The 7.1-magnitude earthquake that struck southwestern Japan on July 28 has forced Nissan and Toyota to pause some car production, disrupting supply chains and damaging key facilities in the Kyushu region.
Toyota extended the shutdown of its Miyata plant, which produces Lexus models, until at least Saturday. The facility, which assembles the NX, RX, UX crossovers and the ES sedan, had attempted to restart operations the morning after the quake but quickly suspended work again. Officials cited safety concerns, logistical challenges, and supplier disruptions as reasons for the pause.
The Miyata plant has an annual capacity of about 430,000 vehicles. With production halted, roughly 5,200 units could be delayed, most of which are bound for export markets. Toyota’s Kokura hybrid powertrain plant and Kanda engine plant in the same area are also affected.
Nissan suspended some operations at a facility that manufactures the Infiniti QX80 and its variants, though it remains unclear whether entire factories or just specific production lines are offline. The company attributed the pause to parts supply disruptions. Honda also temporarily halted production at a motorcycle plant in the region.
A Lexus drives past the collapsed stone walls of Yatsushiro Castle in Kumamoto prefecture on July 30, two days after the quake. The earthquake resulted in infrastructure damage, complicating recovery efforts.
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Safety and logistics drive decisions
“The situation, including aftershocks and recovery efforts, is changing daily,” Toyota spokesperson Jean-Yves Jault told Automotive News. “We will continue to prioritize safety above all else in our responses and decisions.” The company is monitoring the status of suppliers, many of which are also assessing damage from the quake.
Toyota Canada sold 129,674 vehicles in the first half of this year, with 80,046 of those delivered in the second quarter. The production delays could ripple through global supply chains, though the company has not yet disclosed specific impacts on delivery timelines.
Aftershocks continue to rattle the region, slowing inspections and repairs at manufacturing sites.
Toyota has not announced when full production will resume, but officials indicated they would reassess conditions before the weekend. Nissan and Honda have also remained vague about restart timelines, emphasizing the need to ensure worker safety and stable supply chains before bringing plants back online.
