full article • Toyota Unveils Capital Spending Strategy • Why Japanese Cars Earn $2400 More Profit Each • Japan's Big-3 Auto to Further Expand Fuel Efficiency • Toyota's Development Slowdown and Quality Improvement Are Smart Moves • Honda Pulls Ahead of the Pack • JD Power: Lexus and Toyota Together Capture 11 of 19 Initial Quality Model Awards
Potentially impacted stocks and ETFs: Ford (F), DaimlerChrysler (DCX), Nissan (NSANY).

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