Toyota believes it could turn India into a low-cost production centre and use its factory there to build cars for exports worldwide.
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“One of my missions is to use Toyota’s know-how and culture of cost-cutting to turn India into our lowest-cost manufacturing centre in the world,” Akira Okabe, managing officer in charge of Asia, Oceania and Middle East operations, told news agency Reuters.
At this stage, Toyota is a bit-part player in India, selling just over 40,000 units last year (included 31,444 Qualis, 8,020 Corolla and 1,043 Camry) to claim a four percent market share, according to data published by AutoAsia.
Toyota Kirloskar expects its passenger vehicle sales to grow by about a fifth this year to nearly 50,000 units as Corolla production is stepped up. The company is also said to be considering the idea of introducing small cars from its Daihatsu subsidiary and importing more luxury SUVs.
It is also believed to be working on a new MPV to replace Qualis, which was launched in India more than four years ago, according to AutoAsia.
