COVID-19 has disrupted production for all carmakers out there, but it looks like August may the month where things start to stabilise for Toyota. A recent production report from the company showed that domestic production would come back to their initial estimates. This is down to strong global demand for their new vehicles.
Cars like the Toyota Venza/Harrier and Yaris Cross are definitely enticing vehicles that will spur interest in buyers. And hey, when times are bad, consumers go back to the quality and reliability offered by Toyota.
In brief, Toyota’s production volume had been down by 40% in June and by 10% in July compared to their initial plans. Production suspension dropped from 133 days equivalent of production days lost in July (across 14 plants), down to 16 days lost in June and 0 days lost predicted in August. More details in the press release below.
PRESS RELEASE
Toyota estimates that strong global demand for new vehicles will bring domestic production back to almost the same as the initial plan in August. This recovery trend is expected to continue in the future.
Overview
| August | July | June | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Production volume compared to the initial plan | About the same as the initial plan (Approx. 3 percent decrease) | Approx. 10 percent decrease | Approx. 40 percent decrease |
| Production suspension*1 | None | Six production lines at three plants Totaling 16 days | 25 production lines at 14 plants Totaling 133 days |
| Reduction of operations from double shifts to a single shift | One production line at one plant | Three production lines at two plants | Five production lines at three plants |
| Holiday shift*2 | Three production lines at two plants Totaling 6 days | Four production lines at three plants Totaling 13 days | Three production lines at two plants Totaling 12 days |
| *1 | Count the halt operation at one production line as a day’s production suspension |
|---|---|
| *2 | Count the operation at one production line as a day’s holiday shift |
Reduction of operation to a single shift for one production line at one plant (Among a total of 28 lines at 15 plants)
| Plant | Period of reduction of operation to a single shift | Vehicles produced |
|---|---|---|
| Gifu Auto Body Co., Ltd.Production line #2 | May – October (No second shift) | Coaster |
Holiday shifts for three production lines at two plants (Among a total of 28 lines at 15 plants)
| Plant | Period of reduction of holiday shift | Vehicles produced | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Toyota Motor Kyushu, Inc. | |||
| Production line #1 | 3 days 1 (Sat), 22 (Sat), 29 (Sat) | UX, CT, NX | |
| Production line #2 | 2 days 1 (Sat), 22 (Sat) | ES, RX | |
| Daihatsu Motor Co., Ltd. Kyoto Plant | 1 day 29 (Sat) | Probox |
Non-operating days in May and June for all domestic plants (totaling 6 days) will be rescheduled starting September.
