[coolboy007]

I read this article on motorbeam and was surprised to read about it. They are telling that Toyota has stopped the production of its current Innova and are gearing up to launch the all new version in coming months.

Pretty surprising, i thought that the current version would remain for the taxi market and the new model at a higher price would be for individual buyers. Is there any truth to this story? Could this be the reason why the sales of Innova for february spurted from 3500 levels to 5000?

http://www.motorbeam.com/2016/03/car...ion-comes-end/

[Rajeevraj]

I had been to a dealer recently and they told me that only the base and one of the mid variants are available to buy and all other variants have been stopped. They also said that there are no plans to sell the current Innova along with the new Innova Crysta. So the news could be true.

They also told that the Crysta would start at 20L + OTR Bangalore and go up to 27-27L for the Top End.

If the above is true then there is plenty of space for a couple of variants of the old Innova. Whether they will do it is the question. Remember, they pulled out the Qualis when it was doing very well.

[Doge]

Good riddance. We had a company owned 2.5 G optional which at that time was going around for 15 lacs on road. Never at any point did it feel like a 15L car. Awfully slow, very noisy, unrefined,terribly low equipment and had a very UV like feeling to it. Safety was quite poor as well, judging by Toyota's hesitation to share the crash test results.
It was quite comfortable and supposedly reliable but just not worth the money.

[timuseravan]

Surprising move. I don't see taxi market buying 20lakh cars. Which car will be the new Innova for the taxi market?

[deetjohn]

I hope this is true. Our market shouldn't be the dumping ground for old generation cars. Toyota has done it before, hope they have the same boldness even now.

Besides if only the Crysta is available, there will be enough space for a better spread of variants and better pricing. This will ensure the new generation gets to the numbers it deserves right from the start.

[Turbanator]

Pretty surprising, i thought that the current version would remain for the taxi market and the new model at a higher price would be for individual buyers. Is there any truth to this story?

not surprising if you look back, they stopped Qualis despite being the darling of Taxi business, many people criticised them and never expected Innova will do this good. So history being repeated. It was confirmed from the start that current Innova will stop just that many didn't agree.

sales of Innova for February spurted from 3500 levels to 5000?

Yes, they are selling whatever they could produce and what a great way to end sales, with recent budget and increased prices they should be able to get rid of these vehicles easily with low discounts.

[GrammarNazi]

I recently saw an Advt that offered benefits worth 40,000/- for Innova. Maybe Toyota plans to clear the old stock.

Could be dealers refused availability because they'd want to stock up so as to sell a few of the old Innova models with a slight margin after the new Innova Crysta is launched.

In any case, I guess the new Crysta is already being produced (IIRC someone said the one showcased at Auto Expo was made here).

Toyota has its loyal customers who vouch for the product, so the initial momentum would be strong.

However, as time passes, the pricing will become important and if the Hexa is priced ultra aggressively just at launch, I have a strong feeling that MANY will be ready to experiment.

Anyway, if true, then here's bidding farewell to it. Innova will remain the unbeaten card that trumped it's segment from the beginning, till the end.

[scopriobharath]

I don't think the old model will sell alongside. No one will buy the costlier face lifted one then.

People would buy the basic taxi model and almost any feature could be retrofit (Double AC / Screens / Navigation et all). Given the fact that the high end would cost at least 10 lacs more than the taxi version, people would do install aftermarket accessories and live with it, this way, the luxury model would be a dud. I don't think there is much useful features, assuming that ABS And Airbags are NOT available on taxi models. Most features look cosmetic only, from a buyer's perspective.

At 10 lacs less, people would be ready to live with the underpowered 102 PS engine and high diesel clatter beyond 100kmph.

At 27 lacs OTR, it is dangerously close to Audi Q3 and Ford endeavor, which supposedly is more VFM, ignoring Toyota's reliability.

[SchumiFan]

Originally Posted by scopriobharath

At 27 lacs OTR, it is dangerously close to Audi Q3 and Ford endeavor, which supposedly is more VFM, ignoring Toyota's reliability.

The Q3 starts at 29L ex-showroom in Bangalore which means 37L OTR (acc. to Carwale). That is just the base model we are talking about.

The Toyota top end will be the 2.8L Automatic model. In any case, I think it won't cross 25L OTR.

