Brand not bulk, booms Buttner

Toyota's new special vehicles operation Toyota Racing Develoments (TRD) is about building the world number one carmaker's brand in new customer segments, not just selling faster cars says Toyota Australia sales and marketing boss, David Buttner.

Speaking at the launch of TRD's first production model, a supercharged 241kW Aurion this week (more here), Buttner said the stand alone but wholly-owned performance outfit would not be immune from having to operate at a profit but that its success would not be measured on how many cars it sold alone.

"One of the key things that will define [TRD and TRD Aurion's] success will be the impact it has on the brand," Buttner told the Carsales Network yesterday.

"Because it's not just vehicle sales per se that'll judge the outcome, it's really [about] a halo affect that it will put across the brand, and attract people who may not normally be a Toyota buyer to the brand."

"[Success] in trying to attract a younger demographic to the brand overall, which is an issue for Toyota worldwide... If we can see a shift over time [in this] and we can see an acceptance that Toyota has the capability and capacity in this country to develop a true performance vehicle -- then that'll be how we judge the performance of the vehicle [and TRD]," he said.

Though Toyota says it scores well on consumer testing in terms of perceptions of durability, reliability and affordability, missing are attributes such as style, vision, performance and excitement.

The task of TRD -- the first time the racing division's moniker has been used in a stand-alone road car operation -- is to change this perception.

According to Toyota Australia's Product Management head, Peter McGregor: "The entire business case is built around the belief that the TRD brand is going to be worth far more than the immediate sales it generates.

"That's not to say we don't expect each TRD vehicle program to turn a profit -- we do... But in the medium to long term and not necessarily in the short term," he said.

According to McGregor, TRD will be the carmaker's "pinnacle brand" Down Under. He says it will attract younger buyer to Toyota, improve customer retention and "engender great brand loyalty".

McGregor said Toyota's research indicated TRD brand awareness already matched Subaru's STi performance arm and Mercedes' AMG division Down Under.

Buttner meantime would not be drawn on sales targets for the new marque's models -- in particular the just-released TRD Aurion.

"I'm not going to talk about specific numbers. It is quite niche [and] it's built in a static situation so numbers are limited. We believe the vehicle will be demand-driven rather than supply-driven. We're looking for 'pull' not 'push,'" he said.

Buttner also was adamant the brand was not looking to take on Holden and Ford's performance offshoots, HSV and FPV, head on.

"If you're looking for massive wings and huge plastic add-ons then you've come to the wrong place. This is a vehicle suited to the sort of customer we want to see more of in Toyota dealerships -- the car enthusiast."

"Quite clearly we're not aiming for the tribalists that will buy only the traditional locally-produced performance sedans. [These] Triablists will not even contemplate another brand because they aspired to own the latest version of the car their fathers drove... But there is a large market out there of people that are open to an enhanced performance vehicle from Toyota," he said.

And the fact the TRD Aurion retains the donor models front-wheel drive set-up won't be an issue he says.

"There's certainly been a tradition in Australia that people say a true performance vehicle must be rear-wheel drive but I think also as people become more educated and understand safety aspects of vehicles that that's not necessarily the case [any more]. I'd like to think the proof will be in the driving…

"We're targeting a sophisticated market with a quality product that provides balanced performance, handling and technology rather than focusing on outright brute performance," Buttner opined.

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