Toyota to temporarily suspend operations at Japan plants

Due to chip shortage, Toyota will suspend production of C-HR, Yaris, and Yaris Cross

It seems even not even Toyota can avoid the global chip shortage. The Japanese marque announced that several production lines at two of their plants in Japan will be temporarily shut down.

At Toyota Motor East Japan, Inc. (TMEJ) Iwate Plant, production lines 1 and 2 are affected by the shortage. Production line 1, responsible for producing the Toyota C-HR, will suspend operation for 8 days, from June 7-11, 14, and 21-22. Meanwhile, Production line 2, which produces the Yaris and Yaris Cross, will temporarily suspend operations from June 9-11 and 14-15 for a total of 5 days.

The Toyota Motor East Japan, Inc. (TMEJ) Miyagi Ohira Plant will also be temporarily shutting operations from June 9-11. The plant is also responsible for producing the Yaris Cross.

You may be wondering why this concerns you. The C-HR and Yaris Cross are not sold locally, and the Yaris sold at Toyota Motor Philippine dealerships is sourced from Thailand, not Japan. Well, that's because it's a sign of things to come. The global chip shortage might not be hitting Toyota hard right now, but it could affect more models in the future, including ones sold in the country. Specifically, this might not be the last time Toyota's supply chain will be affected by the chip shortage.

Remember, nearly all automakers around the world are cutting back production due to the shortage. Worse yet, it is still uncertain when the shortage will end. Some predict it could last until 2022 and possibly into 2023. Several automakers have already announced temporary shutdowns in their supply chain, including Mercedes-Benz, Mini, and Chevrolet. Meanwhile, Nissan said they might make 500,000 fewer vehicles this 2021.