Toyota is in talks about forming an alliance with Guangzhou Automobile to manufacture vehicles in China. The Japanese company says that it is also in talks with other, unnamed, local manufacturers. Toyota has been slow to take advantage of the growing Chinese market and the latest moves are seen as an attempt to catch up with its rivals.
Bridgestone B380 RFT run-flat tyres, size P225/60 R17, will be an option on the redesigned 2004 Toyota Sienna minivan for the US market. Other Bridgestone run-flat OE options in the USA include the Lexus SC430, BMW 7-series, BMW Z4, Z8 and Nissan Infinity Q45. Says Mark Emkes, Chairman, CEO and President of Bridgestone/Firestone North American Tire, “This latest minivan fitment shows consumers that run-flat tyres are not just for performance cars, but are available to anyone who wants extra peace of mind.”
Toyota is to invest $180 million to upgrade its Indonesian factories after signing a deal with Indonesia’s leading vehicle manufacturer, Astra, to acquire control of the factories. The new company will be called Toyota Astra Motor (TAM) and Toyota will have a 95 per cent stake. Toyota plans to make 70,000 pick-up trucks and MPVs annually in Indonesia from next year, 10,000 of which will be exported.
In the latest PriceWaterhouseCoopers/Financial Times survey of the World’s Most Respected Companies, Michelin is ranked number nine in the Engineering sector. The list seeks the opinions of more than 1,000 CEOs worldwide, plus fund managers, media commentators, etc. Top of the Engineering list were Toyota and GM, while the top ranked company overall was General Electric, for the fifth year in a row.
Toyota is set to announce plans to build its sixth vehicle assembly plant in North America. The new factory – probably sited at San Antonio, Texas – is expected to cost $800 million and have a production capacity of 150,000 pickup trucks a year. It will begin producing vehicles by 2005.
Firestone is recalling 18,912 tyres produced at Wilson, North Carolina to ensure the recovery of some 890 potentially faulty units. The tyres in question are FR690 P195/65R15 with DOT No W2C6T00i402 and W2C6T001502 which may have been fitted to 2003 model year Toyota Corolla S and LE models. Firestone will be contacting the owners of the cars in the coming weeks an offering free replacement tyres. Firestone had identified and corrected a faulty piece of equipment at the plane, and had originally thought that the potentially faulty tyres had all been recovered. Subsequent information gave rise to an investigation which suggested a further 890 faulty tyres may have been released to the market. The fault creates pockets of trapped air which cause increased tyre noise and can result in “chunk out”.
Toyota President Fujio Cho has said that the company will need to build a fifth factory in the US if things go as planned in North America. The company wants to sell two million vehicles annually in the US by 2005 and is aiming at a 15 per cent share of the US market by 2010 – its current share is almost 10 per cent. In addition to the four existing US plants, Toyota has a factory in Canada.
Toyota is launching a joint venture with First Automotive Works, China’s biggest car manufacturer, to make luxury sedans, SUVs and cheaper, smaller cars in China for the local market. The target is to sell up to 400,000 vehicles a year by 2010 and an unconfirmed report suggests that the investment will total 1.29 billion Euros.
Yokohama Rubber is to mass-produce car tyres, using a new production system based on an idea from Fuji Seiko Co. Ltd. Yokohama is a member of a group of companies aiming to commercialise the system. Details of the system are not available but it is said to produce high precision tyres with low distortion and consistent quality. As well as Fuji Seiko, Yokohama has been working with Toyota Motor to evaluate the tyres.
Japanese car manufacturer Honda has revealed details of a three-year business plan, in which it rules out any chance of a merger with another manufacturer. Of Japan’s five biggest car manufacturers, only Honda and Toyota are independent. Honda also revealed that it will increase production outside Japan, including the building of a second factory in China.
Bridgestone/Firestone is to triple its investment in South Africa to around 15 million US dollars. Chairman Takashi Wada states that this is part of a drive to build market share and improve exports. There are expectations of increased OE business with Ford, GM, Toyota and BMW. The aim is to make the South African operation the third largest in the Bridgestone portfolio.
The Toyota Motor Corporation is negotiating with Yokohama Rubber Company Limited and Toyo Tire & Rubber Company Limited with the intention of producing tyres, using a new manufacturing process that the car maker has totally funded.
Automotive analysts, Autopolis predict a 13 per cent fall in the European car market (from 1999 peak level, in the next 18 months. The claim is based on the European trend showing first in Scandinavian markets, Greece and the Netherlands. Danish demand has already fallen by 40 per cent, Finland by 20 per cent and Greece by 29 per cent in the last year. Economic conditions reinforce the prediction, which would see the market drop by 1.9million units by 2003. Autopolis expects recovery in late 2003, but that there will be little long-term growth till 2010, with Toyota and Hyundai making the greatest gains, whilst smaller producers lose share.
The Toyota Motor Corp. presented Goodyear with two awards at its annual suppliers meeting in Nagoya Japan and another award was presented to Goodyear in the USA. First was a Global Contribution Award for Goodyear’s supply performance at Toyota’s 15 plants worldwide. The second award was a “Value Award – Superior” for technical approvals and tyre development on Corolla and Camry cars. The North American award is a Certificate of Achievement for delivery performance through 2001.
In the USA, Goodyear has appointed Ted J. Fick to the newly-created position of vice president, commercial systems, which makes him responsible for leading Goodyear’s commercial tyre business unit in the North American market. Fick joins Goodyear from Toyota subsidiary Hino Diesel Trucks, where he was senior vice president and COO. This is one move in the introduction of a new structure, focused on distinct business segments; eight US regional offices will be closed and functional support activities run from Akron.
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