Toyota says it expects to ship 25,000 units of the Yaris annually from France to the North American starting next spring. The move is intended to keep the Valenciennes plant humming amid Europe's declining auto sales.
"We are very proud to have been selected as the main source of Yaris for North American markets," Makoto Sano, president of Toyota Motor Manufacturing France, told The Detroit News.
"This is not only an endorsement of the quality of the cars built by our team members here, but it's also a significant new business opportunity for our factory."
Toyota will invest about $10.4 million in the French plant to ready it for production of the North American-spec Yaris. North America-bound Yaris models will require slight alterations from their European counterparts, such as different bumpers to meet our safety standards.
