TOKYO — Toyota will proceed its low-profile method to Olympic sponsorship throughout this month’s Winter Video games in Beijing, regardless of splurging to be the unique mobility supplier to the worldwide sporting occasions.

All instructed, the world’s largest automaker will present some 2,200 automobiles for the Beijing Olympiad, to shuttle round athletes, teaching workers, officers and VIPs, an organization spokeswoman stated.

However Toyota’s fleet consists primarily of hum-drum nameplates such because the Avalon and Camry sedans and Sienna minivan — although it additionally boasts loads of hybrid and gas cell fashions, such because the Mirai.

Lacking would be the flights of futuristic vehicular fantasy that Toyota deployed finally summer season’s Olympic Video games in Tokyo. These included such {hardware} because the e-Palette automated individuals mover, the all-electric LQ pod automobile or the clutch of robots Toyota had working the stadiums.

Additionally lacking is Toyota’s pint-sized “subject help robotic” that received notoriety on TV broadcasts because the robotic retriever of objects in such Olympic occasions because the javelin, discus and hammer.

Toyota Motor Corp. may even forgo any world promoting tie-ins.

Toyota will probably be doing native advertising actions in China linked to the Winter Olympics, which run by way of Feb. 20. However abroad campaigns will probably be dealt with case-by-case, spokeswoman Shiori Hashimoto stated. “It’s as much as every area to determine in the event that they need to run an area marketing campaign,” she stated.

Toyota’s toned-down Olympics observe a subdued Tokyo Video games, the place the automaker canceled advertising and media occasions due to the pall forged by the continued COVID-19 pandemic.

Past the still-raging pandemic, the Beijing Video games brings additional complications for a sponsor. That’s due to new worldwide scrutiny of China within the wake of protests and boycotts regarding its human rights report, notably its therapy of the Uyghur minority in its western Xinjiang area.

The U.S. authorities is conducting a diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Video games, and the U.S. State Division has labeled China’s therapy of the predominantly Muslim group as genocide.

So-called “Olympic Prime Sponsors,” together with Toyota, Panasonic, Coca Cola and Procter & Gamble, have stayed principally mum in regards to the human rights controversy within the run-up to the Video games.

Toyota stated its objective was by no means to promote across the Video games however to advertise the corporate’s sponsored world athletes, by way of such outreach as a particular web site that tracks their journey.

“We wish to chorus from commenting on the political points,” Hashimoto stated.

Like each different automaker, Toyota can ailing afford to cross the Chinese language authorities.

The Japanese automaker’s China gross sales rose 8.2 p.c to 1.9 million automobiles in 2021, not far behind the ten p.c enhance it booked within the U.S. to 2.3 million automobiles. China is Toyota’s second-biggest market. And the automaker is the third-biggest there behind chief Volkswagen Group and No. 2 Normal Motors. Toyota has an 8 p.c market share in China.

As for all of the technical wonders that Toyota touted in Tokyo however will skip for Beijing, the corporate stated that’s as a result of the gadgetry will depend on the native visitors, infrastructure and regulatory surroundings.

In Beijing, Toyota could have its automated e-Palette on show, however not driving the streets. The futuristic automobile, which shuttled individuals in a loop across the athlete village, induced the automaker a humiliation on the Tokyo occasion when it collided with a visually impaired judoka crossing an intersection.

And as an alternative of getting its futuristic wedge-shaped LQ battery-powered automobile lead the torch relay in China, Toyota has deployed because the escort automobile a prototype of the bZ4X all-electric crossover coming to market quickly.

Toyota plunked down a reported $835 million in 2015 to turn out to be the Olympic Video games’ first ever high sponsor in mobility, signing a 10-year contract that runs by way of 2024.

It encompassed the 2020 summer season Olympics in Tokyo, however Toyota missed out on among the anticipated advertising magic when these Video games have been pushed off till 2021 by the COVID-19 pandemic after which scaled again to bar just about all in-person spectators.