SEOUL, South Korea — It's the automotive equivalent of extreme cage-fighting. Japanese automaker Toyota on Tuesday launched a major offensive against its South Korean rivals Hyundai and Kia — on their home turf.
Toyota began sales of its vehicles — including the Toyota Prius, Camry, Camry Hybrid and RAV4 — in South Korea, in a major bid to lure customers to the Japan side of the fence. "Toyota Enters Korea to Steal Hyundai Consumers," said the headline in the Korea Times. The newspaper also noted that Toyota Korea president Taizo Chigira, speaking in "fluent Korean" at a local press conference, said, "We realized that Lexus alone cannot fulfill the needs of the South Korean market." Lexus entered the South Korea market in 2001.
Toyota said it has set an initial monthly sales target of 500 vehicles in South Korea and "aims to increase that number to 700 vehicles beginning in 2010."
Toyota's South Korea lineup is more expensive than that of Hyundai, but it is cheaper than Honda and Nissan. Hyundai and Kia make up 72 percent of South Korea's market share, according to the Korea Automobile Manufacturers Association.
Inside Line says: This battle may prove to be a test bed for whether Japan or South Korea comes out on top in the global battle for automotive dominance. — Anita Lienert, Correspondent
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