THE MOST CYNICAL CAR COMPANY IN THE WORLD.

By Peter M. DeLorenzo 

Detroit. It’s no secret that Toyota has been on a 50+ year quest to pass itself off as an American car company. I wrote an entire book about it in fact: The United States of Toyota. Toyota operatives have slowly but surely weaseled the company’s way into American life over the decades, with the goal becoming part of the American fabric. And for the most part, it has worked out tremendously well for the Japanese automaker.

Toyota is so embedded into the American fabric that many consumers have forgotten that it is a foreign-owned entity. Toyota has built factories here, it sponsors major sporting and other high-visibility events, and there’s no question that its “Toyota-thons” sales events changed the shape of automotive marketing in this country forever. 

It’s also no secret that Toyota operatives targeted Chevrolet as their goal. In fact, they wanted to usurp Chevrolet’s role in the American consumer consciousness. Toyota wanted to become “America’s car company,” and much to GM’s chagrin, the company has been largely successful at doing that. 

Now, make no mistake, Toyota didn’t do this by marketing and PR magic alone. The company forged its reputation by building exceedingly reliable – although not the least bit exciting – high-quality products that put the domestic automakers to shame, at least early on. And America’s car-buying consumers flocked to them. While the domestic automakers wrestled with the fundamental shift in the competitive landscape and desperately tried to transform the quality and desirability of their products, the import manufacturers, especially Toyota, became an undeniable force to be reckoned with.

Toyota is ultra-competitive in every segment except full-size pickup trucks. It led the industry shift to more fuel economy with the Prius and has never looked back. Toyota also led the shift by American consumers to the offerings from the import automakers, and this market has been forever altered because of it. Ford, GM and Stellantis build far more competitive products now to be sure, but the domestic industry has never really recovered from the inroads that Toyota and other import manufacturers have made.

Today, Toyota is not only a mainstay in the U.S. market. It is one of the auto industry pillars here and around the globe, and one of the largest automotive conglomerates in the world. But in its quest to become all things to all people in this market – while consistently pawning itself off as a U.S. automaker – Toyota has developed a homegrown arrogance and cynicism about what it views as its place in the world, which rears its ugly head every so often. And over this past weekend, we got a full-blown dose of that arrogance and cynicism that no amount of PR “spin” can negate.

According to a detailed report by Axios, 34 companies have donated at least $5,000 to the campaigns and leadership PACs of one or more election objectors this year. (If you need to be reminded, “election objectors” are representatives who openly challenge the legitimacy of this country’s most recent Presidential election, aka “election conspiracy” theorists.) Notable companies on that list included Koch Industries (big surprise), AT&T, health insurer Cigna and tobacco company Reynolds American.

But the biggest donor by far to the election objectors? You guessed it: Toyota. The Japanese automaker gave $55,000 to 37 election objectors (all members of the GOP, of course). According to Axios, that equates to a quarter of the bloc that voted to nullify President Biden's win after the Capitol siege. In fact, Toyota gave more than twice as much — and to nearly five times as many members of Congress — as the No. 2 company on the list, Cubic Corp., a San Diego-based defense contractor. The Japanese automaker's donations this year included a February contribution to Rep. Andy Biggs, an Arizona Republican who has been one of Congress' most vocal election conspiracy theorists. Biggs also helped organize the "Stop the Steal" rally prior to the Capitol attack.

Now, make no mistake, corporations have played both sides of the fence when it comes to political contributions since, well, they started keeping records of such orchestrated giving. They all do it, and no corporation – auto or otherwise – is not guilty of it. But Toyota’s actions in this particular situation is egregiously dubious and comes down hard on the wrong side of this fundamental issue. Toyota is basically fueling and funding election conspiracy theorists, and the company is doing it right out in the open (although it is doubtful that they wanted any of this to come out).

And what does Toyota have to say about this? In what will go down as one of the dumbest PR quotes in the history of PR quotes, a Toyota spokesperson told Axios (in an email) the following:

"We do not believe it is appropriate to judge members of Congress solely based on their votes on the electoral certification." 

Read the statement again. Really? You mean to tell me that Toyota doesn’t believe there’s a reason to disqualify out of hand the whack-job conspiracy theorists who cling to a lamebrained notion that has been proven time and again to be flat-out false? (I expect a huge mea culpa from Toyota today in a desperate attempt at “walking back” this statement. The trouble is, there’s no walking back this ridiculous statement. Toyota is deeply buried in its own stupidity on this one.)

I get the fact that Toyota, after years of laying the groundwork to become part of the American fabric, could become woefully jaded to the point that it somehow loses its way and starts believing the fantasy it has created for itself as to its place around here. But this?  This kind of behavior is simply inexcusable. 

Far from the pious, “aw shucks” believers who promote themselves as being part of the “American fabric” – a canard that it is so desperate to project and convey at every opportunity – Toyota has been exposed as a company made up of carpetbagging mercenaries who will stop at nothing to throw around some money on the chance that they will gain a favor down the road.

It is officially the most cynical car company in the world.

And that is the High-Kilowatt Truth for this week.