Toyota Launches Two New North American Plants

Tokyo―TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION (TMC) announced today that it has moved one step closer to fully local production in the North American market with its near simultaneous line off ceremonies at its new Indiana and West Virginia plants.

Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indiana, Inc. (TMMI), located in Princeton, Indiana, led Toyota's line off ceremony series on December 10, at 10:00 a.m. local time. Nearly 1,500 guests were present―including Indiana Governor Frank O'Bannon, TMC Chairman Shoichiro Toyoda and TMMI President Seizo Okamoto―to celebrate completion of the initial Tundra model, TMC's first entry into the North American full-sized pickup truck market.

When operating at full capacity, TMMI will produce around 100,000 units annually.
In autumn of 2000, it will also begin production of a new full-sized Sport Utility Vehicle based on the Tundra. The move will raise the combined production capacity at TMMI to 150,000 units per year, and Toyota's total production capacity for North America to 1.2 million units per year (increasing to 1.25 million in the year 2000).

Toyota representatives are now less than twenty-four hours away from a similar line off ceremony at Toyota's new engine plant in Buffalo, West Virginia. Scheduled to begin at 9:00 a.m. local time today, the festivities will commemorate the production of the first engine at TMC's new U.S. engine production base, Toyota Motor Manufacturing, West Virginia, Inc. (TMMWV).

Around 350 guests are slated to attend the ceremony, including U.S. Senator Jay Rockefeller and West Virginia Governor Cecil Underwood, as well as TMC Chairman Shoichiro Toyoda and TMMWV President Tomoya Toriumi. After the speeches, the final bolt of the first engine will be tightened and the engine's quality will be confirmed on stage.

When operating at full capacity, TMMWV will produce 300,000 4-cylinder (L4) 1.8-liter engines for the Corolla. At the beginning of 2000, moreover, the plant will start producing 3.0-liter V6 engines for the Camry, Avalon, Sienna, and Camry Solara models on the scale of 200,000 units annually.

Starting in spring of 2001, TMMWV is scheduled to begin production of automatic transmissions to be installed in the Camry, at a rate of 360,000 units per year. This means that the major parts for the Camry will be produced and procured in North America.

The start of operations at TMMI and TMMWV proceeds fully in line with TMC's original plans for localization in the North American region. Toyota has greatly expanded local vehicle production in North America, from 735,000 units per year (in 1994) to an annual production of 1.2 million units, now with the launch of TMMI and the increased production capacity at TMMK¹ in the U.S. and TMMC² in Canada. Engine production capacity has also grown substantially. TMMWV's engine production capacity of 500,000 units in 2000 will combine with TMMK production to bring North American engine capacity to 1 million units.

Developments in local production have even surpassed original plans, as indicated by the decision to add production of a full-sized SUV model at TMMI in 2000, and to produce automatic transmissions in addition to engines at TMMWV.

Outline of TMMWV