THE WORLD’S largest car maker are planning to invest a whopping £40million for a new assembly line in the UK.
The Toyota plant at Burnaston could be in line for a major investment, as the company weighs moving production for the US market from Japan to Derbyshire.
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The car maker plans to invest around £41 million to set up a new production line dedicated to making GR Corollas, according to Reuters.
Toyota has denied that Trump tariffs are behind the potential shift, despite taxes on Britain being 10 per cent compared to Japan’s 25 per cent.
In light of the potential move, Japanese automaker Toyota revealed that new cars could be added to the European market.
Currently, the GR Corolla is only available in Japan and is exported to North America and select other markets.
Burnaston plant currently produces the Corolla hatchback and estate for the UK and European markets, but production rates could significantly improve with the proposed investment.
A new production line could be operational within 12 months, with reports suggesting that Japanese engineers may temporarily relocate to Derbyshire to assist with the transition.
The first car built at Burnaston, in December 1992, was the Carina E.
A rock-solid family motor specifically designed and engineered for Europe, hence the “E”. It cost £12,145.
In a world largely dominated by Sierras and Cavaliers, Carina E won many customer satisfaction awards for its advanced petrol engines, superior build quality, reliability and cheaper running costs.
Much like Corolla today.
Corolla is king at Burnaston now.
One is born here every 142 seconds — almost 400 a day, 7,000 a month.
Hatchback, estate and van.
All with efficient self-charging petrol hybrids produced at Toyota’s Deeside engine plant.
All with Toyota’s brilliant ten-year warranty.
If you want a car that does everything it’s meant to do really well, get a Corolla.
It won’t let you down.
Burnaston also produced big numbers of the Avensis and Auris over the years, but switched back to Corolla in 2019.
Park all five million British-built Toyotas end to end and they’d stretch from London to Tokyo and back.
Toyota had invested an eye-watering £240million to upgrade the Burnaston plant in 2017.
The car manufacturer had said the investment would boost competitiveness and promote the use of locally built components.
At the time, Business and Energy Secretary Greg Clark said: “Our automotive sector is one of the most productive in the world and Toyota’s decision to invest £240 million upgrading its Burnaston plant is a further boost to the UK auto sector. I also welcome the prospect of investment to take Toyota New Global Architecture into the supply chain.
“Toyota is one of the world’s largest car producers and this inward investment underlines the company’s faith in its employees and will help ensure the plant is well positioned for future Toyota models to be made in the UK.
“As we prepare to leave the EU, this Government is committed through our Industrial Strategy to ensuring the UK remains one of the best places in the world to do business and we are able to help businesses seize on economic opportunities.”
