Previously a laggard in the electric vehicle stakes, Toyota is entering the market in a big way, aiming to increase its EV portfolio from just five models currently to a massive 15 by 2027. The company is targeting a commensurate sevenfold jump in EV production over 2024 levels to one million units by that year, Nikkei Asia reported.
Last year, the company sold just 140,000 EVs globally, despite Toyota being the world’s largest carmaker and in spite of a 34% year-on-year increase. This is far behind segment leaders Tesla (1.79 million sales), BYD (1.76 million) and even Volkswagen (740,000).
This EV push may seem counterintuitive at a time when cooling EV demand worldwide is forcing other carmakers to rethink their electrification strategies, but Toyota does not want to cede the market to its rivals. It’s number one for a reason, after all.
will be built in Thailand starting October
The slowdown in demand has prompted Toyota to revise some of its targets in the short term, with its expected EV production volume in 2026 effectively halved to around 800,000 vehicles. The company also decided to delay construction of a battery factory in Fukuoka in March. But global demand for EVs is still expected to roughly triple that in 2024 to 31.76 million units in 2030, making up more than 30% of all car sales, according to data analytics and consulting firm GlobalData.
Production of Toyota EVs, currently only in Japan and China, will now be spread out to include the US, Thailand and Argentina. The first of these is not surprising given US president Donald Trump has announced sweeping tariffs on imports that include a 24% levy on Japanese imports, on top of a 25% tax on imported vehicles. The expansion of production sites will also help guard against foreign exchange risks and get cars into customers’ hands more quickly, it was reported.
As part of the move, Toyota will start building an electric version of the Hilux pick-up in Thailand this October, as part of the local government’s goal of having EVs make up 30% of domestic automotive production by 2030. The truck will also be produced in Argentina.
Meanwhile, the company’s Kentucky and Indiana plants in the US will build three-row SUVs starting in 2026, with batteries sourced from the new US$14 billion (RM62 billion) plant in North Carolina. Yes, this is the same facility – Toyota’s first such factory – that is set to produce hybrid batteries for rival Honda.
Toyota’s existing EV production sites will also see new products rolling out, including the C-HR+ in Takaoka, Japan in September. Elsewhere, the Tahara plant will produce a next-generation Lexus EV around August 2027, while Subaru’s Yajima plant will build a new Toyota-badged SUV co-developed with Subaru around February 2026.
In China, the focus is on cheaper EVs due to a mounting price war. Its cheapest EV, the new bZ3X SUV, starts from just 109,800 yuan (RM67,100) and amassed more than 10,000 orders within an hour of its launch in March. The car is built by partner GAC and uses key components from local manufacturers to hit its low price.
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