Toyota invests $1.1 billion in Ontario as Detroit automakers shrink Canadian footprint

Summary

Toyota has put more than $1.1 billion into its Canadian operations during the tariff fight with Washington. Its Ontario plants built 537,518 vehicles last year, more than any automaker in Canada, and the company is now the country's largest vehicle manufacturer. A new all-new RAV4 began production in Woodstock, and a hybrid Lexus NX starts in Cambridge in December.

While Toyota runs two full shifts plus overtime, GM, Ford and Stellantis have cut shifts or idled plants in Brampton, Oakville, Ingersoll, Oshawa and Windsor. Ottawa responded by cutting GM's tariff-free import quota by 24.2 percent and Stellantis's by half. The video frames this as a rule that rewards companies keeping jobs and investment in Canada.

The video's key number is 85 percent: most vehicles from the Cambridge complex are exported, mostly to the United States. The channel reads Toyota's decision as a bet that the tariff wall is temporary and Canadian manufacturing is lasting. It also notes that Canadian vehicle output fell from about 3 million in 2000 to 1.3 million in 2024, and that Chinese competition is rising.

Key points

• Toyota invested $1.1 billion in its Canadian operations, and its Ontario plants built 537,518 vehicles last year.
• Toyota sold a record 249,445 vehicles in Canada in 2025, up 4.4% in a market that grew just 2.1%.
• About 85% of vehicles from the Cambridge complex are exported, mostly to the U.S.
• Ottawa cut GM's tariff-free import quota by 24.2% and Stellantis's by half.
• Canada's auto sector employs 125,000 Canadians directly and nearly 500,000 more indirectly.
• The White House threatens 50% auto tariffs if no deal is reached by January 1, 2027.

Questions answered