Skoda has revealed the launch timelines of its upcoming SUVs in India. The Karoq and Kamiq, as they are known, are the new SUV the manufacturer aims to sell in India. Both of them will be positioned in different segments but below the current company flagship SUV, the Kodiaq. As for their launch timelines, the Karoq is expected to be here by mid-2020 while the Kamiq will be launch in 2021. While the Karoq will sit just below the Kodiaq in Skoda’s India model lineup and will rival the likes of the Jeep Compass, the Kamiq will be positioned much lower and will primarily challenge the Hyundai Creta.
To let you know, both of the SUVs have their names derived from the language of the Inuit people who live in northern Canada and Greenland. These SUV will help the company reach its new set target of selling 25 lakh cars annually by 2025. According to a senior company official, the Czech brand aims to sell one lakh vehicles per year in India from 2025. For the same, the company has planned to launch new models as well as facelifting the models on sale. Skoda Auto India Pvt Ltd director (sales, service and marketing) Zac Hollis said that under the India 2.0 project, the brand plans to heavily localise the production apart from expanding the portfolio.
Talking about the Skoda Kamiq, it is a compact SUV that will take on the likes of the Hyundai Creta and the Nissan Kicks among others. The Kamiq will be aimed at customers who want a feature-rich and premium alternative to its Hyundai counterpart. The upcoming Kamiq SUV will be based on the same platform that underpins the upcoming Volkswagen T-Cross, that is, the MQB-A0 platform. It has been already been caught testing internationally and Skoda is likely to showcase the SUV in production form during the 2020 Delhi Auto Show.
Coming to the Skoda Karoq, it will be a premium SUV offering that will sit below the Kodiaq and have a price range that is expected to start around Rs. 20 lakh. Skoda has already started the assembly of Karoq SUV in their Aurangabad plant. It too is based on Volkswagen’s MQB platform which we have already seen on other Skoda cars like Kodiaq, Octavia and Superb. On the outside, the Karoq looks like a smaller version of the Skoda Kodiaq SUV. Engine options on the SUV include a 1.5-liter turbocharged petrol unit and a 2.0-litre diesel unit. A BSVI compliant 1.6-litre diesel engine mated to a DSG gearbox could also be offered.
Both of these vehicles will be around 95 per cent localised which will help Skoda to price them competitively. Skoda is yet to decide on whether to stop the manufacturing of diesel cars or not so that means that the Karoq and Kamiq will get diesel powertrains as well.
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