The classic line from any autojournalist is to complain that, if car companies listened to car enthusiasts, they’d all be broke. But that is lazy thinking. If car companies only listened to their biggest fans they’d all be broke, sure, but not listening to them at all is also a terrible strategy. It’s therefore gratifying to see that Toyota has not just listened to gearheads, but it’s also profited greatly by doing so.
People love to talk, and I love to quote them on The Morning Dump. But quoting someone doesn’t mean I necessarily believe them. Do I believe Toyota’s boss when he says a car has to be fun? Yeah, I do. Nissan’s North American boss says they’re going to need to cut to the bone to survive. Do I believe that? Yes, very much so. North American suppliers say they need the USMCA trade agreement to make it through the long trade winter. Does that sound right? Absolutely, yes.
Elon Musk yesterday told folks at an economic forum that he’ll stop giving money to political campaigns for a while and a bunch of other stuff. Some of those statements might require a bit more verification.
Koji Sato: We No Longer Sell Cars Just With Model Updates
Toyota has been on quite a journey lately. The company known for the Supra, AE86, and Celica suddenly faced a situation in the early 2000s where its fastest cars were trucks or, for a short period of time, the dullest RAV4 ever made. That turned around with the appointment of Akio Toyoda, the enthusiast, as CEO.
It’s not that Toyota is Porsche all of a sudden; it’s just that every current car looks and feels like something a little more special than the beige appliances they had become. Not only is the Supra back, the spirit of the AE86 lives on in the GR86. Americans even get a hot rally hatch in the Corolla GR. Times are good.
Simultaneously, Toyota as a brand faced a lot of heat for not fully electrifying fast enough. Few people feel that way anymore, as the company’s focus on hybrids has allowed it to reach record profits. Would that change, now that there’s a new CEO in the form of Koji Sato? Apparently not, at least according to the Toyota outlet, Toyota Times:
“Recently, it feels like we are seeing fewer cars of the kind that match President Sato’s tastes—exciting, fun to drive. What are your thoughts in this regard?” The venue’s rather tense atmosphere abruptly lightened, and even President Sato’s voice sounded brighter.
“Thank you for your question about making cars exciting.
I feel entirely the same way, which is to say, you’re exactly right. A car is not a car if it’s not fun. That’s why we will never allow our cars to become commodities.
Gone are the days when everything was determined by logical left-brain thinking, and cars sold by simply having better catalog specs.
We can no longer sell cars just with model updates, slightly better fuel efficiency, or new designs. It comes down to your passion for making products that move people’s hearts.”
The gulf between doing the right thing and saying the right thing is sometimes as wide as a Bosozoku Alphard, but in this case, I gave Sato credit. Even the Prius feels sporty and special this year. Last night, Toyota even added a GR trim level to its 2026 RAV4, with 320 horsepower and a couple of spoilers. We’ll see how much of this fun survives the tariffs, I suppose.
Christian Meunier: We Need To Take Pretty Tough Measures Right Now
Yeah, so, Nissan has had some issues as of late. The company is hurting in North America, which is the one place it really needs to get profits up. What’s the plan for that? Nissan Americas Chairman Christian Meunier is reportedly running around yelling ‘cut’ like he’s Greta Gerwig.
Meunier, who returned to the Japanese company in January, didn’t sugarcoat the challenge.
“We need to take pretty tough measures right now,” he said in a May 16 interview. “What doesn’t sell cars, what doesn’t take care of the customer and make money for the company, we‘re going to freeze, postpone or cancel.”
It’s not entirely bleak. Meunier also wants a new Xterra like yesterday, and also told Automotive News that “we need the U.S. to rock and roll again.”
Maybe move the HQ from Nashville to Memphis?
Auto Supplier President: We Need USMCA
MEMA, the industry group representing the auto suppliers, likes to point out to people that its members represent the largest portion of manufacturing in the United States. For them, one would assume, all of these tariffs are a net good thing as it’ll bring even more manufacturing here and, therefore, bring more work.
So why are they freaking out?
Per The Detroit News, it’s all about the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement:
“For the U.S. to be globally competitive, we need USMCA,” Paul McCarthy, president-elect of MEMA and president of its aftermarket suppliers group, said before the Automotive Press Association.
