The Volkswagen Group is banking heavily on these cars to capture 5% of the total market share by 2025.
In line with the India 2.0 strategy which has been particularly designed to overcome the plummeting sales and falling exports, Skoda has developed a flexible MQB A0 IN platform. This can be used as an underpinning for small hatches, sedans and mid-size SUVs. The next generation Skoda Rapid and Volkswagen Vento will be seen using this platform.
After Skoda and Volkswagen announced that a pair of SUVs will be launched in 2020, they have now confirmed that the Next-Gen Skoda Rapid and VW Vento will be coming to India in 2021. The cars are especially aimed at developing markets like India and Brazil.
Though both the cars will have the same underpinnings, the design and interiors will be changed considerably. The Vento will become longer by an estimated 100 mm just like the Virtus which is already on sale in Brazil. The Virtus is in-fact the new Vento. Since the launch is still 3 years away, a few changes are expected. The Rapid will also be bigger than the outgoing car.
The cars are expected to have class-leading features thanks to their shared platform and localised production which will help bring the development and production costs down. This will allow the companies to focus more on loading the cars with advanced features like Audi-like digital instrument cluster, a large touchscreen and LED-lights.
Engine options for the next gen Skoda Rapid and VW Vento are still under consideration, especially the diesel engine. Adding an emission control hardware like a Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) to meet the BS6 emission norms will increase the cost of the engine, preventing VW Group from pricing their cars aggressively. The other engine option will be the 1.0-litre TSI petrol engine, also locally produced.
Next Gen VW Vento
– The cars will be built in India
– They will be bigger and have more features compared to the present cars
– Petrol engine is confirmed. VW group still in two minds about the diesel engine
Source – AutocarIndia.com