Skoda Reportedly Readying Up-based City Car for 2011 and Low-Cost Sedan for 2012

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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Skoda Introduces Fabia R2 Rally Car for the Masses

The VW Group’s Czech subsidiary Skoda has unveiled the Fabia R2, a new race-spec mode intended for the popular R2 rally category. Based on the series production Fabia, the R2 features significant changes to the engine, chassis, suspension and gearbox.

Compared to the road car, the Fabia R2 has a rally-tuned suspension and a modified chassis, while the engine is a naturally aspirated 1.6-liter gasoline unit with 16 valves that develops 132 kW (177 horsepower) and 194 Nm of peak torque (143 lb-ft) at 5,500 rpm. The engine is mated to a five-speed sequentially operated gearbox made by Sadev, with the electronics coming from Italian specialist Magneti-Marelli.

“It’s great that from now on, we’re offering a rally vehicle for a wider range of customers looking for a reliable and affordable race car. Given our successful tradition and development in motor sports beyond the Czech Republic, the new Fabia R2 is just a logical result of our activities,” said Jan Hurt, Skoda manager for sales and marketing for the Central and Eastern European region.

The car was developed, tested and prepared for rallies for almost two years, with the help of motor sports specialist Impromat Car, which will also assume the distribution of the vehicle.

The Skoda Fabia R2 has received the FIA homologation and can participate in rallies right away, but not before the owner pays a purchase price of €62,000 or about $86,200 at today’s exchanges rates.

By Dan Mihalascu

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Geneva 2011: Skoda's Fabia Monte Carlo Special is all Show, No Go

Skoda's offerings at the 2011 Geneva Salon include a new special edition version of the Fabia supermini that is said to have been created to celebrate 100 years of the Monte Carlo Rally, and commemorate the 110 year anniversary of the brand's motorsport efforts.

But despite its catchy nameplate, the Fabia Monte Carlo fails to deliver as the only sporty thing about the Czech automaker's supermini are some bespoke styling features. These include the piano-black body trim, smoked headlamps and black 17-inch alloys on the outside, and leather steering wheel, handbrake, and gearstick gaiter with red stitching, plus silver kick plates and steel pedals inside.

Buyers in Europe can choose from the standard model's engine lineup including the 86/105 hp 1.2-liter TSI petrol and 75/105 hp 1.6-liter TDI diesel units, all coupled to a 5-speed manual transmission.

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Geneva 2011: Skoda’s Vision of its Design Future

Skoda seems to be shedding its old style language for a new bolder corporate design direction. The aim is to highlight Skoda's green line up while differentiating the brand from others in the Volkswagen group. The VisionD is the first such concept car under this new design direction, the overall effect is a simple, clean design that is to feature in all future Skoda cars.

The VisionD is quite a pretty car. The design is unobtrusive and taut. Compared to other family hatchbacks on sale in Europe, the the Czech automaker’s concept emulates a class and sophistication usually seen in more premium vehicles. The most prominent feature of the car's design is the sharper more dominant grill, one that again would not look out of place on a car two classes larger.

The main focal point of the grill is the all new emblem. The new Skoda logo and script are part of the new brand rejuvenation. As previously reported, the logo leaves behind the natural green hue for the all new "ŠKODA Green" with a chrome contour. The objective of the new design language and logo is to highlight Skoda's growing strengths internationally.

By Rory Farrell

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