Toyota Motor said yesterday it is to acquire a US$50 million stake in Tesla Motors and will jointly develop electric vehicles with the Silicon Valley firm.
Toyota and Tesla Motors, based in Palo Alto, California, “intend to cooperate on the development of electric vehicles, parts, and production system and engineering support,” they said in a joint statement.
Tesla said separately that it had bought a closed Toyota joint venture factory that once housed New United Motor Manufacturing Inc, known as NUMMI, a venture between the Japanese maker and General Motors (GM).
PHOTO: BLOOMBERG
GM pulled out of the venture last year as it restructured under government-backed bankruptcy protection. Toyota closed the plant earlier this year after reaching a deal with the plant’s 4,500 unionized workers.
The electric vehicles maker said it “will build the Model S sedan and future Tesla vehicles” at the plant in Fremont, California. The Model S is expected to be the first pure electric premium sedan, according to Tesla.
The deal brings together the world’s largest automaker and the only US manufacturer currently producing and selling highway-capable electric vehicles.
“I sensed the great potential of Tesla’s technology,” Toyota president Akio Toyoda said.
The two companies said Toyota has agreed to purchase US$50 million of common stock issued in a private placement by Tesla.
Toyota did not disclose how much its equity stake in Tesla will be but the Nikkei economic daily said the ratio was likely to be 5 percent or less.
In other developments, Toyota Motor Corp began a recall yesterday of 4,509 Lexus cars in Japan because of a computer problem affecting the model’s steering system, with a similar recall to follow in the US.
The carmaker said on Wednesday it would recall the cars in Japan, with another 7,000 affected in the US, China, Europe and other regions. The recall affects Toyota’s luxury Lexus “LS” line and involves a computerized system that oversees how the steering wheel controls the tires.
After being hit with a record US$16.4 million fine in the US for being slow to carry out an accelerator pedal recall and facing strong government criticism both at home and abroad for slow responses to safety problems, Toyota Motor Corp is working to react more quickly to problems with its cars.
A document posted yesterday on the Japanese transport ministry’s Web site shows the latest recall covers Lexus vehicles manufactured from late August last yer through the middle of this month. It said there have been 12 complaints about the issue, with no accidents reported.
A statement on Toyota’s Web site said preparations also were being made to launch a recall in the US later yesterday. There are about 4,000 affected Lexus cars in the US, according to company spokesman Paul Nolasco.
The fix requires a software update of the steering system.
Toyota has recalled more than 8 million vehicles worldwide for safety defects affecting some of its best-selling models. The US Transportation Department is reviewing thousands of Toyota documents and could issue new penalties for the company’s handling of other safety recalls.
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source