The New York Times have reported that Toyota is planning to issue a fix for the sticky accelerator pedal problem for the effected car models. Although Toyota has just recently become the number one car company in the world, the mass recall due to the accelerator pedal problem has hurt the company worldwide.

Toyota is a Japanese company, but they are facing a global market. Due to the size of the company, the next move Toyota makes could either bring stability or a drastic down turn to the fragile Japanese market. The critical issue for Toyota here is not the accelerator pedal problem per se but the way company reaches out to the customers in addressing the issue: Public Relations.

For a couple of days, the company response in the United States has been chaotic. It seems the chain of command is confused as to how to address the problem to the public. Even the car dealers are not sure to whether certain cars are affected by the pedal problem. It almost seems as if Toyota is ignoring the problem all together, from the eyes of American consumers.

On the other hand, the couple of days of silence seemed to be a sign that Toyota is planning an effective solution, closed doors. Unlike a typical American company, Toyota seems to be more focused on gathering a great plan in solving the problem and executing it in one shot, opposed to giving a minute by minute update on the situation.

For the current development, I cannot tell what is really going on in Toyota’s minds, but I know the outcome of Toyota’s Public Relations strategy will determine the future fate of not only the company but also the Japanese economy.

The good news is that many people seemed to be not abandoning the Toyota brand for now, so hopefully the Japanese car company could use this opportunity to solidify their place in the car industry. If not, the Korean and the Chinese car companies are always ready to become the leading car company in the world.