Dealers also asked about the automaker’s upcoming lineup additions of the Toyota bZ4X and the Lexus RX450e BEV, and how dealers must prepare their dealerships to sell them and help their customers with home charging, said Findlay, director of operations for the Findlay Automotive Group.
Toyota Motor North America brand chief Dave Christ said open and frequent communication between the automaker and its Toyota and Lexus dealer networks has been key to keeping its dealers operating at peak efficiency through the production shortages.
“Supply is our number one issue, and we laid out a lot of information about how complex it is and how global it is,” Christ said. “There’s a lot of uncertainty right now, but I think what we do a really good job of is just staying in touch with our dealers, with communicating what we know. At the end of the day, if the dealer knows what’s happening they communicate that with the customer as well.”
Christ said TMNA’s leadership expects the production challenges to continue into the summer, and “maybe into Q3, depending,” on outside events.
