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| Expect
Corolla to be aggressively priced for Indian market where Toyota is
planning to sell in large numbers. |
Corolla
smacks of Toyota's engineering conservatism. Not exciting to drive
but more of an efficient, reliable family car. |
T
he
handling of the Corolla as expected was vice-free, feeling safe and secure
at speeds you could only attempt on a track. The steering felt crisp and
positive, loading up nicely as you turn into a corner. The suspension,
though on the soft side, gave the car a nice, well balanced feel and once
tuned for Indian roads should strike a happy compromise between ride and
handling.
Safety is pretty high on the agenda and the Corolla is a product of Toyota's
new Global Outstanding Assessment (GOA) which means that all new Toyotas
have to pass a host of safety tests all over the world, including a frontal
crash at 64kph.
Unlike a Honda which carries a stamp of engineering innovation, the Corolla
Altis smacks of engineering conservatism, the safe but sure route Toyota
takes with its cars. In the case of the Altis, a spicy driving experience
is not on the agenda. Instead, it is factors like style, comfort and the
overall ownership experience that Toyota is banking on to make its Corolla
a winner. But the only way to the Indian customer's heart is the price
and Toyota knows this only too well. An aggressive localisation programme,
which will see the first Corollas roll off Toyota's assembly line near
Bangalore with 50 percent local content, is aimed at keeping costs down.
We expect the Corolla Altis to be priced a shade under the psychological
Rs 10 lakh barrier. It’s a price that could seriously hurt the Honda
City and Skoda Octavia, which are riding high with seemingly no competition.
Toyota is hellbent on making sure the Corolla emerges a winner when it
goes on sale in February 2003. It's got a formidable reputation to protect.
|
November
2002