Toyota chief executive Akio Toyoda was very chuffed when the Japanese car manufacturer managed to out-sell General Motors in the United States last year.
GM was dethroned as the nation’s top-selling carmaker in 2021 as it battled supply chain shortages. Its sales fell by 13 per cent to 2.2 million cars, down from 2.5 million in 2020. Toyota had a much more fruitful year in the U.S. as its sales jumped by 10.4 per cent to 2.3 million cars.
Speaking to reporters during a recent press briefing, Toyoda said he broke out in dance after seeing the news, Business Insider reports.
“I actually did a little ‘happy dance’ in my office,” Toyoda said. “Thankfully nobody saw it!”
When Toyota and GM announced their 2021 sales figures earlier this year, Toyota North America’s senior vice president of automotive operations, Jack Hollis, said it likely wouldn’t stay that way.
“Yes, we did surpass General Motors in sales,” he said. “But to be clear, that is not our goal, nor do we see it as sustainable.”
Read More: After 90 Years As The USA’s Best-Selling Automaker, GM Has Been Dethroned By Toyota
Toyota is thought to have outsold GM in 2021 largely thanks to the better management of its supply chains. However, that’s not to say the car manufacturer doesn’t continue to battle shortages.
In fact, Toyota recently confirmed that it will cut production in October by some 50,000 units, reducing planned output from 800,000 units to 750,000 units. Its Motomachi, Takaoka, Tsutsumi, Tahara, Miyata, Inabe, and Hino’s Hamura plants will all experience production halts, ranging from a couple of days to over a week.
