(Reuters) – Toyota Motor Corporation will postpone the start of production of electric vehicles in North America to the first half of 2026, citing design adjustments and weak EV sales, the Nikkei Sangyo Shimbun reported on Thursday.
The Japanese automaker recently informed its suppliers that the production start date for its first battery electric model (a three-row SUV) at a factory in the U.S. state of Kentucky will be delayed by several months, the Nikkei Shimbun reported.
Toyota spokesman Scott Vazin said production would likely start in early 2026 rather than late next year.
“We’ve always said it would be late 2025, but it could and does creep into 2026,” Bazin said.
He said Toyota plans to introduce five to seven battery electric vehicle models in the U.S. over the next two years.
Supply disruptions and governance issues have caused Toyota to delay the start of EV production in the U.S. by six months to around June 2026, people familiar with the matter told Reuters earlier.
The company had aimed to manufacture a luxury Lexus-branded electric SUV in North America by 2030, but the company has scrapped that plan in favor of shipping finished cars from Japan to the United States, the Nikkei Shimbun newspaper also reported on Thursday. Ta.
In February, Toyota invested $1.3 billion in its Kentucky factory for its electrification efforts.
(Reporting by Roshan Thomas in Bengaluru, David Shepardson in Washington and Daniel Rusink in Tokyo; Editing by Shailesh Coover and Christopher Cushing)
