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Skoda has seen good success with the Yeti crossover in many markets, even though the vehicle failed to sell well in India. The Czech automaker now feels that an SUV is the next logical step for the company and is working on launching SUVs in the next couple of years. However there just won’t be one SUV, but two different models with very different dimensions. One would sit below the Yeti, while the other will be a full fledged SUV sitting right above the Yeti in Skoda’s line-up.
“The SUV segment is very interesting. It’s one of the segments with the highest volume: you can sell SUVs in Europe, in Russia, in China, everywhere. From the economic side it’s very interesting. And it’s more emotional. So SUVs are for me the next logical step for Skoda. We are successful with the Yeti. But there is room smaller than the Yeti, and there is also room for bigger than Yeti. So why not?,” Eckhard Sholz, board member for technical development, Skoda, said.
These new vehicles will help Skoda in increasing its sales volumes to 15 lakh cars per annum. The company believes that targeting emerging markets is the way forward and crucial for survival. SUVs from Skoda could be very easy for development as the company has access to a large pool of platform and powertrains. The Volkswagen owned carmaker understands the sudden craze for SUVs across the world. That is the reason we are seeing many car makers produce compact SUVs (Ford EcoSport, Renault Duster), while the trend is even seen with luxury car makers (Bentley, Maserati) who are planning to launch SUVs in the near future.
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via Autocar UK
