Four factories will benefit from the investment.
Toyota hybrid vehicles account for more than half of all hybrid sales in the US.
Famously and not that long ago, Toyota seemed against the massive shift from ICE vehicles to EVs. They were not opposing EVs, they were in favour of a more modest transition between the two propulsion types. To prove that they remain firmly behind hybrids, they’ve announced a considerable $383 million investment to increase HEV output in the US.
On the heels of revealing the first-ever electric Lexus, the RZ, and following bZ4X first drives, Toyota will continue to push hybrid and plug-in hybrid vehicles by building more of them.
Four plants in the US will benefit from the injection of funds. The factories in Kentucky, Missouri, and Tennessee will split what’s leftover from the $222 million investment going to the Huntsville, Alabama plant. There, the money will go towards a new flexible production line capable of assembling both combustion and hybrid-electric powertrains.
“It’s always been our plan to manage the transition by having hybrids, plug-in hybrids and introduce BEVs when we believe the market is there,” Bob Carter, executive vice president of Toyota Motor Corp.’s North American business, said in an interview last week as reported by Auto Finance News. “We will continue on the path of managing the transition with hybrids and plug-in hybrids.”
