Toyota Motor Europe will sell 800,000 vehicles and more next year even if the market dips slightly, the unit’s president said in Paris.

The carmaker had cut its forecast after a safety scandal dented its market share earlier this year, but has seen the situation recover since June, Didier Leroy told Reuters.

Go deeper with GlobalData

Data Insights

The gold standard of business intelligence.

Find out more

“We can expect now that we will be able to recover 100% of what we lost versus our initial forecast,” said Leroy, who replaced Tadashi Arashima in July as head of the unit, the first non-Japanese executive to hold that post.

“We strongly believe that we will be able to achieve 800,000,” he added.

After starting the year with 4.7% market share in Europe, including Russia, Turkey and Israel, there was a big drop from February, before improving to 4.8% in August. Toyota hopes it will be over 4.3% for the year.

Government-backed scrappage schemes boosted European demand last year for carmakers hit by the crisis, but these have either finished or are running out, leaving makers with doubts about the latter part of 2010.

How well do you really know your competitors?

Access the most comprehensive Company Profiles on the market, powered by GlobalData. Save hours of research. Gain competitive edge.

Company Profile – free sample

Thank you!

Your download email will arrive shortly

Not ready to buy yet? Download a free sample

We are confident about the unique quality of our Company Profiles. However, we want you to make the most beneficial decision for your business, so we offer a free sample that you can download by submitting the below form

By GlobalData
Visit our Privacy Policy for more information about our services, how we may use, process and share your personal data, including information of your rights in respect of your personal data and how you can unsubscribe from future marketing communications. Our services are intended for corporate subscribers and you warrant that the email address submitted is your corporate email address.

The car market in the region should be similar next year to 2010 as growth in Turkey and Russia offsets declines in western European countries, Leroy said.

“Next year, even if the market decreases a little bit, we should sell more,” he said.

Leroy said Toyota Motor Europe ultimately wanted to achieve annual sales of 1m vehicles but would not sacrifice profitability to achieve volumes.

Leroy added that the strength of the yen was putting pressure on TMW as it faces tough competition from Korean carmakers, for example. The currency situation is creating “terrible conditions”, he said.

The company is cushioned by producing 50 to 60% of the cars it sells in Europe locally but is also looking at further localisation, Leroy said.