Toyota manufactures its 10 millionth car in Europe

Toyota has just produced its 10 millionth car in Europe. So, if you drive a Toyota in Europe, there is a fair chance it was made in Europe.

Today, nearly 3 in 4 vehicles sold by the brand in Europe are made in Europe. Together, the nine manufacturing facilities operated by Toyota here have passed the milestone of 10 million vehicles produced on April 14.

The first car made in Europe was. . . you guessed it. . . a Corolla. The world’s best-selling car kicked things off at a small CKD (complete knock-down) plant owned and operated with Salvador Caetano in Ovar, Portugal. That plant, which started in 1971, is still operating and currently makes Land Cruiser 70 models for export to South Africa.

Full-scale mass production started in the UK in 1992, in not one but two plants: engines came to life in Deeside, Wales, three months before the first Carina E rolled off the assembly line in Burnaston, Derbyshire.

The same Carina E was today at Toyota’s European Headquarters in Brussels, where team members of each plant joined HQ staff to celebrate the milestone. This first mass-produced car was on stage alongside the carmaker’s newest vehicle, the Toyota C-HR. That model has zero units on the clock, since it will start production at Toyota Motor Manufacturing Turkey at the end of this year.

In addition to the growing number of cars being produced locally, Europe has gained increasing autonomy and influence within Toyota globally to design cars tailored to the taste of European customers, especially for the European best-sellers. The recent versions of Yaris, Auris and Avensis were all styled in EDD, Toyota’s design centre in France, and developed at its technical centre in Belgium. The C-HR, with its highly distinctive and edgy design, was also styled with European customers in mind.

According to Johan van Zyl, president and CEO of Toyota Motor Europe, “Our European manufacturing track record includes building the first B-segment hybrid car sold in Europe; assembling hybrid engines; and exporting vehicles to North America and even Japan. The future is looking just as solid: over the next 2 years, we expect our overall production in Europe to increase by another 20%.”

Last year, Toyota produced 660,000 vehicles in Europe for sales of 810,000 Toyota and 64,000 Lexus on the continent.