Skoda To Show Low-Cost SUV Concept For India In February

The Volkswagen Group has been trying for years to come up with a response to Renault’s Dacia budget brand.

Czech subsidiary Skoda has been entrusted the mission to develop a low-cost platform in India, where there’s a huge market for cheap vehicles. As it turns out, we will see the first tangible result of VW Group’s “India 2.0” strategy early next year at the 2020 Delhi Auto Expo in India.

At the February 7-12 auto show, Skoda will unveil an SUV concept that will preview the first production model built on the new MQB-A0-IN subcompact platform. The production version will go on sale in India by the end of 2020 and will be joined by a sedan based on the same platform in early 2021, Skoda CEO Bernhard Maier said at an event in Prague last month. Both budget models will be built in India.

Related: Citroën Launching In India Next Year, Announces Affordable Car Lineup From 2021

Volkswagen Group’s Technology Center in Pune, India

The two Skoda models will also be offered under the VW brand in India. However, vehicles based on the entry-level architecture are not expected to be adapted for sale in Europe – though, if history teaches us anything, is that plans can change.

“We said if we want to be competitive, we have to meet exactly the demands of our customers in India. They are different from what we see in the rest of the world,” Maier told Autonews Europe.

Skoda is spending €1 billion ($1.1 billion) on the project to localize the platform which is derived from VW Group’s MQB A0 architecture. According to Maier, Skoda has already managed to source 90 percent of parts locally. The investment also includes setting up an R&D center near Delhi.

Gurpratap Boparai, managing director of Skoda Auto Volkswagen India Private Limited

The new platform is part of VW Group’s efforts to boost sales in the price-sensitive Indian market. European automakers are yet to gain a serious foothold in India, where Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai are the dominant forces.

In October, Volkswagen Group India merged its three passenger car subsidiaries into one entity called Skoda Auto Volkswagen India Private Limited (SAVWIPL). The new company, headed by Gurpratap Boparai, brings under the same roof the previous Volkswagen India Pvt. Ltd., Volkswagen Group Sales India Pvt. Ltd. and Skoda Auto India Pvt. Ltd.