Lexus Boosts Production by 35%
Holy emerging markets! According to Japan's Nikkei business daily [via Reuters], Toyota's luxury division is boosting production by 35 percent to cater to strong demand in Russia, China and other nascent automotive markets. No question: the brand's on a roll. Last year, ToMoCo sold 518,300 Lexi, a nine percent gain over 2006 totals. Lexus now accounts for roughly six percent of Toyota's total sales. As we reported previously, Toyota plans to expand production generally by 8.4 percent– despite the U.S. downturn and any ripple effect it may have on the global economy. According to Nikkei, that's just a start (continuation?). "Toyota has set an internal goal of producing 11.3 million vehicles globally in 2012, excluding its units Daihatsu Motor Co and Hino Motors Ltd. That would represent a rise of more than 30 percent from 2007." Toyota denied the report.
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KixStart you obviously own some older Toyota models. And when I say older I mean not the last 2-3 years models. Reliability has taken a dip lately as reflected in consumer reports and other places alike.
Toyota has been increasing production 500K units per year, so in 5 years we can expect 2.5M extra units or around 12M. That's in line with these rumors.
incitatus, So I should go running back to Ford? Or VW?
Hmmm I own a 2006 Scion Xb with 50,000 miles so far and its been flawless. Why should I doubt Kixstart? I understand reports of some problems in recent Toyotas but I have yet to see any.