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Toyota Plant in Cambridge to Produce RAV4 SUV

The announcement helps allay fears about the plant’s future after Toyota announced earlier this year that production of the best-selling Corolla sedan would move to a new facility in Mexico.

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With production of the RAV4 in Toyota’s North plant in Cambridge, as well as in the automaker’s plant in Woodstock, and production of the Lexus RX SUV in the South plant in Cambridge, Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada (TMMC) will become a hub for sport utility vehicles, the company said.

Toyota Motor Corp. will expand production of its RAV4 crossover to a second Canadian plant, beginning in 2019.

Sales of compact sport-utility vehicles are expected to surpass those of midsize cars in North America overall, and the RAV4 is likely to surpass the midsize Camry in Toyota’s own sales, Mr. Krinock said. It’s planning a hybrid RAV4 production line as well. “We forecast that the segment will continue to demonstrate strong growth RAV4 being a major player”.

Cambridge North Assembly will receive “significant new investment” to build the vehicles, Toyota said Tuesday in a statement. The system includes new production equipment and a new process.

“With a new platform and the latest technology, TMMC will have the flexibility to respond to the evolving needs of the automotive marketplace”, said TMMC president, Brian Krinock.

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The company did not say whether it will be adding any new jobs at Toyota, which now employs about 8,000 people at its three assembly plants in southern Ontario.

The Toyota logo is seen in this 2010 file