Well, it's official. Toyota has come up with a plan for dealing with the recall of its cars with sticking accelerators. As I wrote recently, now is a great time to buy a used Toyota. Prices are going to be down but you're really not going to suffer a drop in quality.

I don't write about new cars on this site, but if you are wavering between a used Toyota and a new one, you might find strong deals on new Toyotas right about now. The company is going to be making deals to restore consumer confidence. If the price is right - and fits your budget - take advantage.

More information is expected later today on how this affects resale values for used Toyotas. I'll post something as soon as it becomes available.

OOYYO's comment: Meanwhile, share your thoughts about this recall and Toyota's response to it.

After a long spell as the apple of the media's eye, Toyota is now officially in the bad news barrel. So far the Japanese automaker has announced the recall of 5.3 million vehicles for floor mat issues that may lead to unintended acceleration and a separate recall of 2.3 million vehicles for sticking gas pedals (watch the explanatory video). The entire ordeal has been a public relations nightmare, and as you'd expect, Toyota's stock is taking a hit.

Last week alone shares in the automaker plunged by a jaw-dropping 14 percent. That's a drop of $21 billion (with a B) in market value. The lion's share of the losses are likely due to investors' unease at how the the mounting recalls are playing out, but we suspect that part of the issue has to do with Toyota's handling of the recalls to date.

Last fall Toyota appeared to be calling the original recall of 3.8 million vehicles for floor mat issues a voluntary matter, only to be rebuked by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), which insisted that the recall was mandatory. More recently Toyota announced that it was shipping new pedals to factories, only to change its mind and send the parts to dealerships after an angry response from dealers and the public. Mizuno Credit Advisory director Tatsuya Mizuno reportedly told Business Week that Toyota has "wasted too much time without doing anything," adding that the automaker used to have foresight for taking action but is now, "very far behind the curve."

We're honestly tired of writing about Toyota and its recall-to-end-all-recalls, but the news keeps coming so our fingers get no rest.

Just like the Honda dealer in Dallas that's apparently hoping to gain a few extra customers at Toyota's expense (above), General Motors has announced a new incentive campaign that it hopes will woo customers away from a bruised and battered Toyota still trying to contain the fallout from this latest recall. Effective today through the end of February, GM is offering three deals to any Toyota customer who wants to switch to a Chevrolet, Buick, Cadillac or GMC product. The skinny:

• Lease Customers: Waiver of three payments up to $1,000
• Financing Customers: Zero percent financing for 60 months
• Cash Buyers: $1,000 purchase bonus

We're very interested to see how delicately GM handles promoting these new incentives. Will The General kick its Japanese competitor while it's down – or just land a love tap on the jaw?

It's a twist on the "Which one came first?" We're not sure whether this guy bought a Yugo because it was the only car that would fit in his garage, or if he bought the garage because he didn't want anything else but his Yugo to fit. Either way, the brick-lined slot redefines the term "close tolerances," and requires the 59-year-old driver to do a three-step dance to get out of the car once it's parked safely. If that's what you call that. Follow the jump to see him do his thing. Thanks for the tip, Spyros!

[Source: Autoblog.gr]

OOYYO's comment:

Good one Spyro, except it isn't a Yugo but a Fiat Panda...lol!