New Toyota Plant in France to Assemble Engines

TOKYO-TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION (TMC), in line with its policy of "building where sold", will begin conducting assembly of compact car engines at Toyota Motor Manufacturing France (TMMF) in the beginning of 2003.

TMC Chairman Hiroshi Okuda announced the engine assembly plan while speaking today at the "First Yaris Celebration", a ceremony marking the start of Yaris (Japan name: Vitz) production at TMMF in Valenciennes in northern France. TMMF is Toyota's newest car production facility in Europe.

For the engine assembly operation, TMMF plans to invest 1 billion yen in building expansion and 2 billion yen in new assembly and related equipment, after obtaining official consent from the local government. The addition will create jobs for approximately 50 people.

Beginning in early 2003, the new engine assembly line will conduct assembly of a 1.4-liter, in-line 4-cylinder, 8-valve, common rail direct-injection diesel engine developed solely by TMC for compact passenger cars. The engine will be used in the TMMF-made Yaris. Although the number of annually assembled units will depend on demand, plans are to start off with the assembly of 30,000 to 40,000 units a year.

Diesel-powered vehicles are in high demand in Europe due to their low environmental impact and efficient economy. They now account for about 30 percent of the passenger car market. TMC, supporting its 2005 goal of achieving annual European sales of 800,000 units, or five percent market share, with a strengthened product lineup, plans to first build the new diesel engine in Japan and to introduce it to Europe through exports of Japan-made Yaris vehicles from the end of 2001. Eventually conducting assembly of the engines in France is in keeping with TMC's basic philosophy of "building where sold and developing in step with the local community".