Japanese tuning firm Trust/Greddy declares bankruptcy

[EJ25RUN]

http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2008/09/title_new_450op.jpg

Autoblog

The market for aftermarket parts from Japan has been declining for well over five years, due in part to decreased demand both at home and abroad and the rising rates of Chinese knock-offs and other inexpensive (and dubiously built) components.

Today, one of the world's largest performance parts companies, known as Trust in Japan and Greddy here in the States, declared bankruptcy. According to various reports, Trust is approximately $60 million in debt and, after reporting a serious decline in sales since February 2008 and amassing $43 million in loan payments, filed for bankruptcy in Tokyo District Court.

Trust has been around since 1976, employs almost 200 workers and had been dealing in everything from CARB-legal exhausts to turbo systems when Greddy Performance Products was founded in the U.S. in 1994. There are several firms that will step up to fill the need of enthusiasts, assuming that Trust doesn't try to reorganize, but with the aftermarket industry down overall, we suspect this won't be the last time we'll here about a large tuner going under.

This should be a lesson to all you buying knockoffs. :2up:

[mocha latte cupcake]

F*** THAT SUCKS! IN GReddy WE TRUST! :cry:

:2up: knockoffs!

[WhiteAccord]

WOW....Well there goes the price values on Greddy/Trust Products.

[EJ25RUN]

WOW....Well there goes the price values on Greddy/Trust Products.

not necessarily. Some of that stuff might raise in value.

[mocha latte cupcake]

damn this blows! i swore off HKS to hope that GReddy could see me through to the end and now GReddy goes down D*MN IT! *contemplates seppuku*

[jumpin800agl]

I just heard about this. Sad to see this happen. This is why people shouldn't buy knock off products.

[EJ25RUN]

i wanna slap anyone that has ever bought a knock off anything.

[redrumracer]

normally i would say that this is the reason that they should lower prices, but well they were already low.

[RL...]

Wow first NOPI and now greddy...what is our world coming to....

the tuning scene is becoming...unpleasant...cops and law enforcement are cracking down harder than ever, laws are regulating what we can and can't do to our cars...W.T.F. :no:

[EJ25RUN]

Wow first NOPI and now greddy...what is our world coming to....

the tuning scene is becoming...unpleasant...cops and law enforcement are cracking down harder than ever, laws are regulating what we can and can't do to our cars...W.T.F. :no:

comparing Nopi to Trust is like comparing Eva Mendez to "cheap skank down the street".

[redrumracer]

comparing Nopi to Trust is like comparing Eva Mendez to "cheap skank down the street".
you realize in your comparison you just made Trust a "cheap skank down the street", right? although i/we know/knew what you meant.

[JITB]

Dam thats pretty sad... i got a ole school weighted trust Shift knob...that i LOVE!!

[EJ25RUN]

you realize in your comparison you just made Trust a "cheap skank down the street", right? although i/we know/knew what you meant.

oh noes, i did...... :eek:

Trust = :boobies: LOL

[Mr Egg Rollllll]

No...mad respect for Trust

[mocha latte cupcake]

sigh the reverse word association ploy.... a crafty one you are.... :ninja:


i guess i'll have to get that counter weighted trust one sooner than i thought :cry: i'll cherish it for evers!

[EJ25RUN]

i remember Tanabe was able to save SSR but will anyone be able to save someone as big as Trust?

[mocha latte cupcake]

i could only see someone like HKS maybe. someone's who's been around for a long time...

[Vteckidd]

This should be a lesson to all you buying knockoffs. :2up:


THe problem isnt in KNOCKOFFS. Hell where do you think GREDDY IS MADE? Its made IN CHINA.

The problem is them not keeping up with market and their margins SUCKING when it comes to wholesalers.

I never worked at a shop that could come CLOSE to making 10% on a greddy item.

Furthermore they let the Black Market KILL them. WIth people on EBAY selling at far under what their so called dealers could pay for it, and they never did anything about it.

They should have pricced there stuff more competitivly

Thats the lesson here.

[Vteckidd]

i remember Tanabe was able to save SSR but will anyone be able to save someone as big as Trust?
Yes someone will, just like someone saved comptech.

problem is the 60 million in debt, who absorbs that, and can someone turn the company around to be profitable.

