Toyota Moves Tacoma Production from Tijuana to Texas in $3.6 Billion Investment

Toyota will shift Tacoma truck production from Tijuana to San Antonio in a $3.6 billion move, raising broader fears for Mexico's auto industry.

The Tacoma, Toyota's bestselling midsize pickup, will no longer be built in Mexico — the company announced a $3.6 billion investment to add a second assembly line at its existing San Antonio, Texas plant and relocate all Tacoma production there. Toyota Motor North America will transition production from its Baja California facility, Toyota Motor Manufacturing Baja California (TMMBC), located in Tijuana. The Tacoma has been built exclusively in Mexico since 2021, making the reversal a significant geographic shift for one of the country's most popular truck lines. The San Antonio expansion is expected to create more than 2,000 new jobs at the Texas campus. Kyodo News reported that part of Toyota's stated rationale is to reduce exposure to U.S. tariffs on vehicles imported from Mexico, which have added cost pressure to automakers operating south of the border. The move is rattling Mexico's broader auto industry. Analysts and industry observers warn the ripple effects could extend well beyond Toyota, as other automakers reassess whether maintaining Mexican production makes economic sense amid continued uncertainty over U.S.-Mexico trade relations. Mexico's auto sector is a major pillar of the country's manufacturing economy, with numerous global brands operating large assembly plants there. A high-profile relocation by the world's largest automaker could signal a wider trend if tariff and trade conditions remain unsettled.

Why it matters

Mexico's auto industry employs hundreds of thousands of workers and is deeply tied to U.S. supply chains, so a high-profile production exit by Toyota could accelerate similar decisions by other manufacturers. The move reflects how U.S. tariff policy is directly reshaping where cars are built in North America.

What's next

Watch for whether other automakers with Mexican assembly operations announce similar investment shifts to U.S. facilities in response to ongoing tariff pressure.

Key facts

• Toyota is investing $3.6 billion to expand its San Antonio, Texas plant with a second assembly line
• Tacoma production will move from the Tijuana-based TMMBC facility to San Antonio
• The Tacoma has been built exclusively in Mexico since 2021
• The Texas expansion is projected to create more than 2,000 new jobs
• Toyota cited U.S. tariffs on vehicles imported from Mexico as a factor in the decision
• Toyota is the world's largest automaker by production volume

Bias & framing notes

Most sources agree on the core facts — the $3.6 billion figure, the Tijuana-to-San Antonio shift, and the 2,000-plus jobs. Coverage diverges in emphasis: entrepreneur.com and motor1.com frame the story as a positive economic development for the U.S., while bloomberg.com and arkansasonline.com lead with the threat to Mexico's auto sector. Kyodo News is the only source to explicitly cite tariffs as Toyota's stated motivation, a detail absent from several others.