The production version of Toyota’s Etios budget car, designed specifically for India, has been revealed.

The production Etios is nearly identical to the concept car. Both are powered by an unspecified 1.5L engine, and they also look the same.

As of now, only the sedan has been shown, but a hatchback variant dubbed the Etios Liva is due in April 2011. It will receive power from a 1.2L engine, just like the concept hatchback.

Pricing for the Etios starts at 496,000 rupees ($10,950). Toyota expects to shift 70,000 units ever year.

Press Release

Toyota Launches For-India ‘Etios’ Compact Car

Bangalore, India – Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) announces that Toyota Kirloskar Motor Private, Ltd. (TKM), TMC’s production and sales subsidiary based here, today started taking orders through dealerships nationwide for the “Etios”1, a compact car newly developed specifically for the Indian market.
Etios sedan
The Etios, developed over a five-year period with the help of numerous Indian engineers and with direct consumer input, is aimed at meeting the needs of middle-class consumers, a market segment that is expected to expand rapidly as the Indian economy develops further. Reflecting its “one class above” theme, the Etios’ styling evokes status, and, along with a roomy interior with abundant storage space, offers a smooth ride even in demanding conditions, making it an extremely appealing vehicle. TKM also plans to launch a hatchback version, the “Etios Liva”2, in April 2011.

At a Bangalore event to mark the announcement, TMC President Akio Toyoda, emphasizing that Toyota has long strived to provide consumers everywhere with products that meet their needs, said: “The all-new Etios reflects our determination to serve an even-broader range of customers here with genuine Toyota quality.”

When developing the Etios, TKM aimed for and achieved a high local-procurement rate of parts to create a vehicle with strong ties to the Indian market. Production of the vehicle will create more than 2,000 jobs at TKM’s second plant and approximately 500 jobs at Toyota Kirloskar Auto Parts Private Limited, where Etios engine production is scheduled to start in autumn of 2012 and Etios transmission production in early 2013. TKM is also planning exports of the vehicle.

Under its founding philosophy of contributing to society through the manufacture of automobiles, TMC-around the world-strives to supply high-quality products that are suited to regional conditions and that are reasonably priced, and to contribute to the development of automobile industries by creating jobs and developing human resources.

Source: WorldCarFans