The hard-hit UK motor industry has received a boost after Toyota announced a collaboration with Suzuki which will see the build of a hybrid model at the company’s UK plant.
The two Japanese companies have been working on a memorandum of understanding for over two years now and following the announcement that Toyota will be supplying its hybrid system to Suzuki on a global scale, it has been decided that Toyota will also build a new car at their Derbyshire plant.
The hybrid which will feature a Corolla based platform will also see the powertrains built at the firm’s Deeside engine plant. The work is expected to begin in late 2020, whilst the two car giants will also work elsewhere in Europe on a plan for a vehicle based on the RAV4 platform.
Speaking about the partnership, Toyota’s President Akio Toyoda said: “Through our new agreement, we look forward to the wider use of hybrid technologies, not only in India and Europe, but around the world. At the same time, we believe that the expansion of our business partnership with Suzuki-from the mutual supply of vehicles and powertrains to the domains of development and production-will help give us the competitive edge we will need to survive this once-in-a-century period of profound transformation.”
Though the partnership is unlikely to bring any new jobs to Toyotas UK factories, the news will come as a confidence boost in the sector after some challenging times of job cuts and factory closures.