Toyota officially established the China Chief Engineer System, with Chinese engineers leading product development. The Baozhi 3X has become the first model to be launched under this system, and the FAW Toyota bZ Crossover and GAC Toyota Baozhi 7 will be launched soon. This move marks Toyota's departure from the “direct import of global models” model and its shift to in-depth localized research and development. Toyota's localization process has been accelerated, with the first appointment of a Chinese as Vice Chairman and General Manager of Toyota China in January 2025, and the announcement of the construction of a wholly-owned Lexus electric vehicle plant in Shanghai in February, with the President of Global Pure Electric Vehicle Development directly in charge. Mr. Akio Toyoda emphasized that he does not seek to be the top seller, but rather to be the “best local citizen”. Product development under the new system needs to balance Toyota's global “safety and security” standards with the speed and cost requirements of the Chinese market. Toyota's battery technology is already compliant with the new national standard to be implemented in 2026. Li Hui, General Manager of Toyota China, said that the company is moving from the 1.0 era of global model import to the 2.0 era of localized R&D, and in the future will enter the 3.0 era in which China's experience feeds the global market.

Recently, media reported that Toyota reported a recall plan to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism of Japan, applying for the recall of two models, Alphard and Vellfire, produced from December 2014 to April 2023, totaling about 434,000 vehicles. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism said that under certain conditions, parts with insufficient durability of the relevant vehicles may be damaged, and in serious cases, the engine may stall while driving. So far, no relevant accident reports have been received, and 135 fault reports have been received.

On June 28, Toyota Motor was reported to be considering allowing employees to work a four-day week to attract more talent. If a deal is reached with unions, the policy could be implemented as early as this year. It is reported that the welfare benefits of Toyota employees have always been relatively generous. In March this year, Toyota fully accepted the union's demands for salary and bonus increases for the fourth consecutive year. Depending on the position, Toyota employees' monthly salary will increase by up to 28,440 yen (approximately RMB 1,284), and bonuses will increase from the equivalent of 6.7 months' salary in the previous year to the equivalent of 7.6 months' salary.

According to media reports, Toyota Chairman Akio and nine other board members were re-elected at Toyota's annual shareholder meeting. Despite being re-elected, the approval rate has dropped significantly. According to published data, the approval rate for Akio Toyoda's election as chairman is only 71.93%, a record low. More than a quarter of Toyota Motor shareholders oppose re-election. It is not difficult to see that Toyota Motor shareholders are gradually accumulating dissatisfaction with Akio Toyoda. Against this background, Toyoda Akio's re-election as chairman not only reflects his status and influence within the company, but also shows that Toyota Motor's revenue and net profit have achieved significant growth in 2023, and its performance advantages .

On June 18, FAW Toyota issued a document on its official platform saying that it would provide a limited-time comprehensive discount of 43,000 yuan for the Corolla model, with prices starting from 79,800 yuan. According to data released by the National Passenger Car Market Information Joint Conference, FAW Toyota ranked 11th in the retail sales rankings of automakers in May. FAW Toyota, which fell out of the top ten, suffered a severe setback in retail sales of its flagship product Corolla. Its retail sales in May were only 7,693 units, a year-on-year decrease of 54.96% from 17,080 units in the same period last year. Although the company has not specified the expiration date of the promotion this time, this promotion may be to increase the sales volume of the model.

According to media reports, Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism conducted a surprise inspection of Toyota Motor’s headquarters on the morning of the 4th in response to serious irregularities such as data falsification related to safety. Inspectors will question quality managers and analyze relevant documents to find out what happened. According to Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, Toyota's improper conduct so far identified includes: submitting false data in pedestrian protection tests of three models in production; and illegally processing test vehicles in crash tests of four models produced in the past. In addition to Toyota, among the 85 companies requested by Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism to conduct internal investigations, as of the end of May, four companies, Mazda, Yamaha Engine, Honda, and Suzuki, had reported improper behavior and planned to start from the 5th. Conduct surprise inspections on the remaining four companies.

Recently, people familiar with the matter said that Toyota plans to allow employees aged 65 to 70 to continue working at the company to alleviate labor shortages. Currently, Toyota employees can choose to retire at age 60 or work with the company until age 65 at half salary. The retirement age limit will be raised by five years in August. According to data, Japan's working-age population is 73.952 million, a decrease of 256,000, accounting for 59.5% of the entire population, which has continued to be below 60% since 2018.

Recently, media reported that Toyota’s global model smart driving solution will adopt the “Toyota + Huawei + Momenta” tripartite joint solution model. This solution is different from Huawei’s existing ADS high-end assisted driving system. Autonomous driving companies Momenta and Huawei provide software respectively. and hardware solutions, in-depth cooperation and integration among the three parties. According to people familiar with the matter, Toyota is expected to officially announce specific plans during the Beijing Auto Show. I asked Toyota for confirmation on this news, but they said they had "no comment."

On March 13, Japan's "spring fight" (annual salary negotiations) results have been announced, Japan's various industries wage growth than in 2023 rose sharply, paving the way for the Bank of Japan to end the negative interest rate policy。"Spring fight" negotiations "weathervane" Toyota first announced that it agreed to the largest salary increase in 25 years, employee bonuses will be from 6.7-month salary increase to 7.6 months salary, becoming the highest annual bonus ever。Depending on the position, the monthly salary of Toyota employees will increase by up to 28,440 yen, further reinforcing expectations that the Bank of Japan will open the door to a key monetary policy shift next week.。

Ted Ogawa, CEO of Toyota Motor America, said he believes that by 20 to 30 years, pure electric vehicles will account for only 30 percent of the U.S. new car market, just half the target set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) last year.。Ogawa said that as the largest hybrid vehicle promoter in the automotive industry, Toyota believes that instead of "wasting" funds on pure electric vehicles, it is better to directly purchase points to meet EPA requirements。

On January 30, Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda bowed and apologized for a series of recent scandals at a press conference in Nagoya。Akio Toyoda said: "We apologize for the inconvenience caused to our stakeholders, including our customers.。It is reported that on January 29, 4 engines produced by Toyota Automatic Loom Company, a subsidiary of Toyota Group, were exposed to "false exhaust emission test data," of which 3 automotive diesel engines were used by 10 Toyota models.。Toyota decided to stop related diesel shipments on the same day, Toyota Motor Corporation President Hiroshi Sato bowed and apologized at a press conference in Tokyo, and said he would "deeply reflect."。