How I Complained to the CEO of Toyota (and Got Satisfaction)

I have a 2014 Toyota Hilux that I bought bread new from Toyota Malta, about 2 years ago. And I have a serious problem with my second gear not engaging properly at times. And I asked them to replaced with a new one. But they told me that they want to strip it and put it back together. What? I don't want that I ask for a new one as I only did 6,200 miles and still under warranty!

I have complained to the president of Toyota in Japan, Mr. Akio Toyoda and he washed his hands and he passed my complaint to Toyota customer relations UK to a lady by the name of Claire Rowley she was no help at all.

Just a waste of time! So, I just want people to be careful when they are buying a Toyota in Europe especially Malta or England they are getting very poor customer service. The company does not care about us as customers. This is what happened.

I am writing regarding a purchase of a 2008 Toyota Scion from "Toyota West" in Golden Co., on 11/13/15 Before the final purchase I took the car to my mechanic, Mgr.of Meineke in Castle Rock to check the car out. He found that the car needed to have the power steering and transmission fluids flushed, totally not in the range they should be. Transmission fluid was actually black. I returned to the dealership with this information and was told that their prior findings said the fluids were fine and also proceeded to tell me that the transmission fluid was good to 100,000 miles, I guess no matter what it looks like? I called Toyota Corporation to report this, case #1511170605, explained what my mechanic found and said what needed to be done and how the dealership refused to take care of this issue, it was over a 9,000.00 purchase. 

They contacted "Toyota" dealership and someone called me and basically told me again, there was nothing they would do. Knowing that if this was ignored I could run into a serious problem with the transmission which could cost thousands, so on 12/22 I brought the car to Meineke and paid for these two flushes, I also made sure a picture was taken of the fluids, which I can produce if necessary, showing the black transmission fluid.

I called Toyota Corporation again, spoke to Theresa, explained the whole issue, how Toyota Corporation refused to help besides a phone call, told her I had the flushes done and had a picture of what the fluids looked like and what they should look like. She told me, THEN, that she could of recommended a different dealership to go to but since I had the flushes done, there was nothing further she could do. Why wasn't this suggested to me when I called the first time back on 11/16/15...No they waited until she heard I had the work done already!

I feel very strongly that this was horrible customer service, this dealership just wanted a sale and didn't care about customer satisfaction at all. I am a customer who has now purchased 4 Toyotas, my parents have had 2 and my daughter is on her 2nd, this was the first time one was purchased in CO. Also, since it was a used car we only received one key, both of my daughters 2 cars and my last Toyota were also used and we received 2 keys. The sales agent at Toyota told us we could purchase an automatic key for around $300 or just a regular key for around $100. They are selling a car for over $9,000 and could not supply a second key. This dealership is all about profit and to hell with their customers. 

Ultimately, I learned that there are many ways to contact Toyota, but the best way is to get in touch with the CEO!

Need to contact Toyota? You can call customer service at 800-331-4331, this seems to be the best number to contact. An alternative line for calls originating outside the United States is 310-468-4000 or by fax at the number 310-468-7814.

You can use an Email Toyota support form on their website to fill out an inquiry for customer service or about issues you may experience. The company is also quite active on social media. So, if you do not get a timely response by phone, email, or fax you can connect with them on Twitter or on their USA Facebook page.