Skoda Sets Its Sights On Becoming The Leading European Manufacturer In India

The carmaker may just enter the sub-4 metre SUV space to achieve such an ambitious target

• Renault is currently the leading European carmaker in India, with over 75,000 units sold in the financial year 2020-21.

• Skoda will kick-start its India 2.0 journey with the Kushaq, which will be exported to other markets as well.

• It plans to follow it up with the Rapid successor, which should be launched by the end of 2021.

Skoda has unveiled its latest corporate strategy that will see it through till 2030 and the highlight is its plans for India. The carmaker is looking at becoming the leading European manufacturer in the Indian market, apart from Russia and North Africa. 

Renault is currently the leading European manufacturer in India, with a little over 75,000 cars sold in India in the last financial year (2020-21). As far as Skoda-Volkswagen is concerned, it was only able to sell just over 22,000 units of locally assembled cars in the same period.

Speaking of the Indian market, Skoda undertook the India 2.0 Project a couple of years ago, under which it has been leading the Volkswagen Group’s India activities. The first phase of this project includes the Kushaq, a compact SUV that will rival the Hyundai Creta and Kia Seltos. It’s a product that has been designed keeping the Indian customer in mind, and its production is already underway at the company’s Aurangabad plant. Skoda also plans to export the Kushaq to emerging markets from India.

Next up for Skoda is the upcoming replacement of the ageing Rapid sedan. It will be bigger than the outgoing model and a more premium offering as well. In fact, we have already seen spy shots of this car being tested in India and it should be launched by the end of 2021. That said, the existing Rapid might continue to be sold alongside as a more budget-friendly option.

Lastly, Skoda could also look at entering the sub-4 metre segment. While there’s no confirmation as yet, it seems likely considering the brand wants to grow aggressively in India and the sub-4 metre SUV space is the most popular and populous segment here. Skoda plans to take its total sales past the 1 lakh mark by 2025 and to achieve this number, a sub-4 metre SUV could prove rather useful.

Besides, Skoda is looking at becoming one of the top five brands in Europe, for which it will be introducing three new EVs by 2030. It also plans to reduce its fleet CO2 emissions by 50 percent in that period. Which upcoming Skoda car are you most excited about? Let us know in the comments below.

Also See: Upcoming Cars In India