Toyota’s rivals may benefit from its recall of millions of vehicles. According to Global Insight, Toyota may lose 20,000 vehicle sales per week as long as it stops selling and producing the eight models that it recalled. It also stated that these models accounted for 70 percent of total Toyota-brand sales and nearly 56 percent of overall U.S. sales.
Toyota’s largest market through 2007 and 2008 was United States. It contributed more than half of global operating income of Toyota. According to Autodata Corp., U.S. sales of the affected Toyota vehicles totaled 998,744 in the last year.
With the downfall of Toyota, Hyundai Motor Co., rose 4.1 percent in Seoul to 113,500 units. In Tokyo Honda Motor Co. gained 3.3 percent while Nissan Motor Co. recorded 2.8 percent growth.
General Motors Co. in US said that it would offer sales incentives for the owners of cars recalled by Toyota Corp. Ford Motor Co. is also planning to offer $1,000 as reimbursement to Toyota customers to make them switch to its cars.