t’s Electric: Toyota to Bring First Hybrid Powertrain Production to U.S.

It’s Electric: Toyota to Bring First Hybrid Powertrain Production to U.S.
$373.8 Million Investment in U.S. Plants Will Help Power Indiana-Built Highlander Hybrid
PLANO, Texas (September 26, 2017) – Toyota just upped the stakes to remain the top manufacturer of hybrid
vehicles worldwide with a $373.8 million investment in five U.S. manufacturing plants that will support production
of its first American-made hybrid powertrain and to implement Toyota’s New Global Architecture (TNGA) at its
Alabama plant. Each of the projects is scheduled to begin this year and all should be operational by 2020.
The investments will include adding new production of hybrid transaxles (hybrid vehicle transmissions) at the
Buffalo, WV, manufacturing facility; expanding 2.5-liter engine capacity at the Georgetown, KY, plant; increasing
production of 2.5-liter cylinder heads at Bodine Aluminum’s Troy, MO, plant; and modifying the Bodine Jackson
plant to accommodate production of hybrid transaxle cases and housings and 2.5-liter engine blocks. The
Huntsville, AL, plant will undergo a comprehensive upgrade to enable it to build engines that complement TNGA.
“This investment is part of our long-term commitment to build more vehicles and components in the markets in
which we sell them,” said Jim Lentz, CEO, Toyota Motor North America. “This strategy is designed to better serve
our customers and dealers, and positions our manufacturing operations to fulfill their needs well into the future.”
The 2.5-liter engines manufactured in Kentucky and transaxles made in West Virginia will be used in hybrid vehicles
built in North America such as the Highlander Hybrid manufactured in Princeton, Indiana. Toyota remains the
world leader in gas-electric hybrids, surpassing 3 million sales in the U.S. and 10 million globally.
Fifty new jobs will be created because of the investment at the Alabama plant. There will be no net gain of jobs at
the Kentucky, West Virginia, or Bodine Aluminum facilities, but these investments will help to ensure the stability
of the plants’ employment levels in the future.
"This investment across five American plants expands capacity for our latest TNGA engines, and localizes
production of hybrid powertrains, a core Toyota technology,” said Jeff Moore, senior vice president for
Manufacturing. “It underscores Toyota's confidence in the capability and global competitiveness of our North
American manufacturing."
The total investment of $373.8 million will be distributed as follows:
● Toyota Motor Manufacturing, KY – $120,960,000 ● Bodine Aluminum Jackson, TN – $14,500,000
● Toyota Motor Manufacturing, WV – $115,300,000 ● Toyota Motor Manufacturing, AL – $106,000,000
● Bodine Aluminum Troy, MO – $17,050,000
These projects, and others previously announced, move Toyota nearly halfway ($4.1 billion) toward its
commitment to invest $10 billion in the U.S. as announced by CEO Akio Toyoda in January 2017.
About Toyota:
Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in the U.S. and North America for 60 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-
generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands. During that time, Toyota has created a tremendous value chain as our teams have contributed to
world-class design, engineering, and assembly of more than 33 million cars and trucks in North America, where we operate 14 manufacturing plants (10 in
the U.S.) and directly employ more than 46,000 people (more than 36,000 in the U.S.). Our 1,800 North American dealerships (nearly 1,500 in the U.S.) sold
almost 2.7 million cars and trucks (2.45 million in the U.S.) in 2016 – and about 85 percent of all Toyota vehicles sold over the past 15 years are still on the
road today.