Day November 10, 2026

What Stood Out in Toyota’s Kentucky Turnaround

Painted Japanese garden with a stepping-stone path beside a pond, a stone lantern, and a leaning pine in morning light.

In 1999, during his first year at Toyota Motor Manufacturing Kentucky (TMMK), Darril Wilburn was given two jackets and a watch. The gifts celebrated how good everyone felt about the plant. The Camry was the best-selling passenger car in the…