Skoda is preparing a new cheap crossover

The new SUV will be smaller and more affordable than the Kushaq model. The main market will be India, and production will be established there. At the same time, it is expected that the cross will be sent to other countries.

Several years ago, the Volkswagen concern made Skoda responsible for the Indian market: the India 2.0 program was prepared, which provided for the production of models adapted to local conditions. As a result, in 2021-2022. in India they launched production of related crossovers Skoda Kushaq/VW Taigun and sedans Skoda Slavia/VW Virtus, which are based on the MQB-A0-IN platform, that is, a simplified version of the global MQB.

Skoda Kushaq and Slavia for India 1/2 Volkswagen Virtus and Taigun for India 2/2

New products have improved the positions of Volkswagen and Skoda, but competitors are still far ahead: last year, the total sales of Skoda in the Indian market amounted to 48,755 units, Volkswagen — 43,481 units, while Toyota sold more than 221,000 cars, the result of Kia — 255,000 units, Hyundai — more than 602,000 units. And against this background, Skoda is working on an updated version of the plan for India, it is designated as India 2.5, and the first-born will be a small crossover.

As Autocar India reports, the SUV will be one of the popular ones in this country in the subcompact segment: the length of the model will not exceed four meters (such cars are entitled to tax incentives in India). That is, if the Skoda Kushaq (4225 mm) competes with the Hyundai Creta and Kia Seltos, then the upcoming cross will try to lure buyers away from the Hyundai Venue and Kia Sonet.

Skoda Kushaq. In India, the crossover costs from 1,189,000 rupees (1.3 million rubles), a more compact SUV will be cheaper than 1/2 Skoda Kushaq. In India, the crossover costs from 1,189,000 rupees (1.3 million rubles), a more compact SUV will be cheaper 2/2

It is expected that the small crossover will also be built on the MQB-A0-IN “trolley”, while production will be localized in In India they plan to increase it to 90%, although 95% were announced at the launch of Kushaq. The new model is predicted to have a 1.0 TSI liter turbocharged engine, but it will probably only have front-wheel drive.

According to Autocar, the crossover will be on the assembly line of the Indian plant by January 2025, that is, the compact could be presented already this year year — or its harbinger. The SUV is also planned to be supplied to Mexico, Africa and Southeast Asia. Probably, a similar crossover will then appear in the Volkswagen brand range.