The board of directors of ACEA, the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association, has accepted the application of Toyota Motor Europe (TME) to become a full member.

TME membership will start in January 2008.

“We welcome TME in our midst and are convinced it will make a valuable contribution to the work of our association,” said Sergio Marchionne, president of ACEA and CEO of Fiat.

Tadashi Arashima, president of TME, said: “We now have an important presence in Europe and so joining the European automotive association was the next logical step.”

The ACEA represents PSA Peugeot, Citroen, Volkswagen, Fiat, Renault, Scania, DAF, MAN, General Motors Europe, BMW Group, Ford of Europe, Porsche, Volvo and DaimlerChrysler.