Toyota-Suzuki Conclude Agreement To Supply Cars To Each Other In India

Toyota Motor Corporation (Toyota) and Suzuki Motor Corporation (Suzuki) have announced that both companies have concluded a basic agreement towards the mutual supply of hybrid and other vehicles in the Indian market. The announcement stated that Suzuki will supply the Baleno and Vitara Brezza models to Toyota, while the latter will supply the Corolla sedan to Suzuki. Details including the schedule of the start of supply, number of supplied units, vehicle specifications, and supply pricing, will be considered at a later stage, the statement read.

The cars will be sold by Toyota and Suzuki's Indian subsidiaries - Toyota Kirloskar Motor and Maruti Suzuki, through their respective sales networks. The companies are aiming to "challenge and compete with each other with the goal of mutual improvement, as the manufacturers aim to further enhance the products and services on offer".

The announcement further stated that the both manufacturers will enhance efforts to source components locally to the extent possible, in-line with the government's "Make In India" initiative. Furthermore, the automakers will collectively also work on hybrid vehicles in the country that are less fuel consuming, and will help India reduce the environmental footprint.

(Toyota and Suzuki have already announced an MoU for introducing battery electric cars in India)

The Japanese auto giants first announced its business partnership for India in February 6, 2017 with the collaboration looking towards environmental technology, safety technology information technology, and the mutual supply of products and components. In November 7, 2017, the manufacturers announced a memorandum of understanding (MoU) towards considering a cooperative structure for introducing battery-powered electric vehicles in the Indian market around the year 2020.

Toyota and Suzuki further stated that the collaboration will continue to explore other projects that contribute to a more sustainable mobile society.