[Bibendum90949]

This is not an exciting news for me. Toyota chasing volumes and following Maruti's footsteps may not defy business logic but it does not augur well for Indian car buyers.

Toyota brand, a synonym for reliability, should focus on their strength and bring cars here from their global portfolio rather than these short cuts to garner volumes. They'll lose the brand identity in the long run. I also don't quite like the cross badge engineering that these companies have entered into whatever business logic you may have. End consumer gets the same product sans the badge he doesn't want or the one he likes. Any other difference ? Service ? With these two, it's similar too.

Toyota has always commanded premium for their cars in India. They have literally been ripping car buyers here. At one stage, the premium Fortuner and Innova both had literally the same interiors and those were two different segments. Another one is Altis engine which was later put on etios too(though with a lower state of tune ) which was half the price of Altis. An altis buyer those days was just paying for a little more space and a big boot. In short, Toyota prices are far far higher than it's worth IMHO.

Toyota badge just sells in India no matter what, low cost localisation or otherwise. It's us the car buyers who're making these brands tread paths which we once thought would never happen. This is indeed a backward step. High time the VW group found a way to gain foothold in the entry and mid level segments to keep the overall quality of cars available in the market at those price ranges. Else few years down the line , we'll have only Maruti ( in Toyota disguise and vice versa ) and Hyundai to choose from.

[mh09ad5578]

Just saw an article that Toyota wil be selling badge engineered examples of the Vitra Breeza and Ertiga too in the recent months to come. I don't understand why Toyota is even bothering? They should just shut shop and quit the Indian market if all they want to sell is rebadged maruti Suzukis.

[A.M.]

One really helpful outcome of this partnership would be if Toyota cars could be serviced in Maruti Suzuki workshops.
There is a demand of Toyota Innovas and Fortuners in Tier - 2 & Tier -3 cities, even in villages, but lack of authorized Toyota service centers pushes people to look for alternatives in Tata and Mahindra lineup.

Isuzu is already following this kind of a business model where all Isuzu workshops are now multi-branded car service centers.

I think this would be a win-win situation for both Maruti and Toyota, as well as for potential Toyota customers.