Central Motors

Central Motor Co., Ltd.
Native name
 セントラル自動車株式会社
Limited company
Industry Automotive industry
Predecessor Toyota's Kamata Plant business
Successor Toyota Motor East Japan
Founded 4 September 1950
Founder Ryuichi Tomiya
Defunct 1 July 2012
Headquarters Ōhira, Miyagi, Japan
Area served
 worldwide
Products Automobiles
Revenue ¥728,000,000,000 (March 2009)
Parent Toyota Motor Corpotation
Website www.toyota-ej.co.jp/english

Central Motor Co., Ltd.[lower-alpha 1] was a Japanese manufacturer of cars within the Toyota Group. It was founded on 4 September 1950 by Ryuichi Tomiya. The company operated five plants, all located in Japan. It was one of the biggest export vehicle manufacturers of the concern. In July 2012 it was merged with two other Toyota subsidiaries operating in Tohoku to form Toyota Motor East Japan.

History

Central Motors was the operational successor of Toyota's Kamata Plant (トヨタ自動車蒲田工場, Toyota Jidōsha Kamata kōjō) (Kamata, Tokyo). In 1950, employees of the Kamata Plant were made redundant after it was closed down by Toyota. They founded Central Motors that year and began producing light commercial vehicles for Toyota in 1956. In 1959, Toyota acquired the company and moved the production from Kamata to Sagamihara which would later also become the headquarters base.[1] The company opened various facilities for auto parts production. A new assembly plant and headquarters were built in Ohira, Miyagi. The new facility started production in January 2011 and the Sagamihara plant was closed later that year.[2]

On 1 July 2012, three Toyota subcontractors (Central Motors, Toyota Motors Tohoku, and Kanto Auto Works) were combined into a single company, with all their manufacturing facilities and assets renamed as Toyota Motor East Japan, Inc.[3] [4] After the merger of the three former companies, the corporate headquarters was established at the former Central Motors site in Miyagi.[5] There were just over 1,500 employees at the Central Motors location.

Operations

Central Motors assembly location in Miyagi has logistical and strategical advantages. These are, firstly, the quick and easy transportation between the northern and southern prefectures that the Ohira IC of the Tohoku Expressway enables. In addition, the Tomiya's road junction connecting the Tohoku Expressway and the Sendai-Hokuboku Road is important because it provides a direct connection to the port city of Sendai, from which the vehicles are send to the Vostochny port and then transported by the Trans-Siberian Railway to be exported to Europe.

At closing, Central Motors operated the following facilities:

  • Ohira, Miyagi (headquarters)
  • Ohira, Miyagi (car assembly plant)
  • Wakayanagi, Miyagi (auto parts plant)

Central Motors mainly manufactured vehicles meant for export to Europe or North America. Special vehicles such as police, fire department vehicles as well as campers were produced by the company. Production also included CKD kits of the Toyota Tundra.

Additional models that have no pictures yet:

Notes

  1. ↑ In Japanese: セントラル自動車株式会社 (Sentoraru jidōsha kabushiki-gaisha)

References

  1. ↑ Burton, Nigel (2015). "The start of something". Toyota MR2: The Complete Story. Crowood. ISBN 9781847979322.
  2. ↑ "History of Central Motor". Japan: Toyota Motor East Japan. Retrieved 2018-07-04.
  3. ↑ "History". Japan: Toyota Motor East Japan Inc. Retrieved 2013-05-26.
  4. ↑ "Affiliates (Toyota wholly-owned subsidiaries)-Toyota Motor East Japan, Inc". Japan: Toyota. Retrieved 2013-05-26.
  5. ↑ "Corporate Profile". Japan: Toyota Motor East Japan Inc. Retrieved 2013-05-26.
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