Toyota put a lot of things on hold the past few years, when its sales were devastated by recalls, the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, and supply problems due to floods in Thailand. But now, it appears to be back on a production march that could affect the Midwest.
Last week, Toyota’s North American president, Yoshi Inaba, said the company was looking at expanding production in North America, including building more vehicles at its plants in Ontario, just a few hours from Detroit in southwestern Ontario.
According to the Globe and Mail, those steps would include producing its Prius hybrid models in North America for the first time and boosting production of Lexus models at its Cambridge, Ontario factory.
The steps have a direct effect on our region, because Toyota has hundreds of engineers in Michigan, and parts suppliers all over the Midwest. It also has a big assembly plant in Princeton, Ind., which just built its 3 millionth car, and where Toyota is investing another $400 million. Continue reading