The local future of Toyota’s century Brand – designed to compete with like-minded people Rolls Royce And Bentley – will rest on the shoulders Lexus Australia even though Century sits above him in the corporate hierarchy.
Toyota sales and marketing director Sean Hanley admitted Century was being considered for Australia following the ultra-luxury brand’s expansion in Japan.
“From our perspective, it’s not going to be a Toyota product. It’s probably going to be above Lexus,” Hanley said Daily Sparkz.
“We’re looking at two things: what potential does this car have in Australia and if we brought it to Australia, where would (we) position it?”
With Daily Sparkz you can save thousands on a new car. Click Here to get a great deal.
Although Century ranks above Toyota’s other premium brand, Mr. Hanley suggested giving Lexus responsibility for local sales of Century models.
“Given Lexus’ extensive experience in this area, they are the best people to handle this,” he said.
“So that’s the way we’ll go through the study, (Lexus will) manage that, and then they’ll determine (if there’s a market) – where would it be positioned and how would we sell it.”
The Century SUV is currently sold through select Lexus dealers in markets such as China and the United Arab Emirates, and it is likely that the same business model will be adopted for the Australian market – if and when the brand is launched here.
Mr Hanley said there was great excitement about the Century Concept, which was shown at the Tokyo Motor Show in late October.
“We, like everyone else in the world who saw the introduction of the Century, are very excited and (and there is) a great sense of pride in what this car has stood for in history and what it will stand for in the future.”
“And I quietly hope it can come to Australia under the Century banner in the next few years.”
MORE: Toyota shows Rolls-Royce-rivaling Century Concept, the “Pride of Japan”
