Lexus NX to be Manufactured in Canada Starting in 2022
Toyota has just made a very important announcement that will be celebrated by many in the Canadian auto industry: Beginning in 2022, the Japanese automaker’s Cambridge, Ontario assembly plants will manufacture the Lexus NX and NX Hybrid luxury compact crossovers to be sold across North America.
They will join the larger RX and RX Hybrid, a pair that has combined for more than 1.3 million units since production began in 2003.
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“Today’s announcement demonstrates the tremendous amount of trust that Toyota has in the Team Members here at TMMC,” said Fred Volf, President of Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada. “It has been an honour to be producing a Lexus model, and now we’re being trusted to produce two of them."
Accounting for a third of all Lexus vehicle sales in Canada, the NX is by far the brand’s second best-selling model, right behind the RX. The gasoline-powered NX300, priced from $44,050 before freight and destination charges, houses a turbocharged 2.0-litre engine that delivers 235 horsepower and a towing capacity of 907 kg (2,000 lb).
Meanwhile, the electrified NX300h ($51,250) generates 194 horsepower and burns less fuel, averaging 7.5 L/100 km in city-highway driving. All-wheel drive and the Lexus+ Safety System both come standard.
Production of the Lexus NX in Canada is possible thanks to last year’s $1.4 billion investment to convert the North and West plants to the Toyota New Global Architecture (TNGA) platform, which will allow for increased flexibility, further production efficiency and superior products.
As a result, TMMC is able to shift its production to meet the demands of the rapidly growing compact SUV market in North America, most notably through the production of the Toyota RAV4 and RAV4 Hybrid.