Tokyo — TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION (TMC) announces changes to its suggested retail prices for certain commercial and hybrid vehicles sold in Japan, effective September 1, 2008.

Until now, TMC has countered soaring prices of raw materials such as steel, rare metals and crude oil through stringent cost reduction efforts carried out along with affiliated companies.  This has allowed TMC to avoid increasing retail prices of vehicles in Japan.  However, recent further price increases in raw materials have been larger than TMC’s cost reduction efforts are able to offset, and with prices expected to remain high, TMC has decided to adjust its suggested retail prices for commercial and hybrid vehicles, which use large amounts of either steel or rare metals.

The suggested retail prices for commercial vehicles are to increase by an average of 2%, or 29,100 yen per vehicle, and for hybrid vehicles by an average 3%, or 76,800 yen per vehicle.  The new prices for the main grade of each vehicle are listed below.

Source:TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION

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Tokyo — TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION (TMC) announced that Toyota Motor Philippines Corporation (TMP), TMC’s production and sales base in the Philippines, held a ceremony today in Makati City, Metropolitan Manila to mark the 20th anniversary of TMP’s establishment.

Attendees at the ceremony included Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, Trade and Industry Secretary Peter B. Favila, Japanese Ambassador to the Philippines Makoto Katsura, TMC Chairman Fujio Cho and TMP President Hiroshi Ito.  At the ceremony, TMP announced plans to donate 100 million pesos to the University of the Philippines as an expression of TMP’s appreciation for 20 years of support from the local community.

TMP, established in 1988, began production and sales in 1989.  As of July 2008, cumulative production stood at 410,000 vehicles and cumulative sales stood at 540,000 vehicles.

Separately today, Toyota Autoparts Philippines Inc. (TAP), which is a global production and supply base for manual transmissions for the Innovative International Multi-purpose Vehicle (IMV) project, held a line-off ceremony to mark the company’s increase in annual production capacity.  The increase, from 150,000 to 330,000 units, was made possible with an investment of approximately 5.6 billion pesos, and is expected to result in the employment of approximately 500 new workers.

TAP will produce roughly 270,000 transmissions for the IMV project in 2008, with plans calling for some units to be exported to the IMV production sites in eight countries and regions.

TMC’s Cho delivered a speech at TMP’s 20th anniversary ceremony in which he congratulated TMP on its 20 years, and also TAP on its growth as a production and supply base.  Cho also expressed TMC’s desire to further contribute to the Philippine automobile industry and to the nation’s economic growth.

Source: TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION

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Tokyo — TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION (TMC) announced today that it has reached an agreement with its joint venture partner in South Africa, Wesco Investments Ltd. (Wesco), under which its local affiliate, Toyota South Africa (Pty) Ltd. (TSA), will become a wholly owned TMC subsidiary.  Under the agreement, TMC is to acquire Wesco’s 25% share in TSA in late August 2008.

By making TSA a wholly owned subsidiary, TMC will put in place a structure better allowing it to strongly drive forward its South African production, sales, and export activities, as TSA is a holding company for Toyota South Africa Motors (Pty) Ltd. (TSAM), the local entity responsible for TMC’s South African production and sales.

TSAM, which has maintained the leading market share in South Africa since 1980, sold 153,000 units there last year and currently holds a market share of 22.6%.  As a base in TMC’s global production and supply system, TSAM began exporting the “Hilux” and “Fortuner” models to other countries in Africa and to Europe in 2005, and launched exports of the “Corolla” sedan to other countries in Africa in October 2007 and to Europe in February 2008.

TMC intends to continue to further enhance its production, sales, and export activities in Africa.

Source: TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION

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Tokyo — TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION (TMC) announced today that Toyota Motor Thailand Co., Ltd. (TMT) carried out Thailand’s largest-ever*1 tree-planting event at TMT’s Ban Pho Plant in Chachoengsao Province, Thailand.

