Japanese automaker Toyota announced on Monday that it will be moving production of its Tacoma model from the Baja California border city of Tijuana — where it has been assembling the midsize pickup for two decades — to its manufacturing campus in San Antonio, Texas.
The move out of Mexico is part of a US $3.6 billion investment by Toyota to greatly expand its San Antonio plant’s size and production capacity and create 2,000 new jobs in the U.S. city.
It follows Toyota’s announcement that it will invest up to $10 billion more than previously anticipated in U.S. operations through 2030.
Mexico’s Economy Ministry (SE) confirmed Toyota’s plans and tried to put the best spin on the situation by explaining some details.
For one thing, Toyota will continue Tijuana operations during a four-year transition period and then decide what to do with the plant. Thus, it will not be abandoned soon and maybe not at all.
Also, production of the Tacoma will continue at Toyota’s Guanajuato plant, which, along with the Tijuana plant, has been the exclusive manufacturer of the model since 2024. The Guanajuato facility directly employs 2,800 people and supports thousands of indirect jobs in the El Bajío region.
Another piece of positive news offered by the SE, though somewhat mysteriously, is that President Sheinbaum indicated to the ministry that another automaker has expressed plans to invest US $500 million in Mexican operations. The name of the company was not given but the SE spokesperson indicated that an announcement was only a matter of days away.
Toyota’s Texas-sized US vision
Toyota had previously announced plans to invest $531 million to develop a 500-million-square-foot rear-axle plant on the San Antonio campus, with production expected to start in the fall. Toyota has reportedly invested $8.3 billion in its San Antonio plant since commencing operations there in 2003.
The San Antonio plant already manufactures Toyota’s Tundra full-size pickup truck and hybrid variant, as well as the Toyota Sequoia SUV hybrid.
The increased investment and rise in production capacity could propel Toyota to become the largest U.S. car seller, narrowing the gap in U.S. sales with America’s largest automaker, General Motors.
Toyota’s sales increased by 0.5% in the first half of the year compared to 2025, to 1.24 million. Meanwhile, GM’s sales fell by 6.8% to 1.34 million.
With reports from CNBC and La Jornada