[…]
“This is an industry under pressure, and our strategies, our investments are on hold, and that’s not a good thing for what is the largest manufacturing sector in the U.S.,” McCarthy said, noting suppliers contribute 2.5% of U.S. economic activity.
Suppliers make some of the thinnest margins in the automotive sector and, worse, are often the first ones squeezed when automakers need to save money. Worst of all, though, is that suppliers and both Republican and Democratic administrations have generally agreed on the underlying concept of trade in North America, which is for free trade for goods. This includes the first term of President Trump, when he negotiated the USMCA.
From that same article:
“We’ve all invested for the last 20 or 30 years into the North America supply chain,” said Collin Shaw, president of MEMA’s original equipment suppliers group, “and every country in USMCA offers something unique and has something to bring to the table to ensure that, from a competitiveness standpoint, we can compete with the rest of the world.”
I think this is true, and these tariffs can be specifically shortsighted, especially in North America. If energy is cheaper in Canada, then it makes sense to process certain materials like aluminum in Canada, just like it makes sense to mine that material in the United States, where it’s more abundant. If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together.
Elon Musk: I’ll Spend ‘A Lot Less’ On Politics In The Future
Tesla CEO Elon Musk paid a visit to the Qatar Economic Forum in Doha via a remote appearance; he said a lot of things, and I’m not going to cover them all in detail. The biggest statement is that he’ll stick around Tesla for at least another five years, and, given Musk’s famous tendency to let timing slip, I’ll just assume that means 10 years. He also got in a weird fight with former Microsoft Bill Gates that he wanted to litigate out in the open, according to Bloomberg:
Musk also fired back at Gates, who criticized him last week for the role he’s played in the Trump administration slashing tens of billions of dollars in assistance the US has provided to developing nations. The Microsoft Corp. co-founder told the Financial Times last week: “The picture of the world’s richest man killing the world’s poorest children is not a pretty one.”
“Who does Bill Gates think he is to make comments about the welfare of children?” Musk responded.
When asked whether he’d checked if Gates is right that cuts to USAID might cost millions of lives, Musk challenged his fellow billionaire to “show us any evidence whatsoever that that is true. It’s false.”
The biggest thing that stood out to me was that Musk said he didn’t think challenges related to his politics are a big deal and that, this year, there won’t be any meaningful sales shortfall. The company’s sales in Q1 were not great.
While he downplayed that impact, Musk did say he was going to pull back from spending on politics, saying, “I think I’ve done enough.”
What I’m Listening To While Writing TMD
It was this huge deal when I was about eight years old that Michael Jackson would be debuting a new video, live on television. There was even a strange lead-up skit, I guess, with McCauley Culkin loudly listening to music. His dad is the actor George Wendt, who gets blown away by Culkin playing a bad riff. It’s extremely silly, but it seemed like a good way to remember the late actors. NORM!
The Big Question
Who is the least fun automaker? Who is the most fun?
Top Photo: Toyota
He means “I have done enough damage”, and that is certainly true.
You don’t have to prove that without aid from starving children will make them die. It’s obvious. How would you do that, anyway? Just try it, and when children are indeed dying, you say, “Guess you were right after all.”
I have a Gen 5 Prius, and it really is more sporty and fun to drive than my previous Prii (a Gen 2 and a Gen 4). About all I could wish for might be a GR Prius, but I won’t be in the market anytime soon
If Toyota would actually sell the Hilux Champ in the USA that would be great, I would be throwing my money at them.
Outside of the premium marquees Ford’s lineup might be the most fun. They offer some affordable vehicles in interesting colors that serve people’s needs, and are decent to drive. Toyota will make it out of their turbo teething issues, and their new vehicles will be considered reliable, and some of those are fun too. The new Land Cruiser (Prado) looks pretty good, the GR86 and Supra are seriously engaging, you can still get a manual Tacoma, and an Orange Tundra (anyone else have a full-size orange truck???).
I think some troll at BMW is having fun at the expense of the brand and consumers, but deep down they are a sad and lonely person and I hope they find help.
