Toyota reaches 5m manufacturing milestone at Burnaston

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Think of a number, and a big number at that. If the number in your head is 5 million, congratulations on correctly guessing just how many cars have rolled off Toyota's UK production line over the years.

This significant milestone was being celebrated at Toyota’s Burnaston plant in Derbyshire recently, and both the site itself and the models it produces have come a long way since the very first car, a Carina E, rolled off the line on 16 December, 1992.

To put that number into some kind of context - parked nose-to-tail, UK-built Toyotas would form a line almost 14,000 miles long. That’s more than half way around the world.

It’s also an achievement that highlights TMUK’s (Toyota Manufacturing UK) position as one of the brand’s principal European manufacturing centres, as well as a major contributor to the UK automotive sector as a whole. Since its founding in 1989, it has benefited from more than £2.82 billion investment, keeping it at the cutting edge of new technologies, skills, and production methods, not to mention the positive economic impact it has had on the local area.

TMUK has also been a global trailblazer for Toyota’s ambitious and wide-ranging environmental programme, generating its own sustainable energy sources and minimising waste by recovering, recycling, and re-using parts and materials.

TMUK’s engine plant in Deeside, North Wales, is also on course to become Toyota’s first global carbon neutral production site in 2025. In the case of Burnaston itself, it was the first Toyota facility outside Japan to make hybrid vehicles, a practice that continues today with 100% of its production being hybrid.

And in a fitting little quirk of fate, the 5 millionth car to be built at Burnaston also bears the same name as the 1 millionth back in 2001.

Which shouldn’t really come as a surprise because the Toyota Corolla is arguably one of the world’s most popular models with more than 50 million sold to date, although the milestone model - a Corolla GR Sport Hatchback hybrid finished in blazing Scarlet Flare paintwork - is many generations of development and improvement away from the 1 millionth model that hit the road more than two decades ago, and even further advanced from the very first Corolla that dates back to 1966.

Corolla - successful heritage

The current generation is the 12th to bear the name and continues the heritage that has made the Toyota Corolla so successful.

Today’s Toyota Corolla is an example of the quality, durability, and reliability that the brand takes pride in. The latest safety features, generous specifications featuring cutting-edge technology, and efficient performance are all wrapped up in a stylish and practical package.

Two powertrain options – 1.8 and 2.0-litre – make the most of Toyota’s world-leading hybrid technology with strong fuel economy and low emissions, and the choice of a five-door Hatchback or a Touring Sports estate makes the Corolla a truly versatile and practical lease option.

And if you do decide to lease one, you can also quite rightly point out that your car is one of the few that is actually manufactured right here in the UK too.

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