Toyota which has been passive and blamed for its poor show in one of the world’s largest growing automotive market seems finally wakes up. Toyota today inagaurated its second plant in Bangalore. Toyota Motor has also said it will double its investment in India to Rs 2,800 crore as part of its plan to launch a ‘strategic small car’ in the country by 2010. “We will double the investment in the future, which will go up to Rs 2,800 crore from Rs 1,400 crore,” Toyota Motor’s Senior Managing Director Akira Okabe said.
Toyota’s new plant will start producing cars in 2010 and will have an installed capacity of 100,000 units annually. Toyota will produce atleast three-four models in this new plant in which an overwhelming part will be for its first small car in India. The new small car codenamed 800L will be different from Toyota’s international small car and will be designed exclusively for the Indian market. It is believed that the Toyota’s small car would be on the likes of Maruti Suzuki’s Swift Dzire and Tata Indigo CS. The 800L would come both in petrol and diesel versions. Soon after the launch (within five to seven months) of this compact sedan, a hatchback version will be rolled out. After the India launch, the same model is expected to be manufactured in Brazil, China and Russia. The Indian plant will also exporting these models to other countries.The other models to be developed in this plant includes a range of cars and utility vehicles.