Sometime ago there was a discussion on Japan-made vs NＡ-made Toyota. I mentioned that I will never buy a NA-made Toyota due to quality, some of the Priuschat members disagree. Today, I found this on the Toyota website... Toyota Vehicles : Toyota Recall January 2010: Voluntary Safety Gas Pedal Recall / Toyota
If I am not mistaken...ABC News had a story on unintended acceleration that also included the Prius...they specifically mention an MD in Phila. that has refused to drive his Prius again until Toyota identifies the cause of the unintended acceleration that he experienced. I also believe all Prii are made in Japan...so much for problems only w/ North American made Toyota's.
The issues of the recall are in numerous threads. However, the issue of "American Made" versus other locations of manufacture is a new take on the situation. After all, the way I see it, it's not just a question of "Made in the USA" but rather a larger question of, "would you buy a particular vehicle or model if you know exactly where it was assembled?" Personally, I think that if mcsj brought up the point some time ago, the typical answer would have been that it didn't matter. After all, the morally correct response is to support the local labor and financial foundation by purchasing locally made products. Personally, I would have been more likely to purchase a Kentucky-made Camry than one made in Japan solely on the intent of supporting the local communities. So perhaps there's another question in here somewhere: "will this recall hurt all of Toyota as much as it might damage the 'Made in the USA' stamp?"
The sticky accelerator pedal issue is curious, because similar complaints about the Prius had surfaced in this board. It could have been a coincidence, but then again it might not. Could it be that some Japan-made Prius cars had the CTS accelerator assembly? When it comes to quality control there is no doubt that the Japanese are ahead of anybody else in the world, including most German-made cars/appliances.
The Prius sticker says 100% parts content from Japan. IMO the plant makes a difference. When Toyotas & Pontiacs were rolling out of the same plant did they have the same build quality? How did that compare to the Japanese assembled model? Companies tend to outsource due to price. To get cheap you pay with quality.
The 04-09 Prius is under the floormat recall, not the accelerator pedal recall. They're all made in Japan.
