Toyota is to invest US$383m in four of its US engine manufacturing plants, supporting the production of four-cylinder engines, including options for hybrid electric vehicles, at its Alabama, Kentucky, Missouri and Tennessee factories.
“Toyota customers want vehicles that are fuel-efficient and electrified,” said Norm Bafunno, senior vice president, unit manufacturing and engineering, Toyota. “These investments allow us to meet customer needs and quickly respond to an evolving market. We are committed to investing in the US, and our teams are ready to take on this new challenge.”
Toyota Alabama will receive the largest investment, US$222m, to create a new four-cylinder production line with the capacity to produce engines for both combustion and hybrid electric powertrains. Additionally, the facility will expand its footprint by 114,000ft2, which marks the plant’s sixth building expansion since 2003. Toyota Alabama has the capacity to build 900,000 engines annually and represents a near US$1.5bn investment.
Meanwhile, Toyota Kentucky will expand flexibility of the four-cylinder engine line announced last autumn, which will better position the plant to meet customer demand. The plant’s powertrain facility can produce up to 600,000 units annually. Toyota Kentucky is the company’s largest plant globally, producing seven Toyota and Lexus models, as well as four-cylinder and six-cylinder powertrains. Overall, the plant represents an US$8.5bn investment.
An investment of US$109m into Toyota’s Missouri plant will be put into new equipment to build four-cylinder engine heads on three production lines, giving it the capacity to build more than three million cylinder heads annually. Finally, Toyota Tennessee will update equipment to build new four-cylinder engine blocks giving it a capacity to produce more than two million engine blocks annually.