Toyota will increase production of the Etios at its Sorocaba plant by 50 percent in response to an increase in sales of the emerging market specific vehicle.
Toyota, the world’s leading brand in terms of sales, launched its low cost car, the Etios, first in India in 2010 and eventually in Brazil, South Africa and Indonesia. The Etios is available in three versions, the Etios sedan, the Etios Liva hatchback and the Etios Cross. The Etios line up is being manufactured in India, Brazil and Indonesia (only hatchback). The saloon is powered by a 1.5-litre petrol engine and a 1.4-litre diesel whereas the hatchback is powered by a 1.2-litre petrol and a 1.4-litre diesel engine.
After the recent mid-life facelift, its sales in India are currently averaging around 4200 units per month. In Brazil, it is a similar story. After the recent facelift and the release of the Etios Cross, its sales have gone up to 6000 to 7000 units per month, up from 2000-3000 units per month a year back. Toyota feels this increase in sales is due to the importance given to customer feedback. The facelift includes much needed quality improvements and a few new features like seat height adjusters.
To cope up with the increase in demand, Toyota has decided to hike production of the Etios to 1,08,000 units up from 74,000 units a year at its Brazilian plant located near Sao Paulo. They have invested 100 million Brazilian real which translates to Rs. 226.7 crores to help keep up with the increase in demand. This fifty percent increase in production is expected to come into effect from the beginning of 2016. It looks like Toyota intends to retain its number one position and seems to be unfazed by General Motors and Volkswagen trying to take the lead.
