Fatal Explosion Halts Toyota RAV4 Production

It's unclear how long the pause could last.

By: Anthony Alaniz

Mar 7, 2025 at 2:02pm ET

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An explosion that occurred on Thursday at an automotive supplier is disrupting Japan’s supply chain. The incident, which took place at Chuo Spring Co. in Toyota City, killed one worker and injured two others. It's causing ripple effects through the local industry, forcing Toyota to suspend RAV4 production.

According to an Automotive News report, Toyota decided to pause production at two of its plants, shuttering three lines for the first shift on Monday, March 10, when the automaker will reassess the situation. The shutdown also affects production of the Harrier, an Asian-market version of the Venza. It’s unclear how long the pause could last.

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According to the report, Toyota imported about 21 percent of the RAV4s it sold in the United States last year. So any prolonged delay could affect supplies in America. The company told the publication that it was too soon to know if the stoppage would impact exports to the US.

This isn’t the first time an incident like this has happened. An explosion at a supplier in October 2023 led to Toyota shutting down eight plants and 13 production lines. The pause lasted 10 days. A few months before that, the automaker had to suspend operations at all its 14 assembly plants across Japan due to an unspecified glitch in the company’s production system.