Earlier this year, young people offered a job at Toyota were invited to the Japanese company’s test track. As they waited to be introduced to the firm's race drivers, a lone Lexus LFA drove around the track, mesmerizing them with the howling screams of its V10 engine.
No one knew who the man behind the wheel was. Only after he stepped out and formally introduced himself did they learn that it was the company’s CEO, Akio Toyoda. “I asked them if they like cars”, said Toyoda. “If they didn’t, they shouldn’t bother joining.”
When he assumed his duties in June 2009, the 55-year old grandson of Toyota’s founder said that he wanted his company to build cars that “made people happy”.
He did not know it at the time, but it was a rather unfortunate choice of words. Less than six months later, Toyota, which up to this point had built a reputation as a manufacturer of reliable cars, had to face the unintended acceleration safety issues in the U.S. that sprouted massive and costly recalls.
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