Toyota Motor Corp. made headlines when it announced that its profit for 2006 was a record-breaking 2.24 trillion yen. In the United States, the news was greeted with some bitterness, since the Japan automaker had recently surpassed General Motors in terms of worldwide sales for the first time ever.

In Japan, the news was bittersweet. Toyota's profits were spurred by sales in America and Europe, as well as by the weaker yen — and, like those of every other Japanese car company, domestic sales were down. On its nighttime news show, Fuji TV tried to get to the bottom of things by talking to consumers on the street. No one said anything about not being able to afford a new car and, more significantly, nobody mentioned the high price of gasoline, a factor that analysts say has a negative impact on car sales. One person admitted she was thinking about buying a used car because the quality of used cars is very high in Japan. Another woman said parking had become too much of a problem. One older gentleman said public transportation was "easier."

Back in the studio, an announcer commented that many people used to consider cars "their hobbies," but that no longer seems to be true. Veteran newsman Taro Kimura concurred. "I think the Japanese have become more mature about automobiles," he said. "They now see them as tools."