Toyoda Is Wary Star Of Kabuki At Capitol

Toyota Motor Corp. President Akio Toyoda came here to mend fences. But first, he and lawmakers had to bridge an ocean of confusion. U.S. Rep. Edolphus Towns (D., N.Y.) asked whether Toyota will offer in all its cars a "brake override" to make it less likely a vehicle would keep accelerating if the driver hits the brakes. CEO Akio Toyoda reads from a statement while testifying Wednesday on Toyota's car safety on Capitol Hill. Congressmen grew frustrated as the two sides strained at times to communicate. Mr. Toyoda conferred with his translator. He spoke in Japanese. The translator spoke in English. There followed more Japanese, and more translation. "Yes or no, that's what I am trying to get to," Mr. Towns interrupted in frustration. It was an iconic moment in U.S.-Japanese history: Mr. Toyoda, boss of the most successful car maker in the world, the company that bested Detroit over the past 25 years and forced it to change its own flawed ways, had come to humble himself before the American Congress. And so it went for a three-hour session in which Mr. Toyoda insisted there was nothing wrong with the company's electronic throttles, promised to meet with a professor who claimed there was, apologized for accidents involving Toyota vehicles and endured heated and at times hostile questions. The hearing before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee was the second of three planned by Congress on Toyota's safety crisis, which has prompted the Japanese car maker to recall more than eight million vehicles world-wide for unintended acceleration, brake problems and other issues. Lawmakers Wednesday also grilled Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood about whether his agency had reacted soon enough to reports of problems in Toyotas, and heard emotional testimony from a woman whose family members died in a Lexus that accelerated out of control. Mr. Toyoda's appearance brought a media circus to Capitol Hill to cover an executive who has long been media shy. Mr. Toyoda came to Washington with one overarching goal: reb uild the confidence of American consumers whose business has fueled the phenomenal success of the company founded by his grandfather.

for further: online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703510204575085962673557620.htm