Toyota celebrated this achievement yesterday with 200 guests. Marc Ferracci, the French Minister Delegate for Industry, joined the event. The company showed off a special Yaris Cross painted in the colors of the French flag to mark the occasion.
The Valenciennes plant started making cars in January 2001. It began with the Toyota Yaris, which could make 150,000 cars a year. The Yaris became the most-made single model in France seven times in ten years.
In 2021, Toyota started making the Yaris Cross. It's now Toyota's best-selling model in Europe and leads its segment. In the first 10 months of 2024, Toyota sold 173,209 Yaris Cross vehicles. The Yaris Cross was the most-made single model in France in both 2022 and 2023.
Last year, the Valenciennes plant made 273,788 cars. These were both Yaris Cross and Yaris models. The plant made more cars than any of Toyota's other four assembly plants in Europe. It has 5,000 workers and makes more than 1,200 hybrid cars every day.
Toyota has put a lot of money into this plant. The company has invested 1.6 billion euros in total. This money has gone towards making new generations of cars and improving how environmentally friendly the plant is.
"We're proud of this milestone," said a Toyota spokesperson. "It shows our commitment to manufacturing in Europe and to making cars that our customers love."The 5 millionth car marks a big moment for Toyota in Europe. It shows how important the Valenciennes plant is to Toyota's European operations.