[JITB]

Yes someone will, just like someone saved comptech.

problem is the 60 million in debt, who absorbs that, and can someone turn the company around to be profitable.


bring it stateside..

[DESTRO_91]

Does that make my exhaust a collector's item now. Seriously, that's a testament to the state of the global economy, not just our own. TIMES IS HARD!!!!

[Vteckidd]

People arent really buying $550 exhausts that dont add any power and that are still 2.25in.

People arent buying $6000 turbo kits for their G35

People arent buying $4000 turbo kits for their Hondas.

10 years ago when there was NOTHING on the market, you HAD to buy from them. But now, there is 1000000 options especially in the honda world.

Hell at least Skunk2 now has the MEGA POWER R and the MEGA POWER RR exhausts which are $450-550 and they are 2.75in to 3in BOLT ON EXHAUSTS.

Skunk2 is staying with the times. Greddy never changed. They may have been innovative in Japan, but stateside they sold overpriced exhausts (which were nice, but thats it) , shift knobs and $400 boost controllers.

I mean the E-01, come on, it was worthless 4 years ago.

[Vteckidd]

And stateside would only make it worse, the only way to stay competitive is to stay OVERSEAS.

USA CANNOT COMPETE with Chinese manufacturing and labor. Sorry.

It would NOT surprise me to see APex, Gre dy, HKS, Tanabe, and others go belly up this year, theyve had it coming for a long time

[RL...]

comparing Nopi to Trust is like comparing Eva Mendez to "cheap skank down the street".

I wasn't comparing them, I was just describing how 2 HUGE companies that have contributed a lot to the tuning scene went under...And no matter what anyone says about NOPI, NOPI has contributed a lot of positive, and maybe a lil negative to us the tuners...I hope that nopi and greddy going under isn't the beginning of a trend starting to occur...

[Kaiser]

And stateside would only make it worse, the only way to stay competitive is to stay OVERSEAS.

USA CANNOT COMPETE with Chinese manufacturing and labor. Sorry.

It would NOT surprise me to see APex, Gre dy, HKS, Tanabe, and others go belly up this year, theyve had it coming for a long time

While I sortof agree. And sortof disagree. Doesn't change the scene overall, just...hits the "reset" switch. We're very close to 1975 right now, well before any of these companies existed, and well before the scene was big enough to need people like this. We may see a reset entirely and new companies coming up through the ranks as people go back to doing things the old fashioned, hard way. The big problem lately is that companies LIKE Trust aren't really making things people want to buy. This isn't 2001, we need something serious when it comes to stuff like this.

And while Mike's right that Knockoffs aren't what killed them, it sure didn't help.

[DeeAOne]

damn this sucks. better tell my buddy to sell his $1000 cat-back quick. lol

[Boosted FC]

Does that make my exhaust a collector's item now. Seriously, that's a testament to the state of the global economy, not just our own. TIMES IS HARD!!!!

:lmfao::lmfao: RB FTW.

[ttman]

I've been out of the scene for a while, what happened to NOPI? are all their stores closed?

[Random Hero]

So sad.

[boosted b]

still don't think bringing it stateside would help them out

[yudalicious]

companies that banked on trends and dont' adapt usually struggle when the trend dies. hopefully this entire image and brand driven import tuning thing will just completely die down soon.

[Fr33way]

Fuck. Doesn't really affect me too much because the only thing I wanted from them (SP1) has been out of production for awhile anyway. Just hope this doesn't start a trend with established tuning companies going under. I could care less what people's opinion is about a brand but the fact is a small sector does the actual R&D and ground up building of new products and everyone follows with knocks.

[The Ninja]

damn this blows! i swore off HKS to hope that GReddy could see me through to the end and now GReddy goes down D*MN IT! *contemplates seppuku*


You mean oibara.

[pankopp]

UPDATE: Greddy in U.S. still good to go

see link....

http://www.autoblog.com/2008/09/12/update-greddy-in-u-s-still-good-to-go/

[1SICKLEX]

I 100% agree with KIDD here......he hits the nail on the head.

They even posted on Clublexus a few times back in the day. For Lexus cars, they didn't market much and they did fall behind on times.

I was shocked they had a GS 430 Greddy at SEMA last year but too little too late.