14 December, 2007 : Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) is coming up with the CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) fuel variants; As such we can look forward to soon seeing the CNG fuel variants of its premium sedan Corolla and multi-utility vehicle (MUV) Innova on Indian roads. The Corolla and Innova will be the first ever CNG fuel-based offering by this Japanese major in the world. The company is presently examining different kinds of CNG kits on both the models at its Bangalore units. The CNG version cars are expected to hit the Indian roads in December and it is also learnt that the kits are being supplied by Minda Auto Gas, the original dealer to the Hyundai Santro and Maruti Suzuki WagonR Duo for its LPG based variant.

Toyota confirmed that the company is looking for the right CNG fuel options. They will introduce the CNG variants in metros like Delhi and Mumbai as CNG is presently available there. The launch at other CNG-compliant zones like Surat and Agra will follow after this. While Innova is already a market leader, the sale of the premium sedan Corolla has slightly dipped to 3,740 units in the April-October period from 3,925 units last year. Industry insiders say TKM is targeting to tap the huge commercial sector of tour operators and fleet owners by introducing vehicles running on CNG fuel. Toyota Kirloskar Motors is all set to bank upon the high-demand of CNG vehicles.

Already a large number of CNG and LPG cars are available in the market including the Optra from General Motors, Lancer from Hindustan Motors, and popular compact cars like the Santro and WagonR Duo. Toyota is definitely jumping into this fray as a clear winner since none of its close competitors seem to be evening thinking along the lines of LPG or CNG currently.