Speaking to DNA Money earlier, TKM vice-chairman Vikram Kirloskar had said that Toyota’s Indian operation was still not “competitive” enough on the cost front, compared to other Toyota operations worldwide.Reports from Tokyo on the company’s small car plans make it clear that it is still in the process of getting its cost equation right, while maintaining the quality benchmark......
“We have to get competitive compared to other Toyota operations worldwide. On the cost index of manufacturing, India is still above one, which means other Toyota operations such as Japan, Thailand and Taiwan are far more cost competitive than us. We are struggling with costs in India,” he had said.
Even the design and positioning of the small car have not been frozen yet. Chucking conventional wisdom, which dictates that any small car entrant should come up with a no-frills, low-cost vehicle (a hatchback) to exploit the mass market,
Toyota may be mulling launch of a sedan instead. Such a product would be suited not just to India, but other BRIC markets as well.
“What suits India may not fit the needs of Brazil and China.
Toyota is doing research on how to develop a single platform for the small car venture and crank out more than one type of car from this platform for the BRIC markets. In the end, the
company may develop both - a hatchback and a sedan - on the same platform and the hatchback may not necessarily be the first of the two,” says an auto industry expert.
Experts feel Toyota’s sedan would most likely be in the B+ segment, where prices range upwards of Rs 5 lakh. At present, this price category comprises entry-level sedans besides premium hatchbacks Swift, Getz and Aveo UVA.
Source:
DNA - Money - Toyota’s low-cost car may take on Maruti, Tata - Daily News & Analysis