TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan distributor Hotai Motor said on Thursday that Toyota Motor will set up a dedicated production line at Kuozui Motors’ Taoyuan plant in October for the Toyota Noah and Voxy minivans, with the vehicles to be exported to Japan, CNA reported.
Kuozui Motors, a joint venture between Toyota, Hotai, and Hino Motors, operates two plants in Taoyuan with an annual production capacity of up to 200,000 vehicles sold in Taiwan. The company is Toyota’s sole car manufacturing base in Taiwan and also handles part of the automaker’s vehicle R&D.
Kuozui produced 127,000 vehicles last year, accounting for about half of Taiwan’s automobile output and surpassing other domestic automakers, including China Motor, Yulon Motor, and Ford Lio Ho Motor.
Toyota’s move to set up overseas production lines dedicated to the Japanese market is reportedly rare. The automaker also plans to expand production capacity at Kuozui’s plants for additional exports to Japan, while existing production facilities in Japan will continue operations.
Toyota said annual sales of its Noah and Voxy models in Japan reach up to 80,000 units, making them key vehicles in its lineup. The company aims to increase production capacity in Taoyuan to 100,000 units annually for export to Japan, leaving room for future demand.
The company noted strong demand in Japan for minivans, with delivery times for some models exceeding one year. It has stepped up efforts to accelerate supply to avoid losing customers due to delivery delays.
Toyota said it produces about 14,000 vehicles daily in Japan, with factories operating at high capacity. It said the move to set up dedicated overseas production lines is expected to ease domestic labor shortages and speed up the reorganization of its overseas supply chain.
However, exporting vehicles made in Taiwan to Japan faces challenges. A stronger Taiwan dollar against the Japanese yen may add pressure on pricing and margins. Shipping vehicles to Japan would also raise logistics costs.
