Mazda may build the next Yaris -- in Mexico
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Toyota's North American dealers will begin selling Mexico-built, rebadged Mazdas in late 2015, in the latest in a growing lineup of Toyota partnerships around the globe.
Production of the Toyota vehicle, based on the Mazda2 but with distinct styling, will start in summer 2015, at an annual pace of 50,000 units, at a Mazda plant now under construction in Mexico.
The Salamanca factory is scheduled to open in 2014 and build the Mazda2 and Mazda3 small sedans. Production of the Toyotas will likely coincide with the introduction of the next-generation Mazda2.
Toyota didn't say whether the subcompact would be badged a Toyota or a Scion, but a source says it will be a Toyota. Don't be surprised if the plant builds the next-generation Yaris, due around 2015.
It is unclear whether Toyota and Mazda will jointly develop the new car. Toyota has shown a willingness to let others develop cars for it. For example, the Scion FR-S is a rebadged Subaru BRZ, designed and built for Toyota by Subaru.
In August, PSA Peugeot Citroen said it will build a variant of its mid-sized vans for Toyota at a plant in northern France. The two companies already build small cars for all three brands at another French factory. In Canada, Toyota is building a RAV4 EV that it developed jointly with Tesla.
