Kuozui to Export Over 100,000 Toyota Altis Sedans to the Middle East in 2014

Kuozui Motors Ltd., the local assembler of Toyota cars in Taiwan, recently announced that strong demand from the Middle East market is expected to boost its exports of the new Toyota Corolla Altis sedans to more than 100,000 units in 2014, compared to about 67,000 units in 2012 and an estimate of 80,000 in 2013.

Thanks also to hot sales of the new Altis in Taiwan, Kuozui expects to produce its full annual capacity of 200,000 units in 2014, making it the largest-ever automaker on the island.

The assembler recently held a ceremony at the Port of Taipei in northern Taiwan to celebrate the shipment of the first batch of locally produced Toyota Altis sedans to the Middle East.

To accommodate the local production of more Toyota models in Taiwan, Kuozui said it is in talks with Toyota's headquarters in Japan for the further expansion of production capacity at its factory in Guanyin, Taoyuan County in northern Taiwan.

Kuozui is a joint venture between Toyota Japan (holding a 70% stake) and Hotai Motor Co. (30%), the general agent of Toyota and Lexus cars in Taiwan. Kuozui currently assembles Altis, Camry, Wish, Yaris, and Vios sedans in Taiwan, along with Hino commercial vehicles. The company is expected to turn out 180,000 automobiles in 2013, maintaining its position as Taiwan's No. 1 automaker.

The company operates two factories in Taiwan, one each in Zhongli (for Altis cars) and Guanyin (other models). Kuozui officials pointed out that Toyota representatives and distributors in the Middle East have visited Taiwan to take a look at the locally assembled Altis, auguring hot sales in the Middle East. Kuozui said that some 140,000 Altis cars are expected to be produced in Taiwan in 2014, 40,000 for local sales and 100,000 for export.

Local industry sources say that since the sharp appreciation of the Japanese yen in late 2012, many Japanese automakers have pulled back on contract-production orders to auto assemblers in Taiwan. Kuozui was originally expected to ship fewer Altis sedans to the Middle East, but the Taiwanese assembler proved that expectation wrong by offering cost-competitive and high-quality cars and winning Toyota contract orders for even more Made-in-Taiwan Altis sedans for export.

A senior official at Kuozui pointed out that most of Toyota's overseas assembly plants have been striving to win more contract orders from Toyota headquarters, especially those in Thailand, Indonesia, India, and China. With strong advantages in assembly quality and cost control, he added, Kuozui will continue striving for more contract orders with the aim of becoming a major overseas auto production site for Toyota.

Accessory Biz Too

Kuoziu's increasing production of Altis sedans will also benefit Carmax Co., Ltd., a Hotai Group subsidiary that designs, develops, and produces accessories for Toyota cars.

Carmax supplies a wide range of auto accessories to all Toyota cars sold in Taiwan and exported to the Middle East, as well as taking orders from Toyota's operations in China. The company's major products include parking sensors and in-car infotainment systems, among others. In Taiwan, about 70% of all buyers of new Toyotas choose Carmax products. In 2012, the firm registered revenue of NT$3.6 billion (US$120 million). To provide for Kuozui's exports, Carmax has set up an accessory assembly line in the Port of Taipei.

In the past, more than 80% of the accessories installed on Toyotas exported from Taiwan were purchased from Japan, industry sources say. For the latest 11th-generation Altis produced by Kuozui, however, all the accessories are developed and supplied by Carmax. In addition, the sources add, both FAW Toyota and GAC Toyota in China are scheduled to kick off production of the new Altis sedan, and Carmax reportedly will supply all the electronic accessories for that new production.

In late 2012 Carmax announced the formation of a joint venture with Chinese carmaker Guangzhou Automobile Industry Group Co. (GAC) for the development and sale of accessories for GAC, which produces more than 900,000 cars per year (including those produced by GAC Toyota). Also in late 2012, Toyota Japan bought a 33.4% stake in Carmax, through its Japanese subsidiary T-JACS Corp., with the aim of jointly developing the auto-accessory business in China and globally.

In addition to supplying accessories for the 140,000 Altis models to be produced by Kuozui in 2014, Carmax's new Chinese customers, FAW Toyota and GAC Toyota, are expected to turn out a total of some 600,000 Toyota Altis cars in China in 2014, creating a huge demand for accessories.

Carmax is also scheduled to launch Toyota-approved MVA (Market Value Accessory) branded auto accessories in six Middle East nations, Southeast Asia, and China. In addition, it is expected to develop high-quality, reasonably-priced Toyota auto accessories for the Japanese market.