Toyota

Lexus has long been the luxury champ, but BMW narrowed the gap in 2007 and 2008 before losing ground in 2009.

Unabashed by the crisis that hit the company’s US operations, Toyota Kirloskar Motors(TKM), the Japanese carmaker’s Indian subsidiary, is bullish on doubling its sales in 2011 from an estimated 70,000 units this year on the back of its upcoming B segment car, the Etios. Etios will also be the first car that Toyota will export from its Indian operations.

Only six Vibes are left in the United States — the rest are in Canada. And four of the U.S. Vibes are technically sold but still may be on dealers’ lots, Adler said.

“Toyota had the perfect model for the 1980s and 1990s, but its approach now looks outdated,” said Stefan Lippert, a business professor at Temple University in Japan. “The concentration of decision-making at headquarters is one of the factors behind Toyota’s problems right now.”