Toyota Kirloskar to go ‘greener’

Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) will gradually shift towards making hydrogen, hybrid and electric cars in India, in line with the 2050 global vision plan of the parent, Toyota Motor Corporation.

However, in the short term, it might increase the production of smaller and mid-sized cars to adhere to the CAFE (corporate average fuel efficiency) norms which kick in on April 1, 2017.

Under the CAFE system, car manufacturers in the country will have to adhere to carbon dioxide emission norms. It is calculated on the basis of the weighted average of fuel consumption of all the cars a manufacturer sells and should be less than or equal to the norm. By April 2017, the CO2 emission should be less than or equal to 130 grams per km and by 2022, it should be less than or equal to 108 grams per km, according to Shekar Viswanathan, TKM’s Vice-Chairman and whole-time director. Europe has set a target of 98 g/km by 2020.

“We have the production capacity as well as the models in that range,” Viswanathan told BusinessLine . At present, cars priced above ₹10 lakh constitute over 75 per cent of the total revenues of TKM.

There is also a possibility of parent Toyota Motor launching Daihatsu Motor Company’s small cars into the Indian market. Toyota recently stated that it will soon take over full ownership of Daihatsu.

“The goal is to be profitable as well as produce safer cars and comply with global regulations,” said Viswanathan.

TKM is an 89:11 joint venture between Toyota Motor and the Kirloskar Group. Viswanathan said TKM has managed to reduce costs at every level to ensure that the company works with maximum efficiency.

The Bengaluru-headquartered company has significantly reduced its marketing and advertising spend and has done away with a brand ambassador. It has also not stepped up hiring and has increased the prices of its models as well. With commodity prices going down, the carmaker’s bottomline has grown further.

Viswanathan said one of the reasons for moving towards manufacturing hydrogen and hybrid cars is the increased dependence on oil globally. “Most of the oil dependent countries will eventually shift towards these kinds of cars. We will have less focus on internal combustion engines moving forward,” he explained.

He said the new Innova displayed at the Auto Expo in Delhi might have a petrol version at a future date. Viswanathan further said the price of the Innova has not been announced yet but even if there is an increase, the carmaker is confident that it will be able to grow its customer base because of the new model’s far better specs and finish.