Gasgoo.com (Shanghai March 28) - Toyota currently has no plans to develop ultra low cost vehicles for the Chinese or Indian markets, Economic Observer News reported today, quoting a statement made by Toyota Motor Corporation President and CEO Akio Toyoda. The manufacturer will continue to focus on vehicles with so-called 'stable prices'.
"China has 1.4 billion people, we cannot aim to sell for over 1.4 billion people," Mr. Akio stated, adding that "perhaps we can only focus on 200 million to 300 million people." He was quick to add that number is the size of the entire US market, commenting that the Chinese market had enormous potential.
Commenting on the issue of ultra-low cost vehicles, Mr. Toyoda said that "what customers pay attention to is Toyota's quality," adding that sales of second-hand Toyotas in Asia were doing very well. "We will not sacrifice quality to satisfy a fluctuating price [market]."
Although Toyota has previously released the Etios line (pictured above) in India with a price tag of under 400,000 rupees ($7,690), it is still far more expensive than offerings from Maruti Suzuki and other regional competitors. Toyota's cheapest model in China currently is the Yaris hatchback (pictured below), which carries a manufacturer suggested price of 88,800 yuan ($14,067).
With automobile capacity in developed markets nearing breaking points and demand running low, multinational manufacturers have begun setting their sights on emerging markets such as China, India, Brazil and Russia. German manufacturer Volkswagen has already expressed their plans to develop a low-cost model for China, in order to further increase its market share in the country.
