Toyota has begun its long goodbye from manufacturing in Australia, unveiling the last car to be built at its Altona plant before the company winds up local operations in 2017.
Hundreds of workers looked on as the curtain was lifted on the latest Camry model during a ceremony at the assembly line on Tuesday. Staff wearing red polo shirts with the message "last car, best global car" stopped work to watch a video celebrating their part in building the new model.
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Bitter-sweet launch for new Camry
Toyota launches the its new Camry at the Altona factory, the last car to be made in Australia.
It marks another chapter in the closure of car manufacturing in Australia, as Toyota joins fellow car makers Holden and Ford in shutting its factories over the next couple of years. Toyota's departure is expected to cost 2600 jobs.
Toyota Australia president Dave Buttner said it was a "bittersweet day" for the company and its employees, who were extremely proud of the final Toyota to be built in Australia. The company has built more than 3.2 million cars in Australia since setting up in 1963.
He said there were sufficient orders to ensure the Camry would be built in Altona until the company closes its local manufacturing production line at the end of 2017.
Around 70 per cent of the 90,000 cars built by Toyota this year will be exported, with most of those going to the Middle East.
"We have a strong commitment to our export customers [and] domestic customers," he said. "We have a strong commitment to our suppliers, who require the volume to sustain operations until the end of 2017. We have every eye set on achieving that goal."
He lauded the workers, describing their effort in building the car despite an uncertain future as "heart wrenching". He believed those left without a job would be able to find new employment, with Toyota assisting with retraining.
"We have now commenced one by one, with each of our people, to develop an individual transition plan," he said.
The company said it invested $108 million in the new Camry, with $23.6 million of that coming from the federal government. The Coalition has refused more assistance for car makers struggling under cost pressures.
Federal industry minister Ian Macfarlane spoke at the Camry launch and said Toyota's presence in Australia had been "long and significant".
"We know that Australia is the first country that actually saw Toyota build cars outside Japan and so we've been grateful for that commitment and investment," he said.
He said both levels of government had stood behind the car industry with "not just millions but literally billions of dollars".
Michael Renahan, who has worked at Toyota since 1987, said he and many of his colleagues were nervous about what the future held for them at the company.
The 48-year-old said he would find out at the end of the year if he has a job in Toyota's ongoing local operations.
"It's sad that people can't just come off the street and work in the industry like I did and work their way up. I thought I would be able to retire here, it was a job that gave me security."
The new Camry has undergone a bigger than normal mid-cycle car model overhaul, with Toyota describing it as the best they've ever built in Australia and the legacy of the company's local operations.