Toyota is planning to move some production of one of its Corolla sports models to the UK to take advantage of excess capacity there, and reduce delivery times for the vehicle in North America.
The Japanese car maker is to shift some production of its GR Corolla sportscar from Japan to a new dedicated production line at its Burnaston plant in Derbyshire.
Toyota is to invest about 8bn yen (£41m) setting up the new line and will temporarily dispatch engineers from Japan to share expertise. It intends to produce 10,000 cars annually for export to North America.
Exports are expected to begin from the middle of next year, according to Reuters. A Toyota spokesperson said the company “cannot comment at this time”.
The move is designed to keep up with the strong demand for the petrol-powered car from sportscar enthusiasts in North America.
However, earlier this month the UK and US agreed a “breakthrough” trade deal that included a cut in tariffs on car imports from the UK from 25% to 10% on up to 100,000 vehicles a year – roughly the number the UK exports to the US.
Japan is currently in negotiations to reduce the 25% tariffs that the US has imposed on all car imports.
Toyota’s Burnaston plant began operations in 1992 and has advanced production technology, but production has fallen there since the UK left the EU.
The plant already produces the base model of the GR range, the Corolla hatchback, which makes adding sportscar production relatively straightforward.
The carmaker’s Motomachi plant in Toyota City, Japan, which produces three ranges of high-performance vehicles, is already at full production capacity.
About 25,000 cars were produced on the line last year, with GR Corollas accounting for 8,000 of those.
Toyota’s plants in the US are focused on catering for strong demand for hybrids and other vehicles.
Toyota plans to deal with the additional charges incurred from Donald Trump’s tariff policies through measures such as cost-cutting, and will attempt to avoid raising the price of vehicles for consumers.
The boost in production in the UK is a shot in the arm for the automotive industry, which has been hit by some carmakers pausing production or shutting plants.
In November, Stellantis, the owner of car brands including Vauxhall, said it was planning to close its van factory in Luton, a decision that put 1,100 jobs at risk of being cut or moved.
BMW said in February that it was pausing a £600m investment into a Mini car assembly plant on the outskirts of Oxford, based on the “multiple uncertainties” facing the automotive industry.
