The future of the plant that Toyota shared with General Motors is at stake

New United Motor Manufacturing Inc. (NUMMI) is the name of the factory located in Fremont, California, which in 1984 was jointly reopened by General Motors and Toyota to produce models that shared a platform but were aimed at the American and Japanese markets respectively. However, since the North American group left it in June for well-known reasons, Toyota has been seriously considering closing it.

Given the negative results that the Japanese manufacturer posted for the first time in its history at the end of fiscal year 2008, which it expects to post losses again next year, and that the plant has high maintenance costs, the survival options for NUMMI are limited. On the other hand, Akio Toyoda, president of Toyota, has committed to returning the company to positive figures, and could reach a decision on the future of NUMMI very soon.

The plant employs 4,700 workers, but there are also another 20,000 who are linked to the industry in California and more than a thousand suppliers. Therefore, closing the factory would be a severe blow to the sector, and Californian lawmakers are trying to dissuade Toyota from closing it so that it continues operating on its own. But the procedures seem likely to take longer than expected, and by the time they are finished, Toyota may have already made the final decision.

NUMMI was, from its beginning, a commitment to rapprochement between the North American and Japanese automotive industries at a time when rivalry was very heated. Thanks to the collaboration between the manufacturers, the models produced there achieved fairly good success and helped Toyota establish itself on North American soil, as well as profits in the first 20 years of production.

From its assembly lines came several American twins of the Toyota Corolla, such as the Chevrolet Nova of the 80s and the Geo/Chevrolet Prizm of the 90s. The last model that GM and Toyota shared was the Japanese Voltz, which was sold as the Pontiac Vibe in North America. But since Pontiac will cease to exist next year, Toyota has been left as the plant’s sole user.

Source | IbercajaMotor