Toyota launches petrol Innova Crysta to overcome diesel ban

New Delhi: Japanese auto major Toyota on Monday launched petrol version of its multi-purpose vehicle Innova Crysta in India priced up to Rs 19.63 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi) as it looks fill the void in Delhi-NCR, where it has not been selling the model due to ban imposed by Supreme Court on diesel vehicles with engines of 2,000cc and above.

The company, which is present in India as a joint venture -- Toyota Kirloskar Motor -- with the Kirloskar Group, is waiting for the next step to be taken by the apex court over the ban on diesel vehicle and market response to petrol Innova Crysta before deciding on whether to launch a petrol variant of Fortuner SUV, which it can't sell currently in Delhi/ NCR.

"The petrol Innova Crysta will be powered by a 2.7 litre new engine. Although the launch is for all India, it has been brought mainly with a view to address consumers and dealers in Delhi-NCR, where we have not been selling the MPV for the last eight months," Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) Director and Senior Vice-President (Sales and Marketing) N Raja told PTI.

Following the ban on big diesel vehicles by the Supreme Court last December, there has been an increased interest towards petrol from consumers, he added.

As for the company's dealers in Delhi-NCR, he said it has been a difficult period and the company needed to look after their interests as well.

While bookings for the petrol Innova Crysta will start from tomorrow, deliveries will begin by the end of this month, Raja said.

The new Innova Crysta petrol is priced in the range of Rs 13.73 lakh and Rs 19.62 (ex-showroom Delhi). It will be available in both manual and automatic transmission versions. While the manual transmission will have a fuel economy of 9.89 kmpl, the automatic variant delivers 10.83 kmpl as per ARAI tests.

TKM has sold over 24,000 units of the new Innova Crysta diesel since its launch in May this year and has over 9,000 orders pending. The automatic transmission variant has a waiting period of over two months, he said.

Earlier the Innova Crysta diesel is available in two engine options of 2.4 L engine with 5-speed manual transmission and an all-new 2.8 litre engine with 6-speed automatic transmission. It is priced in the range of Rs 13.84 lakh and Rs 20.78 lakh (ex-showroom Mumbai).

When asked if the company could also launch a petrol variant of Fortuner, he said: "In the SUV segment, the preference is still for diesel engines. We will see the response to the petrol Innova Crysta and also what decision the Supreme Court take regarding ban on big diesel vehicles."

In terms of capability, Toyota is ready for a petrol version of the Fortuner, he said adding a new generation of the model would be launched next year in diesel option.

Raja said when the Innova was launched in 2005, TKM had offered both diesel and petrol options but the latter was discontinued in 2012 due to poor demand.