TOYOTA SLASHES PRODUCTION

SUPPLY ISSUES FOR CRUCIAL SEMI-CONDUCTORS ARE CAUSING MAJOR PRODUCTION DISRUPTIONS FOR THE WORLD’S LARGEST CAR MAKERS

Japanese giant rocked by semiconductor shortage; is your car affected?

IT WAS NOT that long ago, June to be exact, Toyota was telling us all it was not affected by the current global shortage of semi-conductors. When other manufacturers were either admitting their production was starting to really suffer – or keeping their heads down and hoping the storm wouldn’t come their way, the Japanese giant was claiming all was well because it had been “forward planning”.

It had, according to Australian

Vice President of Sales and Marketing Sean Hanley, learnt from natural disasters on home turf a decade ago, and “future-proofed” its supply chain.

Fast-forward to today, and Toyota has had to suspend production across 14 of its Japanese factories in September as it too now grapples with the worldwide chip shortage.

The latest announcement comes after the brand had to temporarily shut down lines at a handful of plants in August, with sites in the United States, Europe, China and other Asian countries also hampered.

As a result, the production of around 360,000 cars (140,000 from Japan alone) has been cut thanks to the parts issue – which roughly works out at 40 percent of Toyota’s monthly output total.

What does this mean for Australiabound vehicles? At least 20 models, across Lexus and Toyota, are on the list of those facing possible delays.

With 25 Japanese lines closing for multiple days next month, Australian Toyota models affected include; the Yaris, Yaris Cross, GR Yaris, Corolla, RAV4, Camry, Prius, C-HR and Prado, 70 and 300 LandCruisers.

Luxury sub-brand Lexus is caught up in the shortage too, with the LC, ES, LS, IS, RC, RC-F, NX, CT, UX and RX all listed as being produced at the plants worst affected.

A Toyota Australia spokesperson told Wheels the local arm is in talks with global headquarters to continue vehicle supply locally.

“Toyota Australia has been advised that vehicle production plants in Japan will be impacted in August and into September, caused by parts shortages resulting from COVID-19 restrictions in Southeast Asia,” they said.

“We are working closely with our global production team to work through the impact on Australia and to support our customers”.

In spite of all this, Australia’s best-selling carmaker is far from alone in the global fight for chips. When Wheels questioned all the big players in the Australian market, the results showed several have had to make considerable changes to their line-ups.

Among the worst affected have been German brands BMW, Mercedes and Volkswagen. BMW has had to temporarily revise the specification of certain models in light of the shortfall, including the BMW 3

Series sedan, BMW X5 xDrive30d and BMW 4 Series Coupe to name a few. It has, however, adjusted pricing accordingly.

Meanwhile, Mercedes’ compact vehicles and SUVs have been worst hit, with some having had adjustments made to their standard specification.

Of the Germanic trio, Volkswagen has been the most forthcoming about its issues, even creating a special website to keep customers updated.

In its passenger vehicle range, there is a secure amount of the Polo, T-Cross, T-Roc and Tiguan Allspace. The Arteon, which is due to arrive soon, will have ample stock of both sedan versions but little availability of the two new Shooting Brakes until the New Year.

Over the pond, US manufacturer Ford says there are waiting periods on some Ranger and Everest variants, and limited stock of Mustangs – with waits on some colours and versions stretching into 2022. Delays can also be expected on the Escape and Transit.

While some automakers, such as Jaguar Land Rover and Jeep, have taken to trimming down their options lists to prevent standard features being axed, rivals Kia, Mitsubishi and Subaru have said they are facing long delays on several models across their respective ranges. These include the Kia Picanto, Rio, Niro and Sorento GT-Line, Mitsubishi’s SUVs and Subaru’s Outback, Forester and XV.

Capitalising on the bad situation is Suzuki, having gone as far as to introduce a completely pared back Jimny (dubbed the GL Lite) to make the most of the model’s recent boom in popularity.

Toyota has had to suspend production across 14 of its Japanese factories due to the worldwide chip shortage