Thaindian News

Toyota Motor Corporation planing to introduce Hybrid Sedan Prius in India as to solve the fuel prices and growing concerns over emissions.

Toyota Kirloskar Motor Ltd vice-chairman Vikram Kirloskar told reporters ;

“We are preparing to bring Prius into the Indian market though we have not set any timeline yet,”

“In the run-up, we have to develop skills to service it and make spare parts available across the country,” he added.

Prius is known as the most fuel-efficient midsize car in the US and have been sold in over 40 countries in 2008, and the hybrid variant has also been rated as the third least carbon dioxide emitting vehicle in Britain.

Prius as a “great car” but Kirloskar admitted it was “expensive upfront”.

“In the long-run, it is economical, with higher mileage and lower maintenance cost. We are confident of its acceptability in the Indian market as it runs both on electricity and fuel.”

Comparing to Corolla and Camry, Prius uses an all-electric compressor for cooling which can be classified as a super ultra low emission vehicle, the car can be propelled by either petrol or electric power.

“We are aware that Honda is launching its hybrid variant in the Indian market soon despite high import tariff. We can also do it with due preparation. As I said earlier, we have to gear up to service such a premium car by training our personnel and stocking enough spare parts with the dealer network,” Kirloskar said.

The Hybrid, were sold since April 2008 worldwide, including 592,000 units in the US and 315,000 units in Japan.

Kirloskar said Toyota Kirloskar already introduced Corolla and Camry as premium segment, Innova as multi-utility and Prado as sports utility segments in India and meet success.

“We launched Innova by discontinuing Qualis and yet maintained market leadership in the segment. In the second-hand or used car market, Toyota brands commands highest price even today because of their value and durability,” he said.

“With the Indian economy poised to grow over eight-nine percent, we see immense potential to grow, thanks to increasing purchasing power, higher aspirations among the generation next, better road connectivity and migrant-driven urbanization,” Kirloskar said.