Toyota has announced a few production shifts at three of its plants in order to keep up with consumer demand.
The production changes will allow Toyota the ability to reduce its output of trucks and SUVs in favor of more fuel efficient vehicles like the Prius. A new plant in Blue Springs, Mississippi is being constructed to build the Prius. The plant was originally conceived for Highlander production. Beginning in the fall of 2009 Highlander production will move to Princeton, Indiana one of the plants that currently builds the Tundra pickup. Tundra production will stop in Princeton in Spring 2009, which means that San Antonio, Texas will be the only plant producing the Tundra.
In addition to the changes Toyota is going to temporarily suspend Tundra and Sequoia production from August 8 - early November due to declining sales.
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PRESS RELEASE:
Toyota to build Prius in U.S.
Highlander to Indiana; all Tundra to Texas
July 10, 2008 – Erlanger, KY - Toyota is responding to changes in consumer demand and improving the production efficiency and stability of its North American operations by adjusting production mix at three plants. The changes include the addition of the Prius hybrid sedan to its North American lineup.
The changes are as follows:
- Prius will be built at a plant under construction in Blue Springs, Miss. Production is scheduled to begin in late 2010. Prius, which will join the Kentucky-built Camry Hybrid as the second Toyota hybrid built in North America, enables Toyota to better respond to increased consumer demand for hybrid vehicles.
- The Highlander mid-size SUV, originally scheduled to be built in Mississippi, will now be manufactured in Princeton, Ind., beginning in Fall 2009.
- Production of the Tundra full-size pick-up truck, currently built in Indiana and Texas, will be consolidated at the San Antonio plant in Spring 2009.
In addition, Toyota will temporarily suspend Tundra and Sequoia production beginning August 8 due to the declining overall market for full size trucks and SUVs. Production is scheduled to resume in early November. Team members at both facilities, as well as the Huntsville, Ala. plant that builds Tundra and Sequoia engines, will continue to be provided work.
“The truck market continues to worsen, so unfortunately we must temporarily suspend production. But this good news about production mix demonstrates our long-term commitment to our North American operations and to our team members, supplier partners, and communities where our plants are located,” said Jim Wiseman, vice president/external affairs for Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America (TEMA). “By using this downturn as an opportunity to develop team members and improve our operations, we hope to emerge even stronger.”
Comments (9)
Ummmmmm
Mississippi and quality control = ?
Mississippi and deep-fried food = the proper order of things ?
I LOVE WHINING !
Posted by CKV | July 10, 2008 3:15 PM
Posted on July 10, 2008 15:15
It's sad that people in the US have lost faith that our own people can build something worthwhile. Toyota doesn't have to put up with the UAW, so I'm sure they'll have some intelligent workers.
Posted by Rich Spoiled Prick | July 10, 2008 9:22 PM
Posted on July 10, 2008 21:22
@RSP,
I don't think he was picking on US workers in general so much as Mississippi in specific.
Posted by JerryL | July 11, 2008 5:35 AM
Posted on July 11, 2008 05:35
At least they won`t have to wast money on dental insurance.
Posted by jung | July 11, 2008 7:39 AM
Posted on July 11, 2008 07:39
Hey, at least Toyota is trying to give the public what they want. And they realize it's going to cost more and more to ship things around the world.
Posted by Brian | July 11, 2008 7:51 AM
Posted on July 11, 2008 07:51
Intelligent workers in Miss.? Nothing like building a factory in a depressed stat that was hit by Katrinia. Why don't they build them in up North? It's an uninspired appliance. I would not want one if gas was $8.00 a gallon.
How many people want that new Tundra from Texas now?
Posted by Gaston | July 13, 2008 6:21 AM
Posted on July 13, 2008 06:21
@ Gaston
No foreign automakers build plants up north because of the union. If they're close to UAW HQ, then they're more vulnerable to the stupidity that is UAW. There are lots of dumb people up north too. Don't assume the rust belt is laden with the brightest minds in the country.
Posted by idiots | July 14, 2008 6:49 AM
Posted on July 14, 2008 06:49
My dad was a supervisor/foreman at a cable plant. I heard him grumble about unions my whole life.
When I was a teen they moved operations from Michigan to Kentucky. They built a modern cutting edge award winning plant in a small Kentucky town and expected to reap huge beneftis from not having to deal with unions and being able to pay workers a fraction of what union employees got. In the South nearly everyone hated unions; as long as they paid a little more than the local coal mine paid people to risk their lives driving trucks up and down the mountain they expected the hicks to be happy..
First they had trouble finding enough employees who could read and understand fractions. Since the area had high unemployment they were able to pick the cream of the crop among the jobless and eventually they found enough employees would could read and do math at the 8th grade level.
Then they had problem getting them to actually come to work. Every day a large percentage of employees simply didn't show up. If it was a really nice day the factory looked like a ghost town; everyone would go fishing instead of coming in to work. Many didn't have phones. Even sending mail to the poor was a problem because in many parts of town there was no mail delivery so residents had to pick up their mail from a P.O Box which they might do every few weeks.
Still they managed to function. The plant lost money as long as I'm aware but then again the plant in Michigan lost money most of the time for the previous 60 years.
I'm not sure how Japaneese car makers have dealt with the problems my dad faced but they seem to have done better than his cable plant.
Posted by Al Dente | July 14, 2008 7:49 AM
Posted on July 14, 2008 07:49
50 years from Toyota will have some great American Automotive Heritage. Maybe one of these piles will be at Hershey in the AAA museum LOL.
Posted by Gaston | July 15, 2008 6:25 AM
Posted on July 15, 2008 06:25