Globally, SA becomes Toyota's seventh-biggest market

Vehicle manufacturer Toyota South Africa (TSA) has jumped from being the twelfth-biggest market outside Japan for its parent company, Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC), to the seventh largest.

Japan-based TMC owns a 75% share in TSA.

TSA sold 151 056 units last year, placing it behind the US, Chinese, Thai, Australian, Canadian and Saudi Arabian markets. This means South Africa was a bigger market for Toyota in 2006 than all of Europe, including countries such as Germany, the UK and Italy.

TSA achieved record production of 148 507 units in 2006, made up of 50 410 cars, 96 072 light and medium commercial vehicles, and 2 025 Hino trucks. The company’s manufacturing output placed it in tenth position among Toyota’s plants outside Japan. Four of the top plants were in North America, being Toyota Motor Manufacturing, in Kentucky (1st), New United Motor Manufacturing, in California (3rd), Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indiana (4th) and Canada (5th). The other plants placed above South Africa’s Durban operation were Thailand (2nd), England (6th), France (7th), China (8th), and Turkey (9th).

The total number of Toyota cars and commercial vehicles manufactured in South Africa has now risen to 2,813-million units, made up of 1,478-million cars and 1,334-million commercial vehicles. In addition, the plant has assembled 30 701 Hino trucks, 454 Peter-bilt trucks and 39 508 Renault 5s. The latter were marketed by TSA between 1975 and 1983. This brings the total number of vehicles manufactured and marketed through TSA and its dealers to 2,884-million units.

TSA’s manufacturing facilities belonged originally to the McCarthy group and operated as Motor Assemblies, building a wide range of vehicles under contract. Production of other cars and commercials built since the plant opened in 1948, until contract assembly ended in 1978, amounted to 324 973 units, consisting of 202 432 cars and 122 541 commercials. This brings the grand total of vehicles manufactured at these facilities in 58 years to 3,209-million units.