After the success of the India 2.0 project vehicles, Skoda Auto aims to create new records on the back of the safety aspects of the Kushaq and the Slavia.
Petr Solc, Brand Director, Škoda India, noted that within one year of the commencement of the India 2.0 project, the company managed to secure its highest sales ever in India.
Interestingly, the carmaker reported having sold 53,721 units of its PVs in 2022, which is 125% more than the 23,858 units sold in 2021. Solc noted that this has led the Indian market to be the third-largest market for the brand and the largest market outside Europe.
Apart from India, the company has seen a downfall in every other region it operates, with Central Europe dropping by 9.8% YoY, Western Europe by 7.8% YoY and Eastern Europe by 11.9% YoY.
Moreover, he added that India is not a market for strategic sales but is also acting as an export hub for the brand. Earlier during the annual conference, Klaus Zellmer, CEO, Skoda Auto, said that the plan is to export components for the Kushaq and the Slavia by the end of this calendar, while the CKD production for the vehicle in Vietnam is scheduled for 2024.
Zellmer stated that India will act as an export hub for the company for its operations in ASEAN and the Middle East region.
Safety Is Paramount
The company noted that India 2.0 project is all about customising the global MQB-AO platform to suit the Indian conditions with the development of the MQB-AO-IN platform, aimed at high localisation and low maintenance of the products. What was also important was safety.
Solc noted that safety is in the brand’s DNA and is also at the core of the India 2.0 project. The company uses laser welding technology for the skeleton structures of the products, which are made of high-strength steel, helping the vehicles absorb and mitigate the impact of a crash across the car's outer shell rather than the cabin.
As the group's only platform to be developed specifically for India, the MQB-AO-IN is at par with the group’s other platforms, said the Skoda India brand director.
In October 2022, the Kushaq scored a five-star rating in the Global NCAP crash test. The SUV scored a full five-star rating in child occupant protection. Recently, the Slavia also achieved a five-star rating for adult occupant and child occupant protection.
Both the products are offered with three-point seatbelts, six airbags, ESC, multi-collision brake, TPMS, vehicle stability control, ABS, rain and light sensor, disc wiping system, electronic differential lock traction control system and hill hold control.
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