Toyota Recalls: Are Ford, Honda, Nissan Just as Bad?

AUTO RECALL PHOTO GALLERY: Honda Fit

Many industry observers believe that lean times in auto-manufacturing have lead to many of the issues now plaguing the car companies -- though this conundrum isn't auto-industry specific.

"To become cost effective, the automakers were forced to try to get economies of scale by ordering parts in such large numbers and then using those parts to fit into different models," Silver explains. Thus, one problematic part can now often affect an auto maker across multiple model lines.

"This 'lean manufacturing' is partly to blame," Silver says. "However, it just means that these companies are going to have to spend some of these savings in making sure the parts work properly."

That goes for Honda, which, in January, recalled 646,000 of its Fit/Jazz [pictured above] and City automobiles globally over a faulty window switch after a child died when fire broke out in a car last year. Honda later said it would recall another 438,000 cars, primarily in the U.S., to replace a faulty airbag deflator.

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