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New Toyota sedan and a hatchback on Etios platform for BRIC countries

Toyota Motors is rumoured to be working on a C segment sedan to fill the void between Toyota Etios and Toyota Corolla. This much needed vehicle will complete the product range of the Japanese auto firm. Speculations suggest that the car maker is developing a new sedan and a hatchback conceived on the Toyota Etios platform. Toyota at present is busy promoting Etios sedan in the Brazilian auto market and hence the new cars are not expected to be launched by the year 2013. From the petite information we could gather from our close sources, the new set of vehicles will be the prototypes of the Dear Qin concepts which were showcased at the Beijing Auto Show. The two cars, including a hatchback and a sedan are expected to be the first two vehicles from the eight new compact cars which the company is developing for the BRIC countries.

The Japanese auto maker has however maintained silence regarding the development of these two vehicles, but sources are of the opinion that these two cars will be placed above Etios. Therefore this new sedan will compete with the likes of Hyundai Verna, Nissan Sunny and Skoda Rapid which is a part of the C segments (a notch above the entry level sedans). The hatchback on the other hand will be placed between the Etios twins. The Brazilian auto market is likely to be bestowed with the 1.5 litre petrol motor, however the choice of engines for the Indian car market seems to be same as offered in Etios family. The new sedan could feature a 1.5 litre petrol mill and the hatchback could come housed with a 1.4 litre petrol powertrain. On the other hand a 1.4 litre mill will also be available in both the vehicles; however the state of tune has not been defined for this one.

Talking about the design and looks department, Toyota is definitely going to raise the bar as compared to the naive design of Etios. Expect a sharper sedan that will be able to look straight in the eye of Verna fluidic and give it dirty looks boasting its strong design. Unlike Etios, the plastic quality is likely to be better, expect ample space inside the sedan. Equipped with better features, the vehicle will have brighter chances of performing well in the C segment of the domestic market. This could be marked as a surprise package for the car maker in India.