An article about the 10 most interesting moments in the history of the Japanese corporation Toyota. Toyota ".
The content of the article:
- Interesting moments in Toyota history
- The first name of the company - Toyoda
- Military career
- Mysterious logo
- Army Land Cruiser past
- Workshop Kaizen
- Toyota in the movies
- Toyota and Formula 1
- Toyota War
- Best Selling Car
- Versatile Toyota
The largest automaker in the world, the most successful Japanese business, the only carmaker that has faced losses only once, the most expensive car brand - everything that has the prefix "most" is Toyota.
The company, which is now called the miracle of the twentieth century, has gone from a small machine tool company to an auto giant. And this path was strewn with unique achievements and events.
Interesting moments in Toyota history
1. The first name of the company - Toyoda
The legendary Japanese carmaker began its life as a small workshop for the production of ... sewing machines. Then, back in 1897, they were much more relevant than cars, because silk was the basis of the country's economy. Young 30-year-old Sakichi (Sakishi) Toyoda designed and assembled his first, simple and reliable apparatus by hand, and just 10 years later his equipment was exported to all of Europe and England.
In his sixth decade, Sakichi, the owner of a now large company, thought of a plan to expand his field of activity at the expense of automobile production. Death prevented him from realizing these ideas, which were inherited by the son of the founding father Kiichiro (Kiishiro).
The new company with a new name was born in 1936 thanks to one of its employees. The Japanese are extremely superstitious people, and writing the former name with the letter "D" required so many brush strokes for writing, which is unlucky. Changing just one letter, which made the company less "bulky", was seen as the beginning of a successful journey.
2. Military career
The first attempts of the pen in the production of cars from the young owner of the company were frankly failed. The cars were bulky, expensive, and could not withstand competition even on the domestic market. An attempt to recreate an American sedan nearly led the company to bankruptcy. But then the war intervened. Prime Minister Hayashi immediately ordered the factories to produce more than 7 thousand military trucks, almost half of the order was received by Toyota.
Simple 1.5-ton trucks with a 4-speed gearbox and a branded Japanese "muzzle" were much more successful. During the war, the models were constantly being improved, becoming simpler but more reliable. And by the end of 1944, the company supplied over 20 thousand trucks for the army.
3. Mysterious logo
There is a version that the emblem of the carmaker pays tribute to the memory of Sakichi and symbolizes the thread threaded into the eye of the needle of the machine. Kiichiro tells the true story to create a book about 50 years of company history. To get the perfect company logo, a competition was launched and received over 20,000 responses. The winner was the interlacing of two ovals, which formed the letter T and at the same time conveyed a sense of speed.
When in 2004 they decided to modernize the logo, giving it a greater volume, the Japanese laid a different meaning in it. He became a promise of quality and new horizons, as well as care for his client. One oval denotes the client's heart, the second denotes the heart of the car, and the circle that unites them is the idea of joint development and striving for the future.
4. Army background of the Land Cruiser
Although Japan fell into ruins after the war, entrepreneurs did not lose heart. Toyota decided to offer the American troops remaining in the country a new SUV, which subsequently gained worldwide fame. Its first prototype was born in the 40s and was a copy of the American "Willis". But mass production began only in 1953, when the car was equipped with a 6-cylinder engine from a 3.3-liter, 86 hp truck, while getting rid of the transfer case, thereby reducing the cost of the model. But the troops had already liberated the country, they did not need transport, but the police and the forestry acquired it for their needs. Thus, the idea of an everyday SUV was born.
Only the name prevented the entry to the world markets, since the abbreviation "Jeep" rightfully belonged to the same "Willis". The replacement urgently required another, no less sonorous name for the new civilian SUV. Then the technical director of Toyota decided to take a small piece of the Land Rover's glory and combine it with the military past of his company's car. So the Land Cruiser was born - the "road cruiser".
5. Workshop Kaizen
"Kai" means change, and everyone knows about "Zen" - this is wisdom. This philosophy implies constant, unhurried, but daily changes towards improvement. This concept has been operating in Toyota's production shops throughout the decades of the auto giant's existence.
