TNL cautions motorists on 'grey' imported vehicles

WORRIED by the increasing cases of 'grey' import vehicles, Toyota Nigeria Limited, (TNL) recently urged its customers against use of such vehicles, which are prone to unrepairable breakdowns.According to the nation's foremost Toyota franchisee owner of 'grey' import vehicles, which are legally imported from another country through channels other than the maker's official distribution system, run the risk of failing when it requires a major repair.Making reference to the recent influx of Toyota Venza into the country, Managing Director of TNL, Mr. Chandra Thampy, said the company does not have the facility to take care of problems that may arise from such vehicles.Although the auto firm recently unveiled the all-new Avenza in Lagos with a three-year warranty, Thampy, however, said the spare parts that came with the Avenza would not work for the Venza.He further said any Venza found in Nigeria was not built for the nation's road and environment and could be prone to frequent breakdowns.He said, unlike the Avenza, which the TNL was duly authorised to bring in and support with enough spare parts and other technical services, the Venza would be difficult to handle since they were not tropicalised.'We don't like to bring in vehicles not approved for our market because of the implications on after-sales service,' he said.Thampy, who also spoke on the new vehicle business for the first half of the year, which he said was better than last year, stressed that the company recorded about 10 per cent increase in sales in the first six months of the year, adding that the Corolla contributed significantly to the rise.Although he did not give a breakdown of the performance of each Toyota model sold during the period under review, the TNL boss said the commercial vehicles did better than the passenger cars.Speaking on the performance of new vehicles recently introduced into the Nigeria market, such as the Fortuner, Camry and Venza, he said they were doing well and have been accepted by Nigerians.Besides, Thampy recognised the efforts of other auto distributors/dealers and local manufacturer in the country's rising automobile profile, but stressed that Toyota Nigeria would remain a leader for a long time.
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