Defying the boiling political stand-off, Toyota Motor Corporation yesterday launched the new Corolla Altis, eyeing sales of 4,000 cars a month.
Kyoichi Tanada (left), president of Toyota Motor Thailand, and Shinichi Yasui, chief engineer of Toyota Motor Corporation, unveil the new Corolla Altis at Bitec Bang Na yesterday.
"The political situation right now may have a psychological impact on potential buyers in the short term," said Wichien Emprasertsuk, executive vice-president for marketing at Toyota Motor Thailand (TMT), a unit of the Japanese giant.
"But we're not afraid and we have moved on with the launch plan. More importantly, it is the right time to launch a new model after the previous model of Corolla Altis was launched in 2008. The new model will stimulate local sales."
The longer and wider Corolla Altis sedan, powered by a 1.6- or 1.8-liter engine, is the 11th generation of Corolla and goes for 769,000-1,069,000 baht.
A combined 670,000 units of the 48-year-old Corolla have been sold in Thailand, out of 40 million worldwide.
Toyota introduced the Corolla Altis in Indonesia, Singapore, the Philippines and Thailand, starting in mid-2013.
Last year also saw the Thai launch of the new Vios in March and the new Yaris in October.
TMT senior vice-president Apinont Suchewaboripont said the Corolla Altis is made by Toyota's second plant at Gateway Industrial Estate in Chachoengsao, with a capacity of 230,000 units a year.
Toyota plans to export the Corolla Altis to Asia, South America, Oceania and the Middle East, with the shipments making up 42% of its Thai production or about 40,000 units this year.
In view of the Bangkok shutdown, Toyota has moved 150 of its 400 personnel from the sales and dealerships office at All Seasons Place on Wireless Road to headquarters in Samrong, Samut Prakan.
The car maker's logistics routes in Greater Bangkok have been adjusted to avoid rally-induced traffic jams.
TMT has yet to unveil its domestic sales target for this year.
A 2014 business plan is expected to be announced on Jan 20.
For the first 11 months of 2013, TMT's domestic sales stood at 404,151 cars, down 15.1% year-on-year.