TOYOTA 800L : NEW SMALL CAR FOR INDIA IN 2010
Toyota is planning to launch a new Small Car. The Car codenamed 800L is being developed in Japan. It could be launched first in India.
The engine will be imported from Thailand but most other key parts will be manufactured locally. Toyota Kirloskar Auto Parts (TKAP), the component manufacturing arm in Bangalore, will export manual transmissions for the engine to Thailand, which will then be imported here (TKAP also makes propeller shafts and axles for the Innova).
The car is expected to be available in both petrol and diesel options. There have been talks doing the rounds of a 1.4 litre diesel engine and two petrol engines with capacities of 1.2 and 1.6 litres but this is not confirmed. By the time the small car debuts in 2010, India’s free trade agreement with Thailand will have come into force and turn out be a huge cost-saving to Toyota since duty on engine imports will be virtually nil by then.
Source: DNAIndia
2 People have left comments on this post
I hope Toyota does not charge a premium for its name. I know for sure that Honda does. If it charges a premium then people will have to fall back upon old faithfuls like Maruti and Tata. I wonder if that would not contradict the idea behind making a small car. I suppose that is the reason why Honda is hesitant to actually make a small car in India.
This car needs little development. It is a Daihatsu and is also sold as a Subaru. So Toyota should stop this talk of developing a small car. It is already theer since a few years and is sold in Europe.