Volkswagen Group’s new strategy for Skoda is beginning to show its first results. In order to avoid competition between VW and Skoda products and to get a piece of the low-cost market, the German company’s plans for the Czech automaker include a new affordable model.
According to reports from the UK, Skoda has confirmed that the new addition will be a small sedan positioned between the Fabia supermini and the Octavia and will target developing markets. The sedan, which could be a competitor to Renault’s Dacia Logan, is scheduled for launch in 2012, but first Skoda will introduce a city car based on Volkswagen’s forthcoming Up series.
Set to appear later this year, the Skoda mini is described by the company’s chairman Winfried Vahland as an “answer to the increasingly strong demand for small cars with low fuel consumption and affordable costs of operation which offers a new sales potential in Europe for us.”
According to Skoda, the city car and the small sedan will be “practical vehicles with an optimal offer of space and an outstanding price/value ratio.” The company also confirmed that the new cars’ styling will be directly influenced by the VisionD concept car that Skoda premiered at the Geneva Motor Show.
Both new models are essential for Skoda’s plan to double its annual sales to 1.5 million units by 2018. Last year, the Czech brand sold a record 762,600 units, with almost half of these being Octavia models (350,000 units).
By Dan Mihalascu
Source: Skoda via Autocar
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