Toyota Marks 3 Million Vehicles at Indiana Plant

2012-01-20

It's hard to imagine a single auto plant turning out three million vehicles, but that's Toyota plant in Princeton, Ind., managed to accomplish the task.
The southwestern Indiana factory marked the three-millionth vehicle in a ceremony Tuesday -- a silver Sienna minivan, the Evansville Courier & Press reports via the Associated Press. The plant began making Tundra pickups in 1998.
"It's a tribute to everyone's hard work," said Norm Bafunno, president of Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Indiana.
Reaching the goal was made a little easier by the popularity of the Sienna. It was the top-selling minivan in the U.S. in 2011, the first time the vehicle had achieved that mark.
The milestone is also a big deal because the plant had to slow down production last because of a parts shortages caused by the Japan earthquake and tsunami in March and last fall's flooding in Thailand.
The plant, now operating on maximum overtime, is the region's largest employer, with 4,100 workers and an annual payroll of $288 million.
In November, the Princeton plant began exporting Siennas to South Korea. The plant also exports Sequoia sport utility vehicles to the Middle East, and makes the Highlander SUV.