On Friday, Toyota Motor North America introduced a number of management modifications because it inches towards its dedication to electrification. As a part of the modifications, Toyota is establishing a brand new “senior vp of electrical automobile provide” function to guide the automaker’s North American EV provide and manufacturing technique.

Toyota promotes Susan Elkington for brand new EV function

The Japanese automaker is splitting its North American manufacturing and part operations primarily based on the powertrain.

Susan Elkington will assume the brand new function of senior VP of electrical automobile provide at Toyota, the place she will probably be accountable for “accelerating the corporate’s electrified transformation, with a give attention to battery and electrical automobile manufacturing and provide technique.”

From 2018 till now, Elkington served as president of Toyota Motor Manufacturing Kentucky (TMMK), the automaker’s largest manufacturing facility globally, with 500k annual unit manufacturing.

Toyota revealed final month it might produce its first US-assembled EV, a three-row electrical SUV, at its Georgetown, Kentucky, plant.

Elkington commented on the corporate transitioning the plant to electrical, saying, “Toyota Kentucky set the usual for Toyota automobile manufacturing within the US, and now we’re main the cost with BEVs.”

The brand new three-row electrical SUV batteries will probably be equipped from Toyota’s new battery manufacturing unit in North Carolina, one other facility over which Elkington may have accountability.

Toyota invested an extra $2.1 billion into the plant in Could (for a complete of $6 billion) with plans to supply lithium-ion batteries on six manufacturing strains (two for EVs and 4 for hybrids).

The brand new electrical SUV will probably be one in all ten new absolutely electrical vehicles – other than its first, the bZ4X – deliberate to launch globally because it seems to achieve 1.5 million in EV gross sales by 2026.

At a latest tech briefing, Toyota revealed a number of improvements, together with next-gen batteries and design enhancements that the corporate claims will double the vary of its present EV.

Kerry Creech will take Elkington’s place as president of TMMK, promoted from vp of producing on the facility.

In the meantime, Mike Sweers has been promoted to EVP at Toyota Motor North America Analysis and Improvement along with chief tech officer. Sweers will oversee the corporate’s North American automobile analysis and improvement.

Electrek’s Take

Though Toyota is taking a step in the fitting path by selling Elkington to a brand new function in an effort to speed up EV manufacturing, the corporate ought to have made a transfer like this years in the past.

Toyota is already a laggard within the North American EV market. Whereas many automakers are already reaching double-digit EV gross sales share or 100%, Toyota’s absolutely electrical automobiles accounted for simply 1% of complete gross sales within the first quarter of 2023.

At this level, Toyota could also be higher off skipping the separation of powertrain manufacturing and focusing straight on EVs.

Toyota continues investing in expertise like hybrid and gasoline cell automobiles (FCEV) that can take much-needed sources and improvement away from the place it issues – absolutely electrical vehicles.

Hopefully, Elkington might help pace up Toyota’s transition to EVs in North America. We’ll hold you up to date with extra.