TOKYO (Reuters) - Toyota Motor will start making two battery-powered sport utility vehicles at its U.S. Kentucky plant and will end production of a luxury Lexus brand model at the site, a person familiar with the matter said.
The electric vehicles the Japanese automaker plans to build in Kentucky will be based on the RAV4 and the Land Cruiser, according to the person, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak publicly.
Toyota declined to comment on its future product
plans.
The next-generation Lexus ES sedan, due next year, will be manufactured in Japan and exported to the U.S., the person said, adding the change is not related to U.S. import tariffs.
In the U.S., Toyota currently makes Lexus ES sedans at its Kentucky plant and Lexus TX sport utility vehicles at a facility in the state of Indiana.
On Tuesday, the Nikkei newspaper reported Toyota would consolidate production of Lexus brand cars in the U.S. to a single location in the face of high tariffs imposed by the Trump administration.
In response to that report, Toyota said the information was not something announced by the company, adding that it continually reviews its production structure as part of efforts to make ever-better cars.
(Reporting by Maki Shiraki, Daniel Leussink and Mariko Katsumura; Editing by Kirsten Donovan, Himani Sarkar and Sharon Singlton)
