Thaindian News

Hyderabad, May 13 (IANS) Leading car maker Toyota Kirloskar Motor is aiming to increase its market share in India from the current three percent to 10 percent by 2015.
The company, which unveiled concept model of its compact car Etios at Auto Show South 2010, plans to launch the product in the first quarter of 2011.

Sailesh Shetty, general manager, sales, Toyota Kirloskar Motor, told reporters that the company was planning to improve the manufacturing capacity to 1.5 lakh vehicles this year. The car maker sold 80,000 vehicles last year and is aiming to add 70,000 to it this year.

With the launch of Etios, Toyota is set to make a mark in the small car segment and enter the mass volume segment. The commercial production of Etios will begin by December 2010.

A second manufacturing facility, exclusively to build Etios, is coming up at Bidadi near Bangalore. Coming up adjacent to the first facility at the same location, it will have a capacity of 70,000 vehicles. Toyota would be making an investment of Rs.3,200 crore for the second production facility.

TKM, a joint venture between Japanese auto giant Toyota and India’s Kirloskar Group, started production at the first facility in 1999 and has invested Rs.1,500 crore. It currently has a production capacity of 80,000 units annually.

Shetty said the company would expand its dealership network to prepare for the upcoming launch of the compact car.

“By December 2011, we will have a total of 150 dealerships across the country,” he said.