TOKYO, Dec. 15 (UPI) -- The Toyota Motor Corp. group plans to produce 8 million vehicles in 2005, approaching the output of world No. 1 automaker General Motors.
The Toyota group includes subsidiaries Hino Motors Ltd. and Daihatsu Motor Co.
General Motors, the largest automaker in the world, produced 8.24 million units in 2003.
To meet global demands, Toyota will start a joint venture with PSA Peugeot Citroen in February to produce minicars in the Czech Republic, while starting production of its Crown model at a second plant in Tianjin, China, in spring.
Toyota also will increase production of its IMV model in Thailand next year as its strategic vehicle targeting world markets and will start production of the IMV in Argentina and South Africa, Yomiuri Shimbun reported Wednesday.
With increasing production as forecast, Toyota could match General Motors in production and sales by 2006. In that year Toyota will open a plant in Russia. It also will open a seventh plant in the United States and new plants in China.
