Toyota to Shift Some Tacoma Output to Texas from Mexico

Toyota has announced that it will be moving some of the production of its popular Tacoma midsize truck from a plant in Mexico to San Antonio, Texas, as part of a $3.6 billion investment in the Texas facility. The expansion will add a second production line in San Antonio and create approximately 2,000 new jobs by 2030. The shift is part of Toyota’s pledge to spend $10 billion on its U.S. manufacturing operations over the next decade. The Tacoma is the best-selling midsize pickup in the U.S. and has been made at two plants in Mexico. The plant in central Mexico will continue to export Tacomas to the U.S., while the product that will replace the lost production at the factory near Tijuana is unclear. The expansion in San Antonio will double the size of the plant to about 5 million square feet and bring Toyota’s total spending at the site to $8.3 billion since it broke ground there 23 years ago. The added output from 2030 will ramp up over a four-year period, increasing San Antonio’s annual capacity by 150,000 vehicles. This move is expected to shield Toyota from the impact of tariffs on Mexican imports, with autos shipped from Mexico subject to U.S. duties as high as 25%. Toyota’s investment in Texas is seen as a commitment to American manufacturing, with the company stating that it is deepening its commitment to the U.S. market.