San Antonio Plant to Add Saturdays

Posted by Mark Williams | January 18, 2012

Toyota announced it will be running extra Saturday shifts at the San Antonio Truck Plant to make up for the plant shutdowns that took place in 2011 due to the supply chain disruptions as a result of the large earthquake and resulting tsunami back in March.

Automotive News is reporting the Texas plant will be open on January 21 and other Saturday shifts will likely be added until the end of March, when the Japanese automaker hopes to see its inventory revert to normal levels.

The San Antonio plant, which makes full-size Tundra pickup trucks and about half of Toyota's Tacoma truck inventory, was idled for two three-week stretches after the disasters. The plant also worked on a shortened three-day schedule for 11 weeks over the summer.

"The effects of the tsunami have run its course and we are back to rolling at full capacity of production," Brandyn Moore, a spokeswoman for the plant, said on Tuesday. "We are trying to catch back up and get the trucks back on inventory lots for the dealers."

The San Antonio plant, which makes full-size Tundra pickup trucks and about half of Toyota's Tacoma truck inventory, was idled for two three-week stretches after the disaster. The plant also worked on a shortened three-day schedule for 11 weeks over the summer.

Toyota began ramping up output at some of its North American plants in the fall. Toyota hopes inventory will be "where it needs to be" by the end of March, Toyota spokesman Mike Goss said.

On average, Toyota dealers have about a 40-day supply of Tacoma pickup trucks, far short of Toyota's target of about 70 days, Goss said. Tundra inventories hover around 70 days.

December sales for Tundra are almost back to pre-earthquake sales numbers, posting over 9000 vehicle sales last month (compared with 10,000 sales in December, 2010), and Tacoma sales last month were up over 10 percent compared to December, 2010, selling over 12,000 of the smaller pickups.

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Comments

Cue the trolls and Toyota haters...

Posted by: Ignoramous | Jan 18, 2012 10:45:11 AM

Great news. Always good to see recovery.

Posted by: UncleBud | Jan 18, 2012 10:53:07 AM

now that theyre back on track, lets wait n see if it made any diff in sales.

Posted by: uh huh | Jan 18, 2012 11:18:56 AM

Denis, that's because Cali sucks. Texas is where it's at. Half your state has already moved here, with the other half wishing it could/would. Not that we want Californians here, but how can we stop them? People flock to where the jobs and cheap housing are, and right now it's Texas. Toyota wanted to be a part of where most of it's trucks are sold, so they built the truck plant in San Antonio where everything was cheaper for them. Can you blame them? I don't like Toyota, but I know of a few people who work at the plant and are beyond happy about working there. Glad you got back on your feet.

Posted by: Chris | Jan 18, 2012 11:22:24 AM

Kudos to Toyota!

Posted by: Frank | Jan 18, 2012 11:44:33 AM

I wish it would close and the employees find real jobs.

Posted by: TUNDRA - WHAT A JOKE | Jan 18, 2012 12:01:01 PM

Toyota Tundra, winner among the full-size pickups at Dakar 2012!

Tundra beat the Dodge Ram 2500 and the Ford Raptor!!!

Posted by: oxi | Jan 18, 2012 12:28:09 PM

Great news, way to go Toyota

Posted by: BobbyBobman | Jan 18, 2012 12:39:46 PM

@TUNDRA - WHAT A JOKE - can you elaborate on what you consider to be real jobs?

Posted by: Mrknowitall | Jan 18, 2012 1:01:42 PM

@TUNDRA - WHAT A JOKE

I'm sorry buy your statement joke. You want these Americans fired? Why? Because they build Toyota's? Id rather have Americans building a foreign truck than a bunch of Mexicans or Thais making American trucks. Get over yourself and your hatred for Toyota. Must be a GM guy. WHAT A JOKE!!!!

Posted by: WhOUbU | Jan 18, 2012 1:27:19 PM

i wish every manufacture would make trucks. more to choose from.

Posted by: uh huh | Jan 18, 2012 1:42:47 PM

@oxi - can you post the link? that is cool news but completely irrelevant to this story.
@uh huh - agreed.

Posted by: Lou | Jan 18, 2012 2:03:40 PM

@Lou
Tundra finished 57th
http://www.dakar.com/dakar/2012/us/rider/389.html

The Dodge 74th
http://www.dakar.com/dakar/2012/us/rider/395.html
There were a few Tacoma's entered but cannot see them in the finishing list.
Great Wall a Chinese Pickup finished 7th with Carlos Sousa and 2th with Chinese Driver and Navigator.
Other intersting info:
The Mini's had a 3 Litre diesel putting out 316hp and 516lbs ft of torque.
DeRooy's IVECO Powerstar(The Unique to Australia body style ) had 900hp and I hate to know how much torque from their realitively small 12.9 litre engines, to power the 10 tonne Trucks. Kamaz had about 730hp.

Posted by: Robert Ryan | Jan 18, 2012 2:34:48 PM

yep, like suv's, the market is flooded buy suv's. compact, midsize, fullsize, weird ones, cool ones..... plenty for everyones tastes.

my biggest needs in a truck is pwr, not that any on the market lacks it, just personal preference.

Posted by: uh huh | Jan 18, 2012 2:38:01 PM

Good news for the company.
Not so good news for anyone who likes having weekends.

Posted by: max | Jan 18, 2012 3:12:01 PM

George Michaels drives a tundra

Posted by: Tom with a ranger | Jan 18, 2012 5:41:04 PM

@Tom with a ranger
I just wanted you to know that Obama drives a Ford. http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/112877-obama-drives-a-ford
I have no problem if George Michaels drives a Tundra and I would like it Obama did too because their is nothing wrong with driving a fun (supercharged), safe and dependable truck.

