Skoda is going to launch a new SUV which will be smaller than the Skoda Yeti SUV in India. The Skoda Yeti is the cheapest SUV from Skoda and costs more than Rs. 15 Lakhs, however there are many customers who are willing to shell up to Rs. 10 Lakh for an SUV. Skoda will launch the smaller SUV with a price tag of nearly Rs. 10 Lakh to give a head on competition of the segment leaders like Mahindra Scorpio and Tata Safari. Mahindra Xylo and Toyota Innova MPV also will be in the radar of the competition of the Skoda’s small SUV.
image- Skoda Yeti
The sales in the SUV and MPV segment in the price band of Rs. 8 to 12 Lakhs is quite well and Skoda will price its smaller SUV to grab a slice of this share. The SUV is expected to come with a smaller CRDI Diesel engine and will provide safety and comfort features offered by the competing Scorpio and Safari Merlin which is due for launch. There is a growth of sales in the SUV segment by about 20% each year which gives Skoda every reason to venture in this segment.
Thomas Kuehl, Board Member, Sales and Marketing, SkodaAuto India quoted:
The SUV segment is not growing as fast as was expected. We are looking to go down and are looking at a product priced below Rs.10 lakh
The competition is going to be more intense with more and more choices coming in this segment. Toyota Avanza may also make its way to Indian market which might be priced close to the the Rs. 10 Lakh price tag. The Tata Safari Merlin is also in the making, Mahindra Scorpio may also be refined soon to take on the competition. Also the Xylo mini compact SUV is also near the launch in India.
