The Etios was launched by Mr. Akio Toyoda, President of Toyota Motor Corporation and scion of Toyota’s founding family, on his maiden visit to India after taking over as the Head of the company. Also present were Mr. Akira Okabe (Senior Managing Director, TMC), Mr. Soichiro Okudaira (Managing Officer, TMC), Mr. Osamu Nagata (Managing Officer, TMC), Mr. Yoshinori Noritake (Chief Engineer – Etios, TMC), Mr. Vikram Kirloskar (Vice Chairman, TKM), Mr. Hiroshi Nakagawa (Managing Director, TKM) and Mr. Sandeep Singh (Deputy Managing Director-Marketing, TKM).
Commenting on the launch of the Etios, Mr. Akio Toyoda, President TMC said: “ India is a key market for our overall strategic growth plans, and the launch of the Etios is definitely a milestone not only for Toyota in India but for Toyota globally. Toyota strongly believes in the ‘customer first’ philosophy, hence it was important to collect valuable feedback from our prospective customers right from the concept stage to what the Toyota Etios is today. We at Toyota believe, ‘the road makes the car’ and the Etios is a product of real-world testing on roads across India. Our testing has covered a hundred thousand kilometers on every kind of road that Indian drivers encounter, from Kolkata to Mumbai, from the Himalayan foothills to the tip of the Indian peninsula.
We at Toyota will continue listening carefully to Indian customers to stay in touch with their changing expectations. We will respond quickly with technological development and continue providing products that Indian customers will love.â€
Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Hiroshi Nakagawa, MD TKM, said: “The Etios is very important to us, and its launch today marks the beginning of a new era for Toyota in India. In fact this launch will enable Indian customers in the middle income group to own an aspirational Toyota vehicle for the first time. I proudly also announce that production of the Etios will begin as planned in our new plant which is the most environmentally friendly automobile manufacturing plant in the country today.
Earlier this year we announced our plans to locally produce engines and transmissions at the Toyota Kirloskar Auto Parts in the third quarter of 2012 that will help us increase the localisation content of the Etios. Toyota India will facilitate not just economic growth but social growth as well of the region it operates in, and in turn strive to be the most loved and admired company.â€
Mr. Yoshinori Noritake, Chief Engineer of the Etios spoke about the development of the product, he said: “It was very important to understand the needs of Indian car buyers before designing an India specific car. We learnt that Indian customers are very price conscious but at the same time want space and comfort for their family, and style to enhance their status. One of the strong points of the Etios sedan is its true sedan design – designed on a sedan platform and not as a hatch with a boot – smart packaging that makes it compact at the same time spacious. More than 2000 engineers from Japan and India have worked in close collaboration over the last four years with a vision to offer Etios customers the ‘joy of ownership’ and ‘quality of life’.â€
Talking about the Etios Sales and Marketing strategy in India, Sandeep Singh, DMD-Marketing, TKM, said: “We have planned an elaborate marketing strategy to warm up to our target customer and through our various campaigns we aim to successfully establish the Etios brand in India. To start with we signed on Mr. A.R.Rahman as our Brand Ambassador to establish an instant connect between the Etios values and Indian masses. We are committed to give our customers a Q-Class experience through a sales and service network that will be expanded to 150 dealerships by the end of this year. The bookings for the Etios sedan start today and deliveries will begin in January 2011. We would also like to use this occasion to announce the name of the Hatchback version: Etios Liva, which will go on sale in April 2011.â€
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