The Etios is exported from India and at the commencement of exports last month, a senior Toyota SA official said the Etios is positioned as a newcomer’s car. On the other hand, Toyota is also expecting many pensioners to drive the Etios and them to be bought as retirement gifts.

Read about our interaction with Senior Vice President of Toyota SA’ Sales and Marketing, Mr Calvyn Hamman

The South African market is dancing to the tunes of Volkswagen and Toyota has sacrificed overall market share due to the strong emergence of the sub-B segment models such as the Volkswagen Vivo over the past year. The Ford Figo is another competitor Toyota SA missed competing against.

The Etios was identified as the right model to enter this segment. Toyota offers two other premium hatchbacks, Yaris and Aygo, for the younger population and saw the Etios as a practical car to fill the shoes of the Tazz, a model they retired a few years ago from this segment.

The Etios is priced in the range of 7.6-8.39 lakh rupees. Both models are powered by a 1.5-liter in-line 4-cylinder DOHC 16-valve (2NR-FE) petrol engine mated to a five-speed manual transmission, returning 16.6 kmpl in the SA testing cycle. The car’s top speed has been set at 165km/h. Toyota made modifications to the Etios’s tires, suspension and engine electronics to suit conditions in SA before they left India. The sedan and hatch have two variants each.

[Source - Facebook.com/toyotasouthafrica]

Reacting to the report, a Toyota spokesperson has played down the possibility and stated no such plans exist. The Etios remains as the cheapest offering in their portfolio, designed for emerging markets. The segment in which the speculated car was to be launched is teeming with competition. The perception is competing so down the price ladder can harm Toyota as a brand.

Toyota wants to achieve 50% of its global sales from emerging markets and cars like the Etios are hugely important for meeting that target.

Though Toyota doesn’t have any plans to go neck deep into the lower segments that attract two-wheeler graduates, second hand car owners and people buying cars sitting on antiquated platforms, Nissan is reviving the Datsun brand for the very same reasons.

Datsun will bring its line up of  cost effective cars in the next two years. The first model sits on the V-Platform that underpins the Micra followed by a model to compete with the Alto, Eon and Santro on a completely new platform.

Toyota has introduced market-specific brands such as the Scion, to target American youth, and Daihatsu to sell cars cheaper that Toyota in Asian countries.

[Source: economictimes.indiatimes.com]

Toyota, known for its legendary reliability, doesn’t really make cars that have communicative design. Most Toyotas (well apart from 86 and the Yaris) are a bit bland to look at. Let’s just say, if one swishes past you, you won’t give it a second look. The Japanese automaker has identified the problem and promises more communicative designs in the future.

The company believes that so far it has only focused on creating what the customer needs. As a result, they have made cars that more machine than art. This philosophy needs to change. Kevin Hunter, the President of Toyota’s CALTY Desing Research department confirmed that Toyota’s design center will now act more instinctively. They will continue to listen to the consumer but deliver creative designs that the consumer will appreciate.

It is easy to judge that this step has been taken because brand Toyota needs a revival very soon. The company lost its numero position to General Motors last year owing to the natural calamities. Volkswagen is moving forward with all guns blazing for its goal of being No.1 in the world by 2018. Toyota needs to act and act fast!

[Source: autoevolution.com]

With almost 39 million vehicles having the Corolla brand on them on the motorways across the globe, it goes without saying that Corolla is the bestselling vehicles in the world.

The new Corolla Axio and Fielder have been designed to transport four Japanese adults in comfort. The overall body size has been maintained to provide ease during parking and maneuvering in city traffic. The driver also gets more help by a small turning radius of just 16 feet.

Power is obtained from a new 1.3L and a 1.5L  gasoline motor. The new 1.3 liter 1NR-FE engine utilizes Dual VVT-i technology. The engine is said to deliver around 20-21 km/l under JC08 test cycle of the Japanese MLIT during city use.

The Axio has a base price in Japan of $17,217 (apprx 9.2 Lakh INR) while Fielder station wagon can be bought for $18,995 (approx. 10.2 lakh rupees)

Toyota Corolla Axio Image Gallery

Essentially a Kei car is a small and light vehicle designed to comply with Japanese regulations in such a way that they are exempted from the requirement to certify that adequate parking is available for the vehicle. They mostly have diminutive engine and CVT gearboxes to propel them.

Toyota has revealed a new Kei car called Pixis Epoch for the Japanese market. The Pixis Epoch is designed and developed by Daihatsu and will be sold under the Toyota umbrella. The Toyota Pixis Epoch measures just 3,395 mm long, 1,475 mm wide and 1,500 mm tall.

It is powered by a 660cc engine mated to a CVT transmission in both two wheeled and four wheeled drive configurations. All models are automatic start stop system. A tiny engine, very little weight, good aero package and a start stop system together shoot the fuel efficiency to a whooping 27kmpl.

The Toyota Pixis Epoch starts at under USD 10,000 (around 5 lakhs).

[Source: autoblog.com]

The Etios Liva was caught testing in Indonesia shortly after its launch in India stoking the flames for a debate on its introduction in Indonesia.

At IIMS 2012, manufacturers such as Toyota and Daihatsu are anticipated to bring new models and concept vehicles, according to a report on the detik.com. Toyota is showcasing the Dear Qin concepts that have ambitions to re-appear as production vehicles for global markets at the ongoing Beijing Auto Show. This leaves the doors wide open as far was what concepts or models Toyota can bring to the IIMS this year.