More than 10,000 volunteers—including local residents, officials of Chachoengsao Province, Toyota suppliers and dealers, and plant employees and their family members—gathered to give root to approximately 100,000 trees at and around the vehicle production facility.

The event—representing TMC’s ongoing effort to plant trees at and around vehicle production facilities as part of its global sustainable plant activities*2—was designed to create a multi-layered natural environment using trees native to the area and to create a production site that could serve as a lush and diverse habitat for various living creatures.  Based on a survey of the local flora, 34 types of tree including yang-na and takien thong were selected, with approximately 100,000 trees planted in total.

The Ban Pho Plant, which began operation in 2007, is aimed at being an innovative plant in the Asia-Pacific region in terms of its production technology and environmental response.  It has achieved zero landfill waste since commencing operations and was the first overseas TMC plant to introduce a cogeneration system and solar panels, which enable it to cut its CO2 emissions by 9,000 tons annually.  In addition, wastewater is recycled at the plant and water-borne metallic-paint is used in vehicle body paint lines.  Currently, a biotope*3 being created at the plant will promote the reuse of materials from production and production-related processes, such as using wood from shipping crates to build bridges, waste plastic to create benches, and blocks made from solidified waste to pave footpaths.

The Ban Pho Plant, together with TMC’s Tsutsumi Plant in Japan, Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Mississippi, Inc. (TMMMS) in the United States, Toyota Motor Manufacturing (UK) Ltd., and Toyota Motor Manufacturing France S.A.S. (TMMF), is a model plant for sustainable plant activities.

TMC believes that the successful implementation of its sustainable plant activities depends on how well it can cultivate eco-consciousness among its employees and the ability of its plants to coexist with their surrounding communities.  At the Ban Pho Plant, environmental displays have been set up in each production process area to raise employees’ environmental awareness, and, through such actions as today’s tree-planting event and the future opening of the biotope to the general public, the plant intends to further its sustainable plant activities, aiming to become a production facility that will be embraced by the surrounding community.

In the future, TMC plans to gradually initiate such activities at all of its plants around the world to make sustainable plants a reality.

Source: TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION

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TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION (TMC) announced today development of the “Winglet”, a personal transport assistance robot ridden in a standing position.

The Winglet—still being refined—is one of TMC’s people-assisting Toyota Partner Robots.  Designed to contribute to society by helping people enjoy a safe and fully mobile life, the Winglet is a compact next-generation everyday transport tool that offers advanced ease of use and expands the user’s range of mobility.

The Winglet consists of a body (with a projected area the size of an A3 sheet of paper) that houses an electric motor, two wheels and internal sensors that constantly monitor the user’s position and make adjustments in power to ensure stability.  Meanwhile, a unique parallel link mechanism allows the rider to go forward, backward and turn simply by shifting body weight, making the vehicle safe and useful even in tight spaces or crowded environments.

TMC has created three models, the “L”, “M” and “S”, each having different handling features that allow consumers to select a model appropriate to their needs—from “practical” to “hands-free sporty”.

TMC plans various technical and consumer trials to gain feedback during the Winglet’s lead-up to practical use.  Practical tests of its utility as a mobility tool are planned to begin in Autumn 2008 at Central Japan International Airport (Centrair) near Nagoya, and Laguna Gamagori, a seaside marine resort complex in Aichi Prefecture.  Testing of its usefulness in crowded and other conditions, and how non-users react to the device, is to be carried out in 2009 at the Tressa Yokohama shopping complex in Yokohama City.

TMC is pursuing sustainability in research and development, manufacturing and social contribution as part of its concept to realize “sustainability in three areas” and to help contribute to the health and comfort of future society.  Toyota Partner Robot development is being carried out with this in mind and applies TMC’s approach to monozukuri (”making things”), which includes its mobility, production and other technologies.  In a related development, TMC unveiled the “MOBIRO” mobility robot, designed for use in a sitting position, in 2007.

TMC aims to realize the practical use of Toyota Partner Robots in the early 2010s by furthering its robotic development and strengthening collaboration between industry, government and academia. Source: TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION

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