AutoBeta(AutoBeta.net)11/14 Report--

On November 13, FAW Toyota released a preview of the new A+ class sedan, which is based on the TNGA architecture, which is between Carola and Asian Dragon. The new car may be named "ALLION" and will debut at the 18th Guangzhou Auto Show.

"LION" means "lion". As it is similar to the English name of "AVALON" of Asian Dragon, many netizens speculate: will this new A+ class model be named "Asian Lion" in the same way as Asian Dragon?

There is little information about the new car, which continues Toyota's smooth car line design, similar to the Corolla, which is currently on sale. According to previous reports, as sister models, FAW Toyota "ALLION" and Guangzhou Auto Toyota "Ling Shang" configuration are basically the same, the two new cars are positioned as A + class cars with the same wheelbase of 2750mm, equipped with 2.0L naturally aspirated engine, maximum power 178hp, peak torque 210Nm, matched by CVT continuously variable transmission, which is in line with Toyota's two-car launch strategy in China.

In fact, Toyota's official website has a model called ALLION, a compact sedan, which was launched in 2001 but is only sold in Japan. Toyota did not introduce it into domestic sales, so it gave Zhongtai a chance. In 2012, Zhongtai launched the Zhongtai Z300, which is basically the same as the ALLION. In 2014, sales reached 58000, more than in Japan.

As early as 2018, Toyota registered the "ALLION" trademark in China, which means that Toyota already plans to introduce such a model, and it is not surprising that FAW Toyota's upcoming A+ class sedan is named "ALLION". Although both models are named ALLION and are positioned higher than the Corolla, they are not the same model. Now, FAW Toyota plans to develop a new ALLION through TNGA architecture.

FAW Toyota sold 623213 vehicles from January to October, up 6.3 per cent from a year earlier, according to the Federation of passengers. Although FAW-Toyota's sales continue to be high, it relies heavily on a few models that go far, with the exception of the Corolla, RAV4 and Asian Dragon, all of which are relatively mediocre.

At present, FAW Toyota only involves small cars, compact cars, medium-sized cars, small SUV, compact SUV and other market segments, the product camp is not rich enough, lack of main products in more advanced areas. Therefore, the arrival of A + class cars can not only fill the market gap between FAW Toyota in Carola and Asian Dragon, but also achieve a "dimension reduction blow" to the volume of A class cars in the market.

However, the volume of new cars depends on Toyota's sincerity, longer wheelbase also means higher prices, pricing is too high may not be able to move volume, pricing is too low to compete with Carola for the market, the loss outweighs the gain.

With reference to the official guidance price of 11.98-145800 yuan for the current Corolla and 19.98-244800 yuan for the Asian Dragon, the new A+ class sedan with a longer 50mm wheelbase is positioned and priced between the Carola and the Asian Dragon, so how much is the right price?

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