As for least fun, idk probably Mitsubishi if you even count them. I don’t really like GM other than the Corvette, Escalade, and Hummer EV. I really hope that the 90s throwback trends will soon morph into the early 00s and we will get to see some truly garish wheels on new Escalades and Hummer EVs, make mine spinners that match my necklace, which also spins.
Long version:
I like exciting, impractical unicorn cars as much as the next guy.
On the other hand, boring cars that don’t need fixing because the makers have spent years building more or less the same car until the bugs are out, with a lot of knowledgeable mechanics and commodity parts have an appeal.
That’s pretty much what Toyota buyers want, despite Toyota’s efforts to make their cars eye searingly ugly.
Businesses that try to expand by abandoning their core customer base rarely do that successfully.
When the gap decided to get rid of all of their boring clothing, all the people that like to shop at the gap because you could buy six months of clothing in about 15 minutes because it was exactly the same as the last time you went there, stop shopping there, but the new customers never arrived and that nearly killed the company.
Short version:
Is this guy an idiot?
If Toyota were serious about fun cars, they would sell the GR Yaris in the United States.
That’s not the argument he is making though. He never says he will make less reliable cars, just that they need to add something extra and if extra is something that attracts new buyers then he is doing his job.
Understood. Probably like Cadillac noticing their customer base was dying off, or Harley Davidson not noticing the same thing.
What I’m saying is there’s a market for boring high quality low feature cars. Volvo and the low end Mercedes used to have those customers. Then they made those customers unwelcome, so they went to Toyota and Subaru.
Before someone jumps in about Subaru head gaskets, I’m talking about perceptions. I had a Subaru Impreza outback that would embarrass a Checker cab with what it went through.
This is why I still daily drive a 3rd gen Avalon. The 2GR-FE U660E combo is damn near bulletproof with marginal maintenance. I just rolled over 252k this week, 39k miles in 18 months. Total repairs have been rear brakes, 8 oil changes, 1 rear wheel bearing, and a new underbody tray after smoking a raccoon at 70mph. Yeah the bumper was put back together with zip ties, and I had to buy a pair of fog light surrounds, but that’s it, all while averaging 31mpg summer 28mpg winter. That’s roughly $4,107.60 in 87oct at $3.099/gal. All the while $0 car payment, $68/mo PLPD insurance, and $268 plate fee (michigan). It’s hard to beat that cost per mile even with something much newer.
As to your big question: For a while it seemed like the French were having the most fun. Not always reliably. Now, I think it’s the Chinese. Domestically, in the US, Stellantis has got nothing going on. Ford has the Maverick, which is mildly interesting. GM has the Equinox EV, which a friend of mine bought and seemed very nice.
Other than those, nothing they offer seems remotely interesting.
If my Honda got totaled, I’d probably check out Toyota. Some sort of PHEV thing of some sort. I think they have figured out the right mix of secret sauce, for now. I haven’t read the news today about the new RAV4 yet, but my guess is that it’s pretty decent.
I have friends that work for an NGO that the Gates Foundation has benefited. And done projects (plural) that have saved lives. Maybe Elon will get there, but I have my doubts.
The least fun is RAM. They make an also-ran truck and spend most of their R&D money trying to convince people they’re not Dodge.
Also not fun is Tesla.
The most fun is Citroen. They keep making those whackadoodle cars and I love them.
Problem is the miata exists. Seems weird but toyota has shown it’s stupid about the market. 1992 the miata sold just fine to secretaries as a fine daily w a fun convertable weekend car too. 30 years on toyota thinks a mr2 is best when it can’t hold a ham sandwich and a passenger at the same time. Then wonders why it doesn’t sell.
I would say least fun would be Buick, I have no idea the difference between their cars, and some are even Chinese, who can make fun vehicles, but for Buick don’t so that’s even worse. Also GM killed Pontiac instead of Buick, which just sticks in my craw.
I guess you could say Chrysler but give a couple of teenagers a Pacifica and a secluded overlook and maybe a new Chevy Van type song is written so that’s fairly fun.
Toyota though, dang, maker of Camry’s and Corolla’s has no idea what they’re saying. It’d be like Dodge coming out against Hemi’s…oh…wait, nevermind.