A Toyota Prius plug-in hybrid concept car on display at the Guangzhou motor show. Tyrone Siu / Reuters

Its first big motor show in China after islands dispute

Applause erupted several times from the audience during comments from the head of Toyota's China operations at a press conference for the Guangzhou motor show on Nov 22.

In remarks to the media, Hiroji Onishi vowed that Toyota will continue with its ambitious plans in China.

"I've been thinking of how to make this long-term relationship (with China) even closer since I was designated to this position" in April, he said.

His speech came as the carmaker and other major Japanese brands joined a big auto event in China for the first time since a September boycott and other protests over the Diaoyu Islands dispute.

Onishi announced that Toyota will launch two brands next year independently developed by its joint ventures FAW Toyota and Guangqi Toyota.

Toyota also plans to introduce 20 new models to the Chinese market over the next three years, he added.

FAW Toyota will also unveil a new saloon car and Guangqi Toyota will introduce a hatchback in the last half of 2013, Onishi said.

Onishi said the company has gone through ups and downs in China since it started exporting its Crown model to the country in 1964.

He said the right attitude to solve problems in China is to "truly love China and think with a Chinese perspective," advice given him by Akio Toyoda, the first chief of Toyota's China operations and now president of the auto giant.

"China is the most important," he concluded in Chinese.

Toyota is also demonstrating its "Cloud Action" plan at the Guangzhou show, a strategy that promotes practical energy-saving technologies.

The automaker has a wholly owned R&D center in Changshu, a city in a Jiangsu province neighboring Shanghai.

With a total investment of $689 million, the 2.3 million sq m R&D center will be the automaker's largest in the world when completed.

Officially called the Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing Co, the facility is under construction as scheduled. Test tracks and facilities related to new energy technologies are planned to begin operation in 2013.

Construction has also begun on a transmission plant in Changshu scheduled to start operations in 2014. It will produce more efficient and energy-saving components, especially for hybrid vehicles, the company said.

Toyota has set a target for its new energy vehicles to account for at least 20 percent of sales in China, said Dong Changzheng, deputy executive president of Toyota China, during an exclusive interview with China Daily.

From January to October, Toyota's hybrid models sold more than 1 million units across the globe. Total sales worldwide have now surpassed 4.6 million hybrids since 1997, Dong said.

With China expected to be one of the world's largest markets for new-energy vehicles, foreign brands increasingly moving part into the promising segment.

In addition to Toyota, GM, Volkswagen, Nissan and Honda all plan to develop new-energy vehicles in China.

Japanese brands have suffered from a dwindling market share since September. Combined October sales decreased 33.7 percent from September and dropped 55.2 percent from the same month last year.

Toyota had planned to move 1 million vehicles in China this year, a 13 percent increase over 2011. Analysts say there is now little likelihood of reaching the target.