Toyota Etios Liva Shocking Price in India set Launchings for June 27 2011

Toyota Etios Liva Shocking Price in India set Launchings for June 27 2011


Toyota Etios Liva to take on Swift, Ritz, i10, i20, Figo and Beat

NEW DELHI: The world's largest car maker Toyota on Monday forayed into the highly competitive India compact car segment with 'Liva', priced at Rs 3.99 lakh-Rs 5.99 lakh (ex- showroom, Delhi).

The company, which is present in India through a joint venture with the Kirloskar Group , has pitted the latest model against market leader Maruti Suzuki's Swift and Ritz, and some other best selling cars like Hyundai Motor's i10 and i20, Ford's Figo and General Motors' Beat, which are priced at a range of Rs 3.55 lakh to Rs 6.36 lakh in manual transmission.

"With Liva, we will now be a complete manufacturer in India, offering a full range of products from the luxury SUV Prado to the compact Liva, which is a very useful stylish and dynamic car," Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) Managing Director Hiroshi Nakagawa told reporters here.

The company had last year launched Etios, the sedan version of Liva in the country. "We will increase production of the second plant from 70,000 units to 1,20,000 units by next year to shorten the waiting period for Etios and to meet future demand of Liva," Nakagawa said.

The company is currently producing about 6,000 units of Etios and Liva per month and it will be increased to 8,000 units a month by September.

TKM is investing Rs 3,200 crore to set up its second manufacturing facility in Bangalore with an initial installed capacity of 70,000 units per annum and expanding its total production capacity to 2.1 lakh units by next year. Its first plant is also located in Bangalore.

Talking about targets, TKM Deputy Managing Director Sandeep Singh (Marketing) said: "This year our plan is to sell 60,000 units of both Etios and Liva. Out of which, more that 20,000 units will be Liva." He said with both the models, the company will now be competing with 13 products from different rivals in the 'B' segment of the car market.

"Out of the total passenger car market in India, the B segment is about 38 per cent. With the Etios, we are already enjoying 8 per cent of that market," Singh said. He, however, did not specify how much market share the company is aiming for after the launch of Liva.

When asked about introducing diesel variant of the two cars, he said the company is "ready with the technology", but the launch timeline will be decided on customers' demand.

On the possibility of exporting the car, Nakagawa said: "In India, customers' demand and expectations are very high. Our focus is to meet them. Once we meet that demand, we will study other markets, but there is no such plan as of now."

Besides, TKM is setting up a petrol engine plant in Bangalore that will be operationalised in 2012. After this, the localisation level of Etios and Liva will go up to 90 per cent from about 70 per cent at present. The company is also setting up its second gearbox plant, which will have a capacity to produce 2.5 lakh units annually and will be commissioned in mid-2013.

Toyota Etios Liva Launched with a shocking price tag

Toyota Etios Liva, Toyota Kirsolkar’s launch pad into the Indian small car market has finally hit the road today. The car has been introduced with a jaw dropping sticker price of Rs 3.99 Lakh for the base J variant, while the top end VX variant is priced at Rs 5.99 lakh (ex-showroom New Delhi).

This offering from Toyota marks Toyota’s entry into the highly popular and competitive premium hatchback segment. Etios Liva is powered by a 1.2 litre, 4 pot DOHC engine which pumps out 80 PS of power at 5600 rpm and 104 Nm of torque at 3100 rpm. The car also boasts of class-best fuel economy of 18.31 kmpl (ARAI tested). The diesel versions of the car is expected to be launched in India later next year.

The Etios Liva will be sold in five variants J, G, G special edition, V, and VX. The prices of different variants are as follows: J: 3.99lakhs, G: 4.59lakhs, G Special edition: 5.05lakhs, V: 5.49lakhs and VX: 5.99 lakhs.....read more

Read more »

India Automotive trends 2020

India Automotive trends 2020

India’s Auto Market Will Not Reach Its Full Potential until It Overcomes Its “Three Deficits”: Trade, Budget and An Underdeveloped Infrastructure

NEW DELHI: 13 June 2011 — India surpassed France, the United Kingdom and Italy to become the sixth-largest automotive market in the world in 2010, and it is expected to become one of the three largest automotive markets in the world by 2020, according to a special report titled “India Automotive 2020: The Next Giant from Asia,” released by J.D. Power and Associates today.

More than 2.7 million light vehicles (passenger cars and light-commercial vehicles) were sold in India in 2010, up from just 700,000 light vehicles sold in 2000. Due to increased economic activity and a more consumer-driven culture that has developed during the past 20 years, India—a country with a population of nearly 1.2 billion—is expected to reach 11 million light-vehicle sales by 2020. This would make India the third-largest light-vehicle market in the world, behind China (expected to reach 35 million light-vehicle sales in 2020) and the United States (expected to reach 17.4 million sales in 2020).

Light-Vehicle Sales, 2010 vs. 2020

“India has quickly become one of the largest and fastest-growing automotive markets in the world,” said John Humphrey, senior vice president of global automotive operations at J.D. Power and Associates. “This momentum has been driven by a more open and market-driven economy, an empowered and less risk-averse work force, a more consumer-driven culture and an emphasis on small car production.”

Global Small Car Production Hub

In addition to policies favoring general market liberalization and encouraging foreign investment, India’s government has pursued policies meant to support development of India’s automotive industry. The main thrust of these policies has been to position India as a global hub for small passenger car production. These policies include a reduction on the sales tax of small cars (defined as those less than 4,000 millimeters in length and with an engine displacement of 1.2 liters or less), and providing financial incentives for automakers to build and export vehicles overseas. As a result, many automakers have been shifting their small car production operations to India, or designing vehicles specifically to fit Indian market needs.

In 2010, nearly 80 percent of all new passenger vehicles sold in India were classified as either mini cars or subcompact passenger cars. By comparison, the mini car and subcompact segments accounted for only 24 percent of passenger-vehicle sales in China in 2010, and just 3 percent of passenger-vehicle sales in the United States. ..... READ MORE

Read more »