Toyota had showcased its Toyota Etios at the 2010 Auto Expo in New Delhi and the car is in news ever since the first time its came in front of the visitors. The car’s launch was speculated to be in December 2010 but the launch was deferred to early 2011 by the company and now the next news coming from it is that TKM(Toyota Kirloskar Motors) will produce engines and transmissions for Etios.
TKM announced that its subsidiary Toyota Kirloskar Auto Parts Pvt, Ltd. (TKAP) will be producing the engine and transmission for Etios and all the process will take place at Toyota’s second plant whose initial capacity is 70,000 units per annum.
The cars production will start in late 2010 and its said that 70 percent of the parts will be sourced from Indian itself while the rest will be imported initially. TKAP will produce nearly 110,000 engines per year and the commencement will take place by the third quarter of 2012 while the transmission production will start in early 2013 with an estimated number of 240,000 units per year.
For such huge production figures the company certainly needs an enormous amount of investment as well, so just to give you an idea the venture will flow in 5 Billion INR and will recruit 500 new employees. This collaborative effort will definitely help the company reach its target figures.
Mr. Nakagawa, MD, Toyota Kirloskar Motor stated, “The Etios has been designed specifically for the Indian market. The domestic production of engines and transmission will enable us to provide the best quality product, at a competitive price. India plays a vital role in Toyota’s global expansion plans and this development marks another step towards Toyota’s growth in India”.
Reassuring the news Mr. Hisashi Suzuki, MD, Toyota Kirloskar Auto Parts said, “Though TKAP is currently more of a global source for R-type manual transmissions, with the addition of these two new products, we will contribute more towards employment of local labour, develop local suppliers, showcase India and Karnataka in particular and above all delight our valuable customers in India,”
Presently TKAP produces manual transmissions for the ” Toyota Fortuner” & “Hilux”range which are being manufactured in India, Thailand and Argentina and also provides axles and propeller shafts for the “Toyota Innova“.
