<P> By the early 1960s , the US had begun placing stiff import tariffs on certain vehicles . The so - called `` chicken tax '' of 1964 placed a 25 % tax on imported light trucks . In response to the tariff , Toyota , Nissan Motor Co. and Honda Motor Co. began building plants in the US by the early 1980s . </P>
when did toyota start making cars in the us
by the early 1980s