Posted by: 5.3L LOL | Jan 18, 2012 5:56:57 PM

@whoubu I'm actually not a gm guy, I used a sawzall to cut off the trunk lid and backseat of my hyundai elantra to make a pseudo-truck. It is 1000 times better than a tundra.

Posted by: TUNDRA - WHAT A JOKE | Jan 18, 2012 6:51:26 PM

toyota should just stop making these things they claim are trucks, where were they years ago when trucks were first being created, oh right they were trying to figure out how to make an engine with small passages so to make a good sludge build up and rubbish vehicles

Posted by: dear don | Jan 18, 2012 8:20:33 PM

@5.3L LOL - it was probably a hybrid. Obama killed the pipeline plan to ship oil from Canada to the USA. So much for cheep oil. Start saving for that 30,000 dollar electric conversion for your used truck that you won't be able to afford to run on gasoline.

Posted by: Lou | Jan 18, 2012 8:23:20 PM

yeah not gonna lie the Toyota trucks of this day are pathetic and i would rather just tow a trailer with a bicycle. I worked at a Toyota dealership and seen what happens there, the trucks have many problems but aren't brought about at all. For every 100 Ford, Dodge or GM sold there's 1 Tundra sold and no wonder it seems like these trucks have no problem, if there's only 10 Tundras sold in a month and only 3 claim to have a problem that still means there's 1000 good vehicles of either of the 3 majors so no wonder there can be more issue reports although still the Toyotas seem to have larger amount of flaws

Posted by: iforce lol | Jan 18, 2012 8:28:28 PM

Good to hear that Toyota is helping jobs here in the USA by making more terrific pickups! With the highest domestic content.

While Fiat is ramping up vans in Mexico, Ford Rangers in Thailand, and GM sells more cars in China... .

Posted by: Dav | Jan 18, 2012 9:07:21 PM

I would like to thank PUTC for the Toyota news.

@Lou
The only thing I can say about the White House killing the pipeline is Nebraska's R Gov. said no to the pipeline http://news.firedoglake.com/2011/08/31/nebraska-gov-heineman-comes-out-against-the-keystone-xl-pipeline/ and I wouldnt want the big Federal Govt. stepping on Nebraska's right to choose.

Posted by: 5.3L LOL | Jan 18, 2012 9:20:36 PM

Work them Saturdays while you can! Hell yeah, make hay while the sun shines. Make up for the down time.

Posted by: TRX4 Tom | Jan 18, 2012 10:16:33 PM

@Max; it's ok. They waited till the Houston Texans were out of the play-offs. I also have a friend that complains about her finances, but work on her birthday and get birthday pay at the same time as well, or volunteer to work overtime, oh no! A plant is at a work stoppage for a maintanance issue, but lets complain that we aren't doing anything for 45 minutes, but you are getting paid still. Some folks just want to do the minumum

Posted by: TRX4 Tom | Jan 18, 2012 10:34:14 PM

Nothing at all wrong with Frontier and Tacoma. Two terrific trucks. Actually they are the two BEST smaller trucks. NONE BETTER.

Posted by: Paul Emile | Jan 18, 2012 10:57:23 PM

@dear don,

You can claim that about a Tundra but when Toyota was making a small pickup in 1963 and the first 4wd in class back in 1979, where was the small pickups from the big 3?

Posted by: oxi | Jan 18, 2012 11:50:08 PM

@Lou,

Here are some pics of the winning full-size pickup at Dakar:

http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f36/oxi3/389-AE9A1171.jpg

http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f36/oxi3/395834_313582395348893_137705539603247_944375_1838448378_n.jpg

The Dodge Ram 2500 di finish behind the Tundra while the Raptor failed to finish...

All 3 Tacoma's did not finish but Toyota still won pickup truck honors overall with the 3rd place overall finish of the Imperial Toyota HiLux...

The 2 Mini's ahead of the Toyota are not really Mini's, only in body shell. The chassis and powerplant are from last years winning vehicle which is nowhere near a Mini, so in reality the Toyota should be the REAL winner since it is based on an actual Toyota pickup...

The Imperial Toyota team was running the spec engine per rules for next years Dakar, so they are one step ahead of the competition already...

Planty of FJ Cruisers finished strong compared to the only Jeep that managed to finish...

Posted by: oxi | Jan 18, 2012 11:56:23 PM

@Oxi The Mini's had 3 Litre 316hp Diesels, 516lbs ft of torque., as I posted above.
The Hilux's were running the 4.6 Lexus V8, instead of a diesel.
The Great Wall Chinese thing was proabaly the best of the modified production "cars" finishing 7th and 30th. The only Ford Raptor failed to finish.

Posted by: Robert Ryan | Jan 19, 2012 1:26:49 AM

Great job Tundra and Ram.

The Dakar is a brutal race and a true testimate to durability--not some marketing gimmick in a controlled corporate environment.

Posted by: Dav | Jan 19, 2012 7:13:54 PM

I been following this anti-foreign truck site/threads for years. Titan and last few years the Tundra. Like it or not 3 fan boys Toyota and there Tundra are here to stay. You can thank Toyota for embarrasing your makers, and in return it forced them to innovate, innovate beyond the nearly stagnent 235-300hp numbers that you fan boys have had for constant 10+ years. Your up in the 400+ range in 2-3 yrs after the Tundras debute? Can we say thanks Toyota?... Doubt it.

A sticker recall is nothing compared to GM recalling 4,296 of there brand spankin new Sonic compact cars. Apparently NO BRAKE PADS were installed what so ever, that is a joke.

Posted by: Big who? | Jan 20, 2012 2:05:58 AM