Toyota May Extend Discounts Past March

DETROIT - Toyota Motor Corp. may keep aggressive discounts available for U.S. consumers beyond this month after unprecedented incentives lifted U.S. sales in early March, Reuters reported. Toyota's U.S. sales surged 40 percent in the first 10 days of March compared with the year-earlier period in the wake of a zero-percent financing offer and other incentives, Don Esmond, senior vice president of Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A., said in an interview. Esmond said Toyota would evaluate March sales results and reaction from dealers and consumers before deciding whether to extend the discounts, which the company called its most "far-reaching sales program in history." Esmond said Toyota expects to regain most of its U.S. market share lost in the past two months following a damaging series of recalls that have tarnished its reputation for quality. Toyota's U.S. market share plunged to 13.4 percent in the first two months of this year, down from 17 percent for all of 2009. As recently as February, Toyota's incentive spending averaged $1,833 per vehicle, compared with $3,434 per vehicle on average for GM, according to industry tracking firm Edmunds.com. Toyota, which has traditionally spurned steep discounts in order to protect resale values, is offering zero-percent financing for five years on top-selling models, including the Camry, and free maintenance for two years to win back U.S. consumers after a series of product safety problems.