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Board meet in August for decision on small car

K. Giriprakash

Bangalore, July 22 Toyota’s new Corolla, which is set to be launched in Thailand in December, is expected to be launched in India late next year.

Sources at Toyota-Kirloskar Motor told Business Line that the current Corolla model, which was launched in 2002, was ready for a complete makeover. The cost of manufacturing the new-generation Corolla in India is expected at Rs 75-1 00 crore, sources close to the carmaker said. Toyota spent about Rs 70 crore to manufacture the current model of Corolla.

In another development, the board of Toyota Motor Corporation, which was expected to finalise plans for launching a new small car for India early this year, may now meet in August. The small car may be built on a completely new platform specific for the Indian subcontinent.

Toyota may also launch a new social initiative to mark the 10th anniversary of its entry into India in 2009 and the chairman of Toyota Motor Corporation is expected to visit India then.

Sources said one of the reasons for phasing out the current model of Corolla was that it was reaching the end of its lifecycle. There has, however, not been any major drop in sales of the model. Between January and June this year, it sold about 3,500 units compared to 4,000 units during the same period last year.

Honda Civic sold over 9,000 units during the first six months of the current calendar year. It is priced between Rs 10 lakh and Rs 12 lakh. Toyota Corolla is priced Rs 9- 12 lakh. Globally, over 35 million units have been sold.

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