It’s easy to see that some people weren’t too fond of what Volkswagen did and how they handled the situation, and there is generally an air of resentment within the auto community towards Volkswagen for what they did.
The company has been trying to make amends for their mistake, but it’s not clear where this will end up and how they are going to be affected by the whole situation. It’s very likely that Volkswagen might suffer in some long-term way because of it, but it’s difficult to predict right now.
In any case, Toyota are probably not too disappointed about the situation themselves, as they have been able to benefit – as have other companies – from the increased attention towards their models and those of some competitors.
According to some experts, the situation with Volkswagen could actually have longer-term implications for the market as a whole, creating various interesting developments that would be difficult to resolve for the company, and ultimately pushing them out of focus in some specific areas. That would be a bad development indeed, but it’s just a vague prediction made by some people who have been following the market more closely, and it may not turn out to be true in the end. In any case, it will become evident in a few months where things are headed.