Toyota dumps $1.3B into Kentucky to build a better Camry
It's the largest investment by any automaker in the state.
The Toyota Camry sells like ice cream on a hot day, so it's no surprise Toyota is willing to dump a serious chunk of change into the facility tasked with building the latest version of its family sedan.
Toyota will invest $1.33 billion in its Kentucky manufacturing facility, in order to build the best 2018 Camry it possibly can. It's the second largest investment in state history, and the largest state investment of any automaker. The Camry isn't the only car this affects, either -- anything riding on the Toyota New Global Architecture will stand to benefit.
Toyota is regularly ranked as one of the most "American" automakers, based on where its vehicles are produced.
To date, cars built on the Toyota New Global Architecture include the 2018 Camry, the 2016+ Prius and the 2018 C-HR. It will also underpin new Lexus models, including the 2018 LC luxury coupe and the 2018 LS luxury sedan.
Toyota didn't dive too deep on specifics, but it claims part of the investment will go toward updating equipment and building a brand-new paint shop. It hopes the billion-dollar infusion will streamline production in general, not just in paint.
The automaker's Kentucky plant is the largest Toyota manufacturing facility in the world. Some 8,200 people are employed there, more than 700 of whom were hired just to work on the forthcoming 2018 Camry. The plant built more than 500,000 vehicles last year, and it's responsible for more than 33 percent of every Toyota built in North America since 1986.
In the interest of maintaining its status as an automaker with deep manufacturing roots in the US, Toyota is set to invest $10 billion in the country over the next five years. This investment is part of that strategy, so consider this the start of something, not the end of it.
