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Toyota taking lead with low-cost, low-price vehicles

GREG KEENAN

Globe and Mail Update

Latest comment posted at 3:05 PM EST 14/01/08

Toyota president also stresses the need for environmentally sensitive, fuel-efficient cars ...Read the full article

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  1. Vote NDP in the next federal/provincial election from Canada writes: I hope the Big 3 North American auto makers will make cars that are electrically run or some other energy source that doesn't damage the environment such as fuel cells.
  2. Seb D from Ottawa, Canada writes: 'We should be able to offer vehicles at reasonable prices to customers.'

    Finally, somebody gets it.
  3. Art Critic from Canada writes: 'We should be able to offer vehicles at reasonable prices to customers.'

    A little unusual to hear a company president admit that their products are currently unreasonably priced.
  4. Art Critic from Canada writes: "but now wants a vehicle that can circle the globe on a single tank."

    If they were to fit their Toyota Yaris with a 500 gallon tank they could do that now!
  5. Scott Wicks from Toronto, Canada writes: Somebody gets it? Sadly I don't think so. Did you see the TV pictures this week of a cattle drive in an auditorium showroom in Detroit this past week? The cows were there to help sell new pickup trucks. Next month you can bet that those same new pickup trucks will join the herd of SUVs and other gas guzzlers and will be driving really fast through urban areas and burning up way too much gas doing it. Sure, there will be energy efficient cars in North America, the same day that the last drop of oil is extracted from the ground. Conservation and environmental concerns are after all meant for other people.
  6. Guy Olivier from Columbus, Ohio, United States writes: Right on Scott Wicks... no one talks about conservation and when they do it's assumed it will be the other guy who conserves. I drive a small Corolla and it erks me when I see these needlessly huge SUV's pulling up to the gas pumps... they're wasting and reducing my gas supply.

    I don't care when they say they can afford the price, waste is still waste.
  7. Eric the Red from Canada writes: "most recent example the $2,500 subcompact Nano introduced by Tata Motors Ltd. of India last week."

    Have I read that properly? 2500 for a new car?

    Does it come with wheels, a steering wheel and brakes?
  8. Art Critic from Canada writes: No brakes - the congestion in Mumbai is so bad that the Tatas will never get beyond walking pace.
  9. jack Sprat from Canada writes: or maybe Scott the cattle were there to show how their trucks fulfill the rural market place need for trucks on the farm and in the country.
    When end up having to drive my truck from my farm into the city , I see very few pickup trucks, but I do see a lot of sports cars with inefficient fuel economy.
    So quit your ragging on the pickups, they serve a very valid and much needed function. Your tarring us all with the same brush does little to help the situation.

    But then I imagine that you do not rag on the guy who flies once a year to a warm clim for vacation, or has a huge house that has immense heat and cooling energy needs.

    I don't begrudge them , thats life in our choice society.
    You chose to begrudge me and force more taxes on the pickup owner and I in the rural life will just adjust and cut and burn more wood from my land to heat my small home so that I can afford my function needed truck and its gasoline needs.
    Sorry for the wood smoke into the climate , you drove me too it !
  10. L.B. MURRAY from Canada writes: Sorry, too late! Do you know that in the USA, people who bought huge SUV's such as a Hummer were given TAX BREAKS BY BUSHCO??

    Absolutely true, and this went on for a couple of years. Check it out... apparently this program was in full force between 2001 and 2006... If you had a SMALL BUSINESS and bought a Hummer or some huge gaz-guzzling TRUCK like the Ford/GM/whatevers, you got a tax break.

    In Canada, in the last March budget, people who bought low-consumption vehicles were promised a tax rebate... Yeah... but it took about six long months for the forms to appear on the internet and a lot of pressure to get your ''promised'' rebate (courtesy of some govermint whatever based in Calgary) ... Be patient, very patient ...
  11. JA M from Our Town, Canada writes: "Does it come with wheels, a steering wheel and brakes? "

    LOL ... yes they come with an Options package.
  12. Dan Radu from Calgary, Canada writes: It's funny. The irony here is that Toyota came into North America in the early 80's with the same style of very cheap, dependable cars. Once they shook the stigma of "offshore cheap" they slowly increased the pricing.

