DALLAS, Sept. 28 /PRNewswire/ -- At the State Fair of Texas preview
today, Toyota rolled out for the first time two prototypes of its 2007
Tundra pickup truck, which will be assembled in its new billion-dollar
truck plant in San Antonio.
To view the Multimedia News Release, go to:
http://www.prnewswire.com/mnr/toyota/25630 /
"The State Fair is a true icon of Texas, which just happens to be the
epicenter of the U.S. light truck market. It's easy to illustrate just how
important Texas is to us," said Ernest Bastien, vice president of vehicle
operations for Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A.
"If you need more proof of how important Texas is to Toyota, all you
have to do is take a look in San Antonio at our new truck plant there," he
said.
Toyota has constructed a new truck plant in San Antonio to produce the
2007 Tundra. Its original projections were that the plant would amount to
an investment of $850 million and create 2,000 new jobs. The plant has
attracted more suppliers than anticipated from other states to build
facilities on Toyota's site, and as a result, the total investment on the
site has grown to well more than $1 billion and 4,100 new jobs.
Toby Hynes, president of Gulf States Toyota, the distributor in the
five- state region, pointed out, "Dealers in the region are currently
investing $600 million to bring their facilities up to the new Toyota
standards. At GST, we are investing $70 million in a greatly expanded
Vehicle Processing Center in Houston and other facilities ... so we can
bring the highest levels of service to our customers."
"So, to put it mildly, Toyota, Gulf States Toyota and our dealers are
expanding in Texas in just about every way you can imagine," Hynes said.
"When you add in the investments being made by Gulf States Toyota and
our dealers, we are bringing nearly $2 billion worth of new facilities into
the economy of Texas," Bastien said.
"The plant is impressive. Huge coils of steel roll into one end of the
plant, and finished pickup trucks roll out the other. Inside, there's some
of the largest pieces of manufacturing equipment in the state," he said.
Big Truck Fills True Truckers Needs
When it goes on sale next February, the new 2007 Toyota Tundra will be
available in 31 different models, with three engine choices -- a
fuel-sipping 4.0 liter V6, a 4.7 liter V8, and an all-new 5.7 liter V8. The
truck boasts a towing capacity of more than 10,000 pounds.
The new Double Cab long bed truck, which will be seen at the fair for
the first time, has an eight-foot bed and a 165-inch wheelbase. The longest
Tundra model, it is suitable for carrying a crew of six, plus cargo.
The Regular Cab long bed, also debuting at the fair, has extra storage
space behind the driver's seat and what Toyota believes will be the largest
interior volume in its class. The Regular Cab is available in a standard
grade that includes heavy-duty vinyl flooring and content targeted
specifically for work-related use.
"We think both of these trucks will have special appeal with true
truckers, including a variety of hard-working commercial and ranch users,"
Bastien said. "We decided the new Tundra needed to be a truck built
exclusively for the customer, not a truck that simply benchmarked the full-
size competition."