Toyota to overtake Ford in US by 2015

Toyota, the Japanese car manufacturer whose soaring sales have triggered a crisis in the US car industry, could have more factories in North America than Ford by the middle of the next decade.

The company is considering a plan that will double the number of its plants, to keep up with demand from US drivers and to head off a political backlash over its growing imports.

Toyota has been building new factories in the US while the domestic car industry has been shutting many of its oldest plants and laying off tens of thousands of employees. The Japanese group is currently building its seventh North American car assembly plant in Ontario, Canada, and is expected to announce the location for its eighth this month.

But now company managers are planning a step-change in production which could take the total number of plants to 12 by 2015. That would be the same as Ford, after its latest round of cuts. Only General Motors has more, with 24.

Toyota's expansion has been triggered by a sudden leap in the number of vehicles Toyota must import to keep up with demand in the US, where its Camry is the best-selling car and the Prius is the best-selling hybrid. Last year, the company overtook Chrysler as the No 3 seller of vehicles in the US, and it is expected to overtake Ford this year.

It was able to build 1.5 million cars in North America, but had to import an additional 1.2 million, a record number. As well as being costly, an increased reliance on imports raises political risks. Toyota has long advertised how it is contributing to the US economy - it employs 32,000 Americans - by building cars in the region. The argument weakens if too high a ratio of sales come from imports.