Here's an article that examines if Toyota's quality is slipping or not. This detail was interesting for some perspective on Toyota's evolution from a Japanese company to a global company.
“In the 1980s, each Toyota plant in the US reported to a so-called mother plant in Japan, which mentored them and assisted with problems. Today, the older US Toyota plants oversee the newer ones.
‘Toyota's largest overseas market [the US] eventually has to take responsibility' for building high-quality vehicles without micromanagement, said Jeff Liker, a professor who specialises in studying Toyota.”
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No matter what the cause, it does serve them well to sacrifice the “artifical” first place, over the very real safety problems.