    Now groups like Tata will do the same thing to them. Also, checkout Proton in Malaysia. They make some nice looking inexpensive cars.
  13. Yellow Submariner from Canada writes:

    I wonder if the planet could handle a lot more cars, if they were the right ones...

    For example, suppose speed limits were reduced to 80 kmh on highways - it would take 25% longer to get where we need to go, but still about a 6-fold improvement of the horse and buggies of 100 years ago. Then limit cars to about 45 horsepower (easily enough to cruise at 80 ). Make all cars diesel-electric hybrids. Ban cars from city centers in favour of other modes of transport there.

    Voila - a greener solution, yet still providing cars to the new masses!
  14. J Law from Canada writes: Toyota. Aren't they the same people who were wiggling and squirming every which way they could so they didn't have to give Canadians a fair price when the Canadaian dollar was at par or better with the USA's?

    Yah, I'm sure they were the biggest offender so I cannot see Toyota and reasonable prices being on th esame page for a while.

    Sorry Toyota, but you took another step in the same direction as the Big Three.
  15. Gary Thomson from Surrey, BC, Canada writes: The headlines of this piece and the accompanying related articles say it all. The Chinese are coming at s with hypercheap cars, Toyota is going to meet this challenge by competing head on and Chrysler is looking for a hand out, though they claim they are not. I can hardly wait to see how this turns out.
  16. Building an Ark from Eastern Slopes, Canada writes: Guy Olivier from Columbus, Ohio, United States writes:"... I drive a small Corolla and it erks me when I see these needlessly huge SUV's pulling up to the gas pumps... they're wasting and reducing my gas supply.

    I don't care when they say they can afford the price, waste is still waste.

    How do you think your house or condo is built, could you tow my ladders, saws equipment in the 20' trailer with your Corolla. It's great to see that you nuts want everyone to be like you - trucks are for work...
  17. John Dawson from Toronto, Canada writes:
    "...low-cost and low-priced vehicles,”

    "...emphasizing the importance of the environment and of ... green technologies that reduce emissions and improve fuel economy"

    "could drive across North America on a single of gas"

    Didn't that used to call that a horse?
  18. Some Guy from Ottawa, Canada writes: A few thoughts:

    Will introducing cheap low-cost vehicles into the market simply boost consumption? In turning an existing product 'low-cost' might we be at risk of treating this cheap car like all other cheap items e.g. $100 laptops, $25 DVD players $10 Digital Cameras. We are more likely to dispose of them and replace them with something else simply because they're cheap and therefore dispensible.

    I have yet to see an article that examines the comparison between a vehicle that uses regular gas, it's efficiency and impact on the environment compared to a vehicle that uses electricty (or a combination of both). All this effort on eliminating the need to put gas into our car in exchange for having to plug it in and draw power from a plant that is pumping coal into the atmosphere. Where are the numbers on this?
  19. Ny Town from Canada writes: Disposable pens, disposable diapers, and now disposable cars. Nothing good will come from this.
  20. Polar Bear from Iceberg!, Canada writes: It is about going from one place to another. It is about taking goods from one place to another. The car makers have to get out of their "make a car syndrome" and et on with mobility solutions! That would be a breakthrough.
  21. s c from Canada writes: Guy Olivier from Columbus, Ohio, United States writes: I drive a small Corolla and it erks me when I see these needlessly huge SUV's pulling up to the gas pumps.

