DETROIT — Automotive engineers will be under great pressure in the near future to come up with ways to make large cars more fuel efficient for the North American market, according to a top Toyota official.

David Baxter, senior executive administrator at the Toyota Technical Center in Ann Arbor, said Monday that North American consumers prefer larger vehicles, and it's up to engineers to figure out how to satisfy their wants with new technologies.

"Especially in North America, people like the size of their vehicles, and there's going to be a lot of pressure to maintain the size for safety and improve fuel economy," Baxter said in an interview at the Society of Automotive Engineers annual convention in downtown Detroit.

He predicted that consumers likely will switch buying habits in the next decade to vehicles that get better gas mileage and have more safety features.

"But that doesn't necessarily mean they're all going to be hybrids or all small cars, either," he said. ..

Baxter said the company already employs about 780 people in the Ann Arbor area and is hiring another 400 engineers. The new center ultimately will focus on developing vehicles unique to North America, while existing operations will continue work on powertrains, parts and materials evaluation and other research, Baxter said.

The new facility will support Toyota's growth expected in North America over the next several years, he said.