ES Production Transitioning Back to Japan
 

Some interesting news about Toyota's Georgetown, KY plant and the Lexus ES.

"Toyota Motor North America plans to invest $461 million in its massive assembly complex in Georgetown, Ky., to expand its engine offerings and broaden the complex's "ability to produce new products, including future electrification." As part of the announcement, Toyota said it planned to shift production of the Lexus ES and ES Hybrid sedans back to Japan before the next major model change, expected prior to 2025. The plant will continue to build the Camry, Camry Hybrid and RAV4 Hybrid. Toyota announced earlier this year that it was ending U.S. production of the Toyota Avalon sedan, which is also built at Toyota Motor Manufacturing Kentucky."
Source: Automotive News http://ow.ly/WNw250GBthg

That is very interesting.

A year or two ago, I read a post on a board from a young person who claimed to be a recent employee of Lexus in the US. He claimed that he saw the Lexus ES was being produced in the US to great fanfare for public consumption, but that in reality, Japanese execs were so protective of the brand's quality standards that they were essentially building the whole car in Japan and shipping the car as completed subsystems to the US, so that Kentucky had no role in the car except final assembly. If what he wrote was true, this may just be Toyota deciding the charade was no longer worth the inefficiency it created.

Of course, he might not have been telling the truth. Who knows?

https://www.autonews.com/manufacturi...on-moves-japan

Sounds like they have enough going on in that plant and need the capacity for other things? 🤷‍♂️

I personally don't think Toyota would do that. They are all about efficiency and would not do anything that would be otherwise. Also, i doubt there are a lot of secrets in ES that they would not want to reveal.

ES was built on Avalon platform and shared many Parts. With Avalon gone and potentially other higher volume electric cars replacing its manufacturing space, it only makes sense to move it to a different plant.

It sounds like the ex employee was technically correct, but jaded and off on his spin on why. Being an assembly plant, it's likely true that Kentucky had little to do with the car during development that was unrelated to the assembly process. And it's possible they had very little to do with that other than its execution, with the plant in Japan as the primary assembly point. But that's not unusual at all, virtually all of the design, development, and engineering is done elsewhere at tech centers, etc. at the corporate level for virtually every OEM.

​​​​​​Also, It's not like this is the first plant outside of Japan that builds Lexus vehicles. Of course they are protective of the brand, but it's not the first rodeo so there's little need for a dog a pony show. Besides, even for Toyota the scale of th dollars is too much for a publicity stunt.

Makes total sense to me. Just remember the first digit of the vin is "J" for Japan and "5" for the US.

My 2019 ES300h is made in Japan and so is my Miata. Only thing not made in Japan is wife's RAV4. I will have to get one made in Japan when time to replace it. I am trying to stack the cards in my favor.

I'm all for the ES manufacturing returning to Japan. The best Toyota's I've owned have all been manufactured in Japan. I've been reluctant to spend $55K on a Kentucky built version of the ES, but lately, that's all that has been available. I've already been burned by an American made Avalon!

I spent $56k on a Kentucky built ES and it has been perfect. Toyota is a different (lesser) league.

I had 2 Generation 6 ES vehicles. One was a 2013 ES built in Japan, and the other was a 2017 ES built in Kentucky.

I had always thought that Lexus and Toyota vehicles built in the US were good but that the ones built in Japan were just a bit better. My experience with the 2 Generation 6 ESs changed my thinking. The fits and finishes on the 2013 car built in Japan were okay, but they were far from perfect with the alignment of both interior and exterior panels. The fits and finishes on the US-built 2017 ES were about as close to perfect as could be. After my experience with those two cars, I would not hesitate to buy a Lexus or Toyota built in the US.

Agree... :bigok:

When will Lexus begin model year 2023 ES350 production in Japan for the USA market? Does anyone in here know?
Also, when will Lexus stop production on the ES350 in Kentucky for the current 2022 ES350 model year? Does anyone in here know?

Initially, I was informed that production would be transitioned back to Japan leaving the Georgetown plant. Many things are fluid currently and there hasn't been any good information about the shift of the ES away from Georgetown. My understanding is it may be going to Princeton Indiana, so it shouldn’t cause overall cost to rise much at all. Things are changing everywhere so it's hurry up and wait!

Do they build Lexus in Princeton, Indiana?