    Let's see you fit two adults, four kids and camping gear in your small Corolla. I may be by myself when I fill up our big car, but many families can not fit in a tiny little car.
  22. P Scott from Canada writes: Once again, those who consider the future will survive.
  23. Canadian Driver from Canada writes: I have to admit, Toyota is a master of the PR game. They are just as much producers of "gas guzzlers" as the Detroit automakers but somehow always seem to coax everyone into believing they are the saviours of the planet. Auto journalists that have the same pro-import bias as many of the bloggers here fall for it everytime.

    As for pricing, you cannot negotiate with Toyota dealers. They have a new arrogance where they could care less if you walked out of their showroom or not.
  24. Old blue from Canada writes: Until N. American manufacturers start building cars that people want to buy they should be very concerned. At one time Honda's and Toyota's were avoided like the plague due to quality issues and rusting, now finding a N. American vehicle with the same quality and reliability is a rare feat.
  25. Frankie @^_^@ from Canada writes: They will offer it at one price everywhere ,but here in canada they will rip canadians off by charging 5000 more. What a bunch of crap for them to say that the cheap car should be offered everywhere. Why dont they lower what they make right here in canada.
  26. Shan Kelley from Toronto, Canada writes: The undeniably positive upside of this is that the head of the world's biggest automaker is committing his company to massive reductions in the use of carbon fuels in the vehicles they make. The only losers on this will be the oil companies and, somehow, I think that their shareholders will still manage to keep the dividends rolling in.
  27. Chris Yang from Canada writes: Um... not sure if the media realizes this, but many other automakers other than Toyota have been taking the initiative on low cost/price vehicles in Russia, India and China.

    Perhaps it would be better for Toyota to focus on their current lineup of cars, as they are not only bland as white bread, but are also decreasing in quality. Their arrogance is astounding, and yet they're still the mainstream media's poster child. Not to mention their CAFE ratings are now only midpack, along with the Detroit 3.

    It's painfully obvious how Toyota became so huge over the last few years. Toyota farts, media reports it. Talk about overhyping....
  28. Scott Wicks from Toronto, Canada writes: jack Sprat, if you are a farmer then I have no argument with you driving a pickup. That’s what pickups are supposed to be used for – work. In fact I think farmers oughtta get subsidies for equipment and fuel most especially if they are keeping family farming going in this country. However, since the ratio of city people to country people is now something like 80/20 in Canada and the US it is a sure bet that precious few of those pickups will ever have productive jobs. The tax breaks on work vehicles meant for farming and the trades have been perverted beyond recognition, most notably by the big three auto makers in Detroit. "The miracle of the SUV" is all about sales figures achieved by selling conspicuous consumption to urban people. And yes, performance cars, sports cars and luxury SUVs like Hummers and Escalades are part of the problem too. Peak oil is over and the devil can take the hindmost when it comes to adapting to change. Rapidly escalating higher gas prices are the new normal. If the big three and other manufacturers will not offer intelligent choices then they deserve to go out of business. If you live in a city and buy a cheap, energy efficient car you are sending a powerful message.
  29. Alistair McLaughlin from Canada writes: Fuel-efficient vehicles are one thing. Our addiction to needless driving is another. My 2003 Cavalier is almost 5 years old, and I have only 47,000 km on it. Most of those kms are from a handful of road-trip vacations I've taken. I take the bus to work, and I don't needlessly drive all over the city for no good reason. Many studies have shown that when people drive more efficient vehicles, they drive them more, and end up burning the same amount of fuel. Most people have a weekly fuel budget in mind, and that's what they spend, regardless of vehicle driven. I'm all in favour of more fuel efficiency, but people's driving habits also need to change.
  30. Alberto Bayo from Canada writes: Get a Motorcycle instead.
  31. A reader from Canada writes: The annual insurance for these cheap cars will be in excess of the price of the car. A small fender bender will be a write off.
  32. this is just my opinion from Toronto, Canada writes: Hey, Vote NDP...from Canada, running cars on electricity sounds great until you think about where the electricity comes from. If all the cars ran on electricity, we could have more smoke-belching coal-fired generating plants, or perhaps double the number of nukes generating unsafe nuclear waste with a half-life of millenia.

