Consumers are right to question Toyota

5.3 million. 16 percent. $21 billion. 16. 243. These numbers all share the common characteristic of being directly related to the once reliable car manufacturer, Toyota. Recently, 5.3 million automobiles have been recalled. U.S. car sales have dropped 16 percent since January. Toyota's stock surrendered $21 billion in value in a single week. There have been allegations that jammed accelerators in certain Toyota models have caused 16 deaths and 243 injuries.
 Problems with gas pedals and brakes are enough to turn me away from what I would consider a death trap. It would seem that these most recent problems with Toyota are far beyond those of minor glitches and human error, though. This seems to now be a matter of safety, yet, how can we put a price on safety? If our cars are no longer in our control, there is little safety that we might claim to enjoy. The Toyota brand has not always been this way. For example, their ever-so-popular Prius Hybrid has been a great success of late, especially due to its fuel efficiency and affordability. Unfortunately, Toyota's great reputation streak has finally reached its end.
 Recently, fingers have been pointed at Toyota for a lack of safety in the construction of their cars, most surprisingly, their Prius. Safety is an unavoidable necessity when it comes to cars. A company cannot afford to release a faulty design onto the market. It seems the major problem with the Prius was its brakes. According to news reports, at least a hundred Prius owners across the U.S. have complained to the government that their antilock brakes seemed to fail momentarily while driving down a bumpy road. The Japanese government has also received dozens of complaints. Toyota has announced some plans to fix what they claim is a software glitch in the hope it will correct the problem. In the meantime, drivers are being advised to continue pushing the pedal, as eventually their breaks should work.
 Toyota's answer to this alledged brake defect is quite alarming. Their advised solution is less than adequate, especially given the seriousness of the issue. One of the first promises made by Akio Toyoda, president of Toyota, was that he would put quality back into Toyota cars, giving the consumer the best product possible. Unfortunately, the opposite has occurred. We must now ask Toyota whether it has made a decision between quality in the manufacturing of its cars or the the pursuit of quantity in its production output.
 The company's principle used to read that "long term philosophy beats short term financial goals." This has been ignored and forgotten along that way to global accollades over production. Now, with so many complaints surfacing, Toyota is reaping the harvest it has sown with its outrageous behavior. Taking the step of recalling 300,000 Priuses worldwide is the first step towards responsibility, even if it may cause a huge dent in reputation for quality, safety and profit.
Although I would like to believe that Toyota can fix its errors, it is difficult to comprehend why it took them so long to respond to their consumers. Furthermore, it is disheartening that Toyota could expect to offer only an apology for the lives that could be in potential danger.