Toyota Flags Off 5 Continents Drive In India
Toyota flags off the 5 Continents Drive in India. 5 Continents Drive is a ‘Genchi Genbutsu’ project carried out under the umbrella of TOYOTA GAZOO Racing.
Launched in Australia in 2014, so far, the 5 Continents Drive project has covered four of the world’s continents and moved to Asia for its final stage, earlier this year. As part of the project, Toyota employees drive vehicles under various conditions of the 5 continents: Australia, America (North & Latin), Europe, Africa, and Asia through 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games, representing the five rings in the Olympic symbol.
From Bangalore, the convoy with employees from TMC & TKM along with its partners, will travel through the states of Karnataka, Maharashtra, Gujarat, and Rajasthan, and reach its destination - New Delhi, where the drive will culminate late September 2019. The convoy will be driving Toyota vehicles from the company’s existing model line-up in India.
Speaking on the launch of the project in India, Mr. Yoichi Minamiyama, General Manager, GAZOO Racing Company, TMC said, “TOYOTA GAZOO Racing firmly believes that, ‘On the road we learn how to make ever-better cars.’ 5 Continents Drive Project was formulated to put this maxim to the test. Driven by the philosophy of ‘Genchi Genbutsu’, this project enables us to go behind the wheels under harsh road conditions to gain experience and knowledge of the world's roads, listen to customer feedback, encounter global cultures first-hand, and together find solutions to numerous problems and challenges. Such experiences further empower us to hone our intuition for making ever-better cars in a manner that cannot be replicated at a desk or on test courses, and thereby contribute to the development of human resources.
Also speaking at the occasion, Mr. Atsuhiro Okamoto, Executive Vice President, TMAP said, “India is a very important market for Toyota and it is with this intent that we wanted to begin the second leg of the 5 Continents Asia Drive in India. Asia is the last stage of Toyota 5 Continents Drive Project. In February 2019, the team embarked to its starting point: the Middle East. Continuing on, the teams will drive east through Asia covering countries like Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Philippines and culminating in Vietnam by November 2019.
Welcoming the 5 Continents Drive Project team to India, Mr. Masakazu Yoshimura, Managing Director, Toyota Kirloskar Motor said, “All through our journey of two decades in India, it has been our constant endeavor to achieve sustainable growth for our business, employees and our partners. We have always challenged ourselves to create new ways to connect and serve our customers. We believe this project will play an instrumental role in the overall development of our human resources providing them with the knowledge and skill to serve our customers in a better way.
In this project, Toyota aims to not only develop employees who are behind the wheel but also inspire its partners and other internal & external stakeholders. The driving teams will share their knowledge acquired with other employees through internal reports once the Asia leg of the drive is over.