    I think the best answer is to burn something that grows in the ground and doesn't create GHGs, so I'm looking forward to the convergence of blue-tec deisel and biodeisel technologies.
  33. Frank N. Stein from Canada writes: We should all get free Government issued unicycles to drive around the city, and then we can save the planet from a global warming crisis.
  34. Bobby the K from Bogarttown, Canada writes: Toyota makes a good car. Better in many ways then north american auto makers, even though the north americans have had decades(!) to figure it out and catch up.
  35. Likes Cleavage from Canada writes: Wasn't toyota also the company that did not allow dealers to actually deal on new price vehicles? And isn't it interesting, that it is now important when less expensive models come out. Mmmmmmmmmmmmmm
  36. R. M. from Regina, Canada writes: No problem with progress but it will have some real price implications for crude oil needed for gasoline production in countries like India and China. $1.50 per litre in Canada? Try more like $2.00 when this takes off.
  37. ALASTAIR JAMES BERRY from NANAIMO BC CANADA, Canada writes: Some people still believe in miracles......Some people have no scientific knowledge that a 'free lunch' does not exist in the energy field.

    Here is an example "Vote NDP in the next federal/provincial election from Canada writes: I hope the Big 3 North American auto makers will make cars that are electrically run or some other energy source that doesn't damage the environment such as fuel cells."

    Well Pie in the sky still exists! Ballard Fuel Cells were to lead the way but are now OUT OF THE GAME and $'s HUNDREDS of Millions of TAXPAYERS GRANTS have vanished!!

    Electric cars will be useful,I'll grant, when a way is discovered to sling overhead powerlines over highways.

    If you want FUEL EFFICIENT CARS they will have to be small light and diesel powered AND WILL NOT GO FASTER THAN 60mph(except in neutral down a steep hill) Physics again!! Double the speed NEEDS quadruple the fuel comsumption!!(AND THAT NEEDS A BIGGER ENGINE)

    LETS AVOID A DISASTER LIKE THE 'CHEVETTE' THIS TIME AROUND!!
  38. jack Sprat from Canada writes: We are also missing one other factor, cheaper cars for China and India means more people getting hooked on cars, and then using more gas than planet previously used.
    The environmentalist might want to take up a cause to have "free" North american made bicycles sent to China and India to kkep some from getting hooked on our urban habits.
    Because the oil companies only see more customers on the horizon, and CDN government sees more tax revenues.

    I see more competition for oil I need so I am being selfish too !

    rural farm
    jake
  39. A Leading Edge Boomer from Canada writes: The Chinese are currently building a plant in Mexico to supply the USA with low price trucks to carry those cows around in. A Chinese -Mexican truck! Who would have thunk it a few years ago!

    We can take shots at Toyota for past practices, but the more companies that get on the band wagon of supplying low-cost, soundly built, environmentally friendly vehicles, the better off we will be. We should let them all know that is what we consumers want.
  40. Peter Mak from Canada writes: re:
    " Seb D from Ottawa, Canada writes: 'We should be able to offer vehicles at reasonable prices to customers.'

    Finally, somebody gets it."

    The problem is that NOBODY gets IT. Including you.

    Car production should be STOPPED NOW not expanded.

    What this decision will do is it going to damage the environment
    at a faster rate than anytime in human history.

    You might need to buy few gas masks with that cheap car, for you
    and your whole family.
  41. NikolaTesla -the genius who lit the world from Calgary, Canada writes: this is just my opinion from Toronto & ALASTAIR JAMES BERRY.... Actually GM has already made an electric car that was a success in California. So successful that they destroyed everyone of them. Watch the movie 'who killed the electric car' narrated by Martin Sheen, it's on google video.
  42. Charles Martel from Canada writes: Seb D from Ottawa, Canada writes: 'We should be able to offer vehicles at reasonable prices to customers.'

