Automakers have already had to cut production because of difficulties finding semiconductors and other components as the pandemic disrupts manufacturing around the world.

A spike in infections has forced governments in Asia to impose fresh lockdowns and curbs, which are causing disruptions in parts supply across the region, adding to a global chip shortage.

The quake triggered a tsunami, caused blackouts as far away as Tokyo, derailed the country's famed bullet train and buckled highways that serve as critical supply arteries.

The latest stoppages will bring lost output to 9,000 vehicles, the automaker said, and affect production of Lexus models and the Land Cruiser.

The planned four-day halt to production at a Tsutsumi factory line, which makes Camry and Corolla models, will cut vehicle output by as many as 1,500 vehicles.

Greg Kelly, accompanied by his wife, Dee, was escorted to Tokyo’s Haneda Airport, by the U.S. Ambassador to Japan, Rahm Emanuel, and checked in to a flight for home.

 Americans won't be affected because the Land Cruiser was dropped in the U.S.

The stoppages affect output of Lexus models and the Toyota Land Cruiser as the automaker runs short of components from plants in Southeast Asia where production has been disrupted.

Japan’s Rohm Co. -- which supplies Ford, Toyota and Honda -- says it has been hampered by a severe shortage of key materials.

Prosecutors made the case against the American defendant  as they delivered their closing argument in the long-running trial.

Japan's automakers are stoking R&D investment to meet mounting demand for a staggering array of technologies. Toyota by far outpaces the pack.

Mitsubishi's third-quarter results got a boost from higher volume and beneficial foreign exchange rates, prompting the company to lift its full fiscal year targets.

The automaker's motorsports division will test the car at circuits in Japan and try to set a new lap record on Germany's famed Nürburging from 2023.