It's been one thing after another for Toyota, as the brand can't seem to catch a break this year. First, the automaker was falsely accused of an electronics flaw in its vehicles that caused them to unexpectedly speed up - it turned out to instead be driver error. Then, the company's factories were hit by the Japanese earthquake and tsunami, which slowed down production for several months.

Toyota was just about to get back up to speed when disaster struck again. This time it was flooding in Thailand, which caused many of the company's parts suppliers to suspend operations, again delaying the production of vehicles all over the world. Finally, the yen has gotten stronger over the past few months, which is costing Toyota money every time it exports vehicles.

Altogether, it's been a rough year for the brand, which recently announced that it was cutting its August profit prediction by 54 percent, according to Bloomberg. After previously expecting to take in more than $4.5 billion, Toyota now believes that the yearly profits will end up closer to $2.3 billion.

While Toyota was cleared of wrongdoing in the unintended acceleration scandal, drivers can never be too careful. An auto maintenance expert can help drivers ensure that their cars have no problems that could lead to unsafe conditions on the road.