Toyota cars and Innova to cost more by end-2008

If you have a Toyota car or Innova purchase in mind, do not wait.

For, Toyota Kirloskar Motor is expected to hike prices of all its models by the end of 2008. This hike incidentally would be the second this year.

It is believed that  the car maker would go for a price rise as the hike in raw material costs like steel has become too much to handle. Company brass have said that original equipment makers are under tough pressure following escalation in costs. However, as the car maker operates much on the premium segment, it has not been affected much. But, with raw material costs going up beyond control, the company seems to be forced to jack up prices. As per industry insiders beliefs, Toyota Kirloskar would go in for the second round of price hike by the end of the calendar. The company had revised prices, though marginally by two per cent, this July.

Raw material costs and the need for price hike notwithstanding, Toyota Kirloskar also is mulling options to roll out at least one new model every year in its bid to pocket the marketshare it hopes for. Toyota Kirloskar in fact aims at achieving a 10 per cent marketshare by year 2015. And if that’s not enough, the company is also mulling over setting up an engine manufacturing plant once the volumes catch up. Further, in another attempt to push up marketshare, the automotive major might also look at bringing in Toyota Financial Services, its vehicle-financing subsidiary company to India.

TKM, which has meanwhile set a goal for India and is aiming at making the country a global he export hub for small cars by 2010, hopes to achieve all targets as per schedule.

The Innova model has seen a good amount of success and now the company is also looking tapping the potential the IMV platform, on which the Innova is built, offers. There is a possibility that Toyota might be rolling out another vehicle based on the platform, which is expected to be smaller in size than the Innova. Toyota already sells models such as Rush, Avanza, Innova and Previa based on the IMV platform in Indonesia.

This apart, a CNG variant of the Innova is also on the anvil  with the car maker kicking off parleys with as many as three Italian kitmakers for the supply of CNG kits for its vehicles.