At the end of the day, it is a people mover. Nothing more. Hope Toyota realizes that and doesn't go with outrageous prices.

And launch the car already!

[scopriobharath]

Originally Posted by SchumiFan

The Q3 starts at 29L ex-showroom in Bangalore which means 37L OTR (acc. to Carwale). That is just the base model we are talking about.
The Toyota top end will be the 2.8L Automatic model. In any case, I think it won't cross 25L OTR.
At the end of the day, it is a people mover. Nothing more. Hope Toyota realizes that and doesn't go with outrageous prices.

And launch the car already!

I hear there are some discounts on the Q3 and even the X1(pre facelift) so it should come down by a couple of lacs at around 33-34 OTR. Per Rajeevraj, it is expected to be 27-29 lacs OTR, which is just a few lacs shy of the Q3 and very much in Endeavor territory.

[geotracks]

Visited Toyota showroom last weekend. The SA confirmed that no current Innova models were for sale presently. Yes, neither G, V or Z variants. He said Toyota has stopped production on current Innovas'. They are now concentrating on manufacturing the Innova Crysta model.

He also said that even if they 'could find' a current Innova for sale, Toyota is not giving any discounts.

I asked him about Innova Crysta likely pricing. He said he had no details but expect around INR 22L+.

He further said that Fortuners were available for sale and that too with a waiting period of 1 month. The new Fortuner is expected in India in 2017.

The 1st display model of the Innova Crysta he said would come around May 2016 timeframe to the showroom and deliveries to customers would only start 1 or 2 months thereafter.

[romeomidhun]

If this news is true, definitely they are about to bring the Avanza in and around the current Innova's place, imo.

It looks better and balanced compared to Innova.
Smaller than Ertiga.
Will be a bit more cheaper than current Innova so that they can take the fight to Ertiga.

[aaggoswami]

Its quite a bit of surprise for me here. Never expected Innova to be discontinued, specially when it has managed to earn a strong reputation in taxi market and even private owners. Innova Crysta is definitely going to be more expensive which might not be acceptable in taxi market. May be, Ertiga, even XUV500 can gain from Innova's discontinuation. Ofcourse, Innova is certainly more comfortable overall, but then Tavera managed to survive as Qualis was discontinued and Innova came in the market. Its possible that Toyota is worried about lower variant of existing Innova if sold alongside Crysta, will result into cab market not shifting to newer model.

Let hope Innova Crysta is priced sensibly, atleast has a wider variant spread to cover various price points.

Originally Posted by romeomidhun

If this news is true, definitely they are about to bring the Avanza in and around the current Innova's place, imo.

It looks better and balanced compared to Innova.
Smaller than Ertiga.
Will be a bit more cheaper than current Innova so that they can take the fight to Ertiga.

Its not likely to happen soon IMO. Similar is the case with Vios. Avanza can be a smart launch by Toyota, but somehow, they aren't convinced since long to launch Avanza here.

[Sahil]

How is Toyota going to cope with the Delhi diesel ban as their Diesel engine is over 2000cc? I hope they have a good petrol option this time around. The previous Innova had a petrol option too but it never sold. I personally wouldn't mind replacing my Fortuner with a top end petrol automatic Innova as they Innova has always offered better comfort level than the fortuner.
Toyota should capitalise on the DC Innova market by launching a limited edition version which is insanely loaded. Similar to Mercedes launch edition strategy to get the brand positioning more upmarket.

[hkollar]

Originally Posted by Rajeevraj

They also told that the Crysta would start at 20L + OTR Bangalore and go up to 27-27L for the Top End.

Innova was Toyota's cash cow in India. If this news is true, then it'll seriously dent the volume for Toyota. Toyota doesn't have a competent offering in Sub 20L space. Corolla or Etios are not appreciated by people. And Innova/crysta anyway have bad mileage especially in Petrol segment.

To price that product at 25L+ OTR will be suicidal for Toyota.

Unless of course - They have different products planned for Sub 20L and Sub 10L space. High time Toyota took India seriously. It is the third largest auto market in the world as on 2016, and Toyota is lethargic in India.

Maruti Suzuki on the other hand has only extended its leadership in India, with aggressive products. Toyota has so much scope to be one of top 3 players in India, if only it cared. Currently it is only an - also ran.