Thaindian News

Bangalore, Dec 1 (IANS) Toyota Kirloskar Motor launched its Etios sedan here Wednesday, marking the company’s entry into the highly competitive ‘B segment’ or mid-segment car market in India.

The Etios, priced between Rs.496,000 and Rs.686,500 (ex-showroom Delhi), has been developed specifically for the Indian customers with the slogan ‘World First, India First, My First’, the company said.

The bookings for the Etios sedan started Wednesday and deliveries would begin in January 2011.

The company has roped in music wizard A.R. Rahman as its brand ambassador for Etios.

“Innovative styling, best-in-class cabin and luggage space, superior comfort and impressive fuel efficiency” are the highlights of Etios, it said.

The company also announced that the hatchback version has been named ‘Etios Liva’ and would go on sale in April 2011.

The Etios sedan was launched by Akio Toyoda, Toyota Motor Corporation president and scion of Toyota’s founding family.

This is his first visit to India after becoming the head of the company.

Vikram Kirloskar, vice-chairman of Toyota Kirloskar Motors (TKM), was present at the launch.

“India is a key market for our overall strategic growth plans, and the launch of the Etios is definitely a milestone not only for Toyota in India but for Toyota globally,” Toyoda said.

He said: “Etios is a product of real-world testing on roads across India. Our testing has covered a hundred thousand kilometres on every kind of road that Indian drivers encounter, from Kolkata to Mumbai, from the Himalayan foothills to the tip of the Indian peninsula.”

Hiroshi Nakagawa, managing director of TKM, said: “The Etios is very important to us, and its launch today marks the beginning of a new era for Toyota in India.”

Yoshinori Noritake, chief engineer of the Etios, said: “More than 2,000 engineers from Japan and India worked in close collaboration over the last four years with a vision to offer Etios customers the ‘joy of ownership’ and ‘quality of life’.”