Toyota Kirloskar Motors, the Indian subsidiary of the Japanese auto giant Toyota Motors, announced on Wednesday that it will be commencing the exports of its Etios series of car models including entry level sedan and compact hatchback model, to the South African market from March 2012. It is to be mentioned here that Etios will be the first vehicle to be exported by Toyota Kirloskar from the Indian market.
Speaking at a function in Hyderabad on Wednesday, Hiroshi Nakagawa, Managing Director of TKM (Toyota Kirloskar Motors), said, "We are looking at exporting 20,000 units of the Etios series annually." He added that TKM’s business here in India has not been impacted and its market share doubled to 6 per cent this year, driven by robust demand for its Etios and Liva models.
Though the Etios series models that will be dispatched to the South African market will be developed on the same base, but a number of changes will be made in these cars to make then suitable to the needs and requirements of the buyers and the road and climate conditions of the South African market.
In the domestic market India, the company managed to sell 3,943 units of entry level sedan Etios and 4,328 units of compact hatchback Liva in the month of November 2011.
Meanwhile, the firm is planning to introduce its luxury car brand Lexus in the Indian market very soon. "We will start rolling out our Lexus brand here in 2013. Each of the models is carefully being studied. A decision on which model to be launched first is yet to be concluded," as per a recent statement given by Hiroshi Nakagawa.
