Toyota Nigeria Limited, a foremost representative of the auto manufacturer in Nigeria has unveiled the exquisite 2014 Toyota Corolla at its ultra-modern showroom in Lekki.

Also inaugurated is the company’s body and paint repair workshop that is fitted with high-tech instruments and gadgets for use in repairing damaged Toyota vehicles to the manufacturer’s standards.

The 2014 Toyota Corolla, according to the Managing Director of Toyota Nigeria Limited, Chandrasheker Thampy is in high demand in Nigeria and that the company ran out of the old stock of the Corolla and had to start selling the new model.

Toyota Nigeria said they used feedback from a research that was conducted on the outgoing model to develop the new Corolla “It was discovered that customers wanted more aesthetics and increased comfort.”

Thus, the vehicle length has been increased by 80mm, the width by 15mm and luggage compartment by 27mm.

The model has a 4-cylinder 16vavlve dual VVT-I with electronic fuel injection (EFI) which gives the vehicle top level fuel efficiency.It has Macpherson suspension for its front suspension system and a Torsion beam for its rear suspension.

The 2014 Corolla comes with either manual or Continuous Variable Transmission (CVT) system which replaces the automatic transmission.  According to Toyota, the CVT helps in maximising the performance of a vehicle by allowing the engine to run at its most efficient Revolutions per minute (RPM) which leads to improved fuel efficiency.

A newly designed light weight highly efficient air conditioning system which achieves top level cooling performance has been adopted for the comfort of passengers.

It has a clean air filter which removes dust and pollen as one of its main features.

A new Display Audio system equipped with a back monitor or reverse camera has been introduced especially for the top of the range that comes with leather seat.  Additional safety features include Anti-lock braking system (ABS), Electronic brake force distribution (EBD) and brake assist which is adopted to compensate for drivers failure to depress the brake pedal deep enough during an emergency.

Giving a history of Corolla, Thampy said the first generation of the car was put in the market in 1966 and that it is manufactured in 16 factories and sold in 154 countries across the world.

Thampy said the first ever exports of the Corolla was in November of 1966 with 15 units being exported to Australia and that as of now, over 30 million Corollas have been sold worldwide, making the Toyota Corolla the world’s best selling automobile.

Moves into Body, Paints Repair
A $2 million ultra-modern body and paint repair workshop kitted with high-tech equipment has been open for use by Toyota Nigeria Limited (TNL).

Located at the company’s facility at Oregun Road in Lagos, the workshop is designed as a game changer, said the Managing Director of TNL, Chandrasheker Thampy at its launch during the week.

Thampy described the body and paint repair segment (popularly known as panel beating) as “a large untapped market in an organised sense. Trained approach to it has not existed in the country.”

Theirs, he said was not going to be a public workshop, adding that TNL would not get involved in that kind of business. It would be a training centre to pass skill to dealer workshops; a kind of training school for them.

He said by this development they were encouraging dealers to take advantage of the facilities at the centre to provide good after sales services to the benefit of end-users of Toyota Vehicles. “We are transferring high-tech skills to dealers to satisfy our customers.

The company, he said has invested a lot of money into equipping the centre to enable them be the leader in the body and paint market in the years to come.

Presenting the facility, Mr. Nishant, who is in charge, said it was important to train the company’s dealers because “The lack of basic and standard knowledge in body and paint work process necessitate the new innovation in body and paint skill knowledge in Nigeria.”

Body and paint in Nigeria, he said really lacked modern work, process and methodology required to boost their dealer body and paint after sales activity.

Training, he said was an investment rather than expense; it also brings quality on the job process aimed at customer retention and trust; training gives the right product selection, which gives added quality of work, reduces rework and increases customer trust.

The company, he said desire to introduce more of body and paint workshops in all its dealer service network.