BorgWarner vs Toyota: Founders, CEOs and History

Company facts

Founders

CEOs and their tenures

Timeline: BorgWarner and Toyota side by side

1. 1928BorgWarner

   Four parts makers merge to form Borg-Warner

   Borg & Beck, Warner Gear, Marvel-Schebler Carburetor and Mechanics Universal Joint agreed to merge in May 1928, creating Borg-Warner Corporation with headquarters on South Michigan Avenue in Chicago. Morse Chain, Long Manufacturing and others joined in 1929.

2. 1934BorgWarner

   Overdrive transmission sold to Chrysler

   Warner Gear engineers developed Borg-Warner's first overdrive, sold to Chrysler in 1934. A year later the company started the automatic-transmission program that paid off after World War II.

3. 1936BorgWarner

   Borg-Warner Trophy introduced

   Borg-Warner commissioned a sterling silver trophy for the Indianapolis 500. It has been presented to the race winner ever since and remains the company's best-known public symbol.

4. 1937Toyota

   Toyota Motor Corporation incorporated

   Toyota Motor Corporation was incorporated after Kiichiro Toyoda expanded the Toyoda family business from automatic looms into automobile manufacturing.

5. 1950BorgWarner

   Ford-O-Matic automatic transmission

   After a 1948 contract to build half of Ford's automatic transmissions, Borg-Warner developed the three-speed Ford-O-Matic and its first lock-up torque converter. The Ford-O-Matic contract ended in 1958.

6. 1955Toyota

   Toyopet Crown launched

   The Toyopet Crown gave Toyota a postwar passenger-car platform and later became its first passenger car exported to the United States.

7. 1966Toyota

   Corolla launched

   Toyota launched the Corolla, a compact car that became central to its mass-market export strategy.

8. 1987BorgWarner

   Leveraged buyout and break-up

   A hostile approach from GAF Corporation ended with a $4.2 billion leveraged buyout led by Merrill Lynch Capital Partners. The debt forced the sale of most non-automotive businesses, including chemicals to General Electric for $2.3 billion in 1988.

9. 1989Toyota

   Lexus launches

   Toyota launched Lexus with the LS 400, moving into premium vehicles with a quality-led strategy.

10. 1993BorgWarner

    Borg-Warner Automotive becomes independent

    Borg-Warner Automotive was spun off from Borg-Warner Security Corporation and became a separate public company focused on powertrain components.

11. 1997Toyota

    Prius launches in Japan

    Toyota launched the Prius, turning hybrid technology into a mass-produced passenger vehicle.

12. 1998BorgWarner

    Entry into turbochargers

    BorgWarner bought German turbocharger maker Kühnle, Kopp & Kausch, then added Kuhlman Corporation's Schwitzer diesel turbo business in 1999. Turbos became the core of today's largest segment.

13. 2005BorgWarner

    Headquarters moves to metro Detroit; BERU stake

    BorgWarner moved its world headquarters from Chicago to the Detroit area and took a majority stake in BERU AG, a German supplier of diesel cold-start and ignition technology.

14. 2015BorgWarner

    Remy International acquisition

    BorgWarner bought Remy International, a maker of electric motors, starters and alternators, for $29.50 per share in cash, giving it the rotating-electrics base for later e-motor products.

15. 2016Toyota

    Acquired Daihatsu Motor Co., Ltd.

    Toyota Motor acquired Daihatsu Motor Co., Ltd..

16. 2020BorgWarner

    Delphi Technologies acquisition completed

    BorgWarner completed its all-stock purchase of Delphi Technologies on October 2, 2020, after renegotiating the exchange ratio to 0.4307 BorgWarner shares per Delphi share. The deal added power electronics, software and fuel-system businesses.

17. 2021BorgWarner

    Charging Forward strategy and AKASOL

    BorgWarner set a goal of raising electric-vehicle revenue from under 3% of sales to about 45% by 2030 and agreed to buy German battery-system maker AKASOL for EUR 120 per share.

18. 2021Toyota

    Acquired Lyft Level 5

    Toyota Motor acquired Lyft Level 5 for $550 million.

19. 2021Toyota

    Acquired CARMERA

    Toyota Motor acquired CARMERA.

20. 2023BorgWarner

    PHINIA spin-off

    On July 3, 2023 BorgWarner completed the tax-free spin-off of its Fuel Systems and Aftermarket segments as PHINIA Inc., a separate NYSE-listed company.

21. 2024BorgWarner

    $646 million of impairments

    BorgWarner recorded $646 million of impairment charges, including $577 million of goodwill at PowerDrive Systems and Battery & Charging Systems. Net earnings attributable to the company fell to $338 million.

22. 2025BorgWarner

    New CEO, charging exit and record awards

    Joseph F. Fadool became CEO on February 6, 2025, and the company decided that month to exit EV charging. Net sales reached $14.316 billion, free cash flow rose about 66% to $1.208 billion, and about $630 million was returned to shareholders.

23. 2026BorgWarner

    Entry into data center power

    On February 11, 2026 BorgWarner signed a master supply agreement with TurboCell, a subsidiary of Endeavour, for a modular turbine generator system for AI data centers and microgrids, with production expected in early 2027.

24. 2026Toyota

    Kenta Kon becomes president and CEO

    Kenta Kon became president and CEO on April 1, 2026, while Koji Sato moved to vice chairman and chief industry officer.

25. 2026Toyota

    FY2026 sales revenues reach ~$340B (JPY 50.685T)

    Toyota reported FY2026 sales revenues of ~$340 billion (JPY 50,684.952 billion) and net income attributable to Toyota Motor Corporation of ~$25.8 billion (JPY 3,848.098 billion).

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