    Finally, somebody gets it.

    --------

    It really isn't a matter of "gettting it". Car companies really can't just click their heels to make lower cost cars, given that consumers demand high-quality and all the extras too.These companies are also, to a certain degree, hindered by high-wage unions and some fairly steep environmental and governmental guidelines. And then there is R & D.

    That said, is anyone at Toyota salivating at the thought Tata selling cars worldwide for $1200? Prolly not. LOL.
  43. Charles Martel from Canada writes: Yellow Submariner from Canada writes:

    I wonder if the planet could handle a lot more cars, if they were the right ones...

    For example, suppose speed limits were reduced to 80 kmh on highways - it would take 25% longer to get where we need to go, but still about a 6-fold improvement of the horse and buggies of 100 years ago. Then limit cars to about 45 horsepower (easily enough to cruise at 80 ). Make all cars diesel-electric hybrids. Ban cars from city centers in favour of other modes of transport there.

    Voila - a greener solution, yet still providing cars to the new masses!

    --------

    Yes, and vegetables that are rotting at the supermarket and Canada Post taking 8 days for a letter to be delivered. Methinks there would be billions in economic costs inherently built into such a "solution". Either way, I don't relish the thought of government running a car company better than a car company. I think most folks should be wary of state-managed economies.
  44. harry carnie from Northern, B.C., Canada writes: Waaah..who really cares what Toyota thinks.

    Our next vehicle (trading a 2006 Impala) will be a 2009 Malibu.
    Very reliably, economical vehicles...(Impala, Malibu) Those who wish to drive imports are welcome to do so...THEIR CHOICE.
  45. rick garrick from Canada writes: We already have a Toyota, but I'd sure look at trading it in for the new low-cost Toyota.
    Especially if it could circle the globe on a tank of gas.
  46. Rollo Tomasi from Nosmo King, Belgium writes: 'Green' cars are a misnomer created by marketing and perpetuated by the media. Every car harms the environment, motorcycles too, Alberto. We have to drive less and walk more.
  47. S H from Windsor, Canada writes: Alistair....criticing our neighbours for driving to the store instead of walking. I knew this was going to start but I figured it was at least 10 years down the road. No pun intended! Oh the insanity!!!
  48. Comments are Closed from Toronto, Canada writes: What a joke. I had one THIRTY YEARS AGO. It was called a Rabbit Diesel. 52 MPG. I was a green machine before most of you were born.

    Detroit and Buzz/Oshawa will NEVER be green. Although you could argue they have been chasing greenbacks all this century.

    52 MPG. 47 City. 1979. Get it yet? Wise up. And I still love the smell of Diesel in the morning.
  49. Carlos Jose from Canada writes: There is a central point to this debate that few talk about, but it has huge implications on car buying habits. That is, we (males especially) want to drive fast. 80km/h across the prairies would certainly be more friendly to the environment, but we would all rather drive vehicles that are capable of in excess of 200km/h. I too am guilty of this - I own a sport bike for the single fact that it goes stinking fast. So, what we need to address in all our talk of changing consumer habits is, how do we fulfill our need for speed without killing other drivers on the road and driving gas-chewing monsters? And, to be honest, sport bikes aren't very fuel efficient when you consider fuel consumed vs. mass of vehicle. How about the government giving tax-incentives to people who want to convert old railway property (long, flat and straight) into 10km long speedways where people can rent really high performance vehicles and drive them at insane speeds (after signing a waiver, of course)? So, occasionally someone would kill themselves in the process - the overall death toll would be a lot lower than the current street-racing deaths, especially since these tracks could use purpose-built cars that are safe for wipeouts at 300km/h. You could drive to the track in your 50MPG econo box, then drive like a maniac at insane speeds on the track to get your speed fix. Everybody wins, and we no longer need street cars with greater than 80HP.

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