At the end of the working day, employees often go to the cafe with their boss, continuing to discuss working moments. Official leave is provided for only 2 weeks, but even of them only one is actually taken off. The Japanese themselves strive for work, because while they are resting, someone has to do their job.
The company never has promotions and discounts for one reason - they do not have a surplus of goods. Practical Japanese produce exactly as many copies as the order is received, and not one more. Toyota pioneered this approach, which now looks rational but was once revolutionary.
It takes 20 hours to produce each car, including numerous tests, up to the operation of the horn, while a new car leaves the assembly line every 6 seconds.
Foremen and workers constantly study their own mistakes, think over ways to correct them and learn, learn again, since all training is fully paid by the company.
The workshop work has been brought to such automaticity that an assembly workshop worker can, without looking, put exactly the same number of metal blanks with tiny holes on 7 pins in just 30 seconds.
A kind of "protection from fools" has been introduced in the production: if someone tries to install 5 bolts in place of the required 10, the system will instantly work, notifying the entire shop about the violation. Therefore, the entire process of production, assembly and testing is subject to the strictest rules, which are not in the nature of the Japanese to break.
6. Toyota in the movies
Among the "main characters" of the third "Terminator", two Toyota brands were lit at once - a "Tundra" pickup truck and a sports "Lexus". During the filming, all 7 cars were mercilessly destroyed.
Schwarzenegger made amends for his "guilt" at the auto show, which took place even before the release of the film, where he happily drove around on "Tundra". After such advertising and the successful distribution of the film, all 800 copies of the pickup were instantly sold out from car dealerships.
7. Toyota and Formula 1
The 1965 sports coupe with the Japanese-developed GT2000 concept is still a legend among Formula 1 cars. The most expensive and the first sports car in Japan was equipped with a 6-cylinder 2-liter engine and developed a speed of 150 hp.
8. "Toyota War"
Surprisingly, this is the name given to the armed conflict between Chad and Libya. He owes this invincible Hilux frame jeep used by the Chadians in collisions. At the heart of their striking power were over 400 vehicles, including "cruisers" and "hilux".
Thanks to their own desert guerrilla tactics, as well as the high maneuverability and speed of the Japanese combat jeeps, the Chadians managed to defeat the Libyans.
Subsequently, assessing the results of the war, the head of the military headquarters of Chad admitted that a good Toyota completely replaces the T-55. His statement quickly spread throughout the world, becoming winged and giving the official name to the outbreak of the conflict.
9. The best selling car
Over the 50-year history of "Corolla" has gone through 11 reincarnations, but not a single renaming. More than 40 million copies have scattered around the world, making this particular brand the best-selling among all the brainchilds of the Japanese concern.
Once it was positioned as an unpretentious family car with a capacity of 78 hp. Over time, it got heavier, but acquired smoother curves and more power.
In its 5th appearance in 1983, "Corolla" acquired sufficient reliability and attractiveness to cross the mark of 1 million cars sold.
By the way, until 1967 the brand could hardly bear the severity of the winter period, until it was decided to carry out months-long technical tests in the harsh climate.
10. Versatile Toyota
The company is well-known as an automobile manufacturer, and, meanwhile, it still builds houses, creates kitchens and furniture sets, produces window frames and even manufactures boats. Moreover, this is not a simple "hobby", Toyota is the largest developer in Japan, and the city is even named after the company as a sign of respect for the country's most successful business.
For more than 10 years, the company has also been involved in the development of robotics, pouring enormous sums into this area. The company's employees can already be proud of the robots that have been created that help the elderly and the disabled to move. Moreover, their work is accompanied by beautiful music.
Conclusion
The life path of Toyota is marked by striking victories, titanic work, incessant experiments. The founding fathers of the concern laid down the wise principles of constant self-improvement, the education of outstanding employees, leaders who are able to boldly look into the future and not be afraid of mistakes. Now Toyota's business is a benchmark, adopted all over the world, their kaizen has passed through the centuries and has not lost its wisdom and relevance.