After South Africa, could Indonesia be the Etios’ next overseas destination?

[Source - us.oto.detik.com]

It may be launched next year in Japan and travel to overseas markets in the second half of 2013. Since the Corolla is the best selling car in its segment in India, TKM may want to fast forward the launch. The Ford Focus and redesigned Skoda Octavia are said to be making their way to India in the next two years which the Corolla can perceive as a threat.

Codenamed Project A140, the 11th generation Toyota Corolla is a huge departure from the current design with a smaller glass house and larger headlamps that could be sharpened like there were on the Camry. The design identity of the new Corolla will be a completely different one compared to any of the previous models. C&D notes that the tail lights will extend into the trunk lid, like they do on the Camry.

The dimensions of the 2014 Toyota Corolla will not differ, it will be around 4.5m long and offer around 470 liters of boot space. The current line of engines and gearboxes is expected to continue service with improvements.

We’re now waiting for Toyota to begin testing the next gen Corolla which is when we can see how it has transformed.

[Source - CarandDriverBrasil.uol.com.br]

The “Dear Qin” twins are purely concept cars now that will translate into production cars meant for markets even outside China. Toyota has not confirmed the markets the Dear Qin is heading to but these cars could be the challenger for the Fabia and Rapid in Europe when they are ready next year.

Toyota has designed and introduced the Etios for emerging markets and the Dear Qin could be their counterparts in Europe where expectations of fit, finish, quality, safety are higher. The Toyota Dear Qin could be bang in the middle of the Etios and Yaris in these parameters.

Manufacturers are seeing that their product mix of petrol and diesel is changing to as adverse as 80% diesels. Clearly, this rapid dieselification of the market has caught everyone by surprise.

However, with the government showing signs of favoring the diesel engine cars, manufacturers are betting big on diesel.

What is Maruti Suzuki doing?

Maruti Suzuki are about to invest Rs 1,700 crore in building a 3,00,000 unit a year diesel engine production line at their Gurgaon factory. The first phase of the new diesel engine plant will only come on-stream by mid-2013. Until then the company has to survive on engines coming from Maruti’s sister company Suzuki Powerplants and from Fiat India. Maruti Suzuki is expecting the demand of petrol cars to drop by 50,000 units.

What is Hyundai India doing?

TheWallStreetJournal reports that Hyundai Motor Co. will announce within two weeks plans to start building its first diesel engine factory in India. The company had put these plans on backburner but thanks to the positive budget, they are back on. The company has also announced that it will boost diesel engine imports from Korea to 10,500 a month from 7,000, starting April to meet the increasing demand.

What is Toyota Kirloskar Motor doing?

Toyota India has forwarded a proposal of setting up a diesel plant in India to the parent company in Japan. The company does not want to depend on components sources from Thailand as it may cause trouble in the future (as it did for Honda).

Looking at automakers planning their assault, diesel does seem to be the future. But till how long is this diesel craze sustainable? Sure, this year we have no ‘diesel’ tax imposed on vehicles but that does not guarantee that next will be the same. If that happens, will that spell doom for these manufacturers?

[Source: Businesstoday.intoday.in, Oncars.in  & Online.wsj.com]

DC’s creation – Tarzan (a 2 seater sports car) also had a Bollywood flick named ‘Tarzan – the Wonder Car’ dedicated to it. And how can you forget Avanti – India’s first supercar arriving from the DC stable.

Two new creations from DC’s stable have caught our eye – Toyota Fortuner Lounge and Mahindra Thar.

First up is the Toyota Fortuner Lounge which is an Über exclusive SUV with the comforts of a Rolls Royce Phantom. While the front fascia is a bit controversial (read weird), on the inside it’s a whole new game!

The whole interior now features a cool blue and white trim. A normal Fortuner carries at least 7 seven people in reasonable comfort. The Toyota Fortuner Lounge only carries 2 in the highest level of luxury. The second and the third row has been replaced by two massive 24-inch captain’s chairs. These seats are fully powered and at the touch of a button can recline a full 150 degrees.

TV inside the car is so bourgeois. Thus, DC has fitted the Fortuner lounge with iPads which slot into the front seat backs. The iPads also control various aspects of the interior such as the seating and lighting. How much for all this malarkey, you ask? Your Fortuner can be customized to the Fortuner Lounge for a pricey sum of Rs 8.25 lakhs

Moving on to the customized Thar. While the Fortuner still retains the DNA of the donor car, the Mahindra Thar has been completely revamped to create an urban convertible off-roader. The traditional Jeep body of the Thar has been ditched in favor of a custom fibreglass body.

The normal Thar features a very utilitarian interior. But this DC Thar has modernized interiors with full black upholstery, an LCD entertainment system in the centre console and a set of sporty pedals.

Of course, to keep you cool in summers, the DC Thar packs in an air-conditioning unit. The best feature by far is the targa roof for some wind-in-your-hair motoring. Want one? Keep 10 lakhs handy.

What do you think about these two custom vehicles?

Don’t forget to see live images of both the cars in our slideshow:

Cant see the slideshow? Head to our Flickr page

[Source: Zigwheels.com]