Toyota Innova Crysta, continuing the smash hit legacy of its predecessor has recorded an impressive 15,000 bookings in its first month. That number is absolutely mind boggling for a car which is priced in the INR 20 lakh segment. The newly launched car already has a waiting period of 2 months, which is expected to increase as more bookings mount.
While that number is encouraging for the Japanese carmaker, the recent ban imposed on diesel cars (2.0L or above) by the Supreme Court of India in the NCR region is making car manufacturers struggle with their India strategy. Delhi NCR is by far the biggest sales region for most car manufacturers, and the ban on diesel engines is forcing Indian and international car makers to re-align their product strategy with newer diesel engines which are either smaller than 2.0-litre in displacement or are petrol powered. Toyota is also planning a new 2.7 litre petrol engine, designed specifically for the NCR scenario.
Read: Toyota Innova Crysta 2.4 diesel MT and 2.8 Diesel AT review
“We have seen our sales coming down by 800 units a month in Delhi since December after the Supreme Court ban. To address this issue, we have fast tracked the development of a 2.7 litre petrol engine. Our R&D engineers in Japan are working on the new engine. We plan to launch the petrol variant of Innova Crysta in Delhi-NCR markets by Diwali this year,” said N Raja, director and senior vice president (sales & marketing), Toyota Kirloskar Motor.
The all-new engine will be developed specifically for India. Although Toyota has another petrol option for the Crysta in other markets, the company is developing this new engine specifically for India. Maybe they think that this new engine will be usable on their other product lines as well. The new engine will make its debut on the Innova Crysta by Diwali
“We are already selling Innova Crysta with a 2 litre petrol engine in Thailand and Indonesia. But for India we are developing an all new 2.7 litre petrol engine, which will be launched first in India. Our R&D engineers are working with Japanese team to develop the new engine,” Raja said.
While petrol engines haven’t worked particularly well on bigger vehicles in India, the ban on big diesels in the NCR is forcing manufacturers to equip their big cars with a petrol powerplant. All that money spent in developing new powertrains for their models for NCR might, however, go down the drain if the SC lifts the bans on such vehicles sometime soon.
We’d like to know your views on the diesel ban in the NCR region. Do share your thoughts, opinions and enlighten us with facts if you have any to share on the subject. Millions are listening
Source : Financial Express