[deepfusion]

This news item appeared on the Times of India yesterday. Posting it here:

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/a...w/53517141.cms

If TOI is carrying this news, its possible that the vRS arrives this year.

The specs: quoting from the news article:

"What makes the grin-inducing vRS special? Volkswagen's 2.0-litre TSI turbocharged petrol motor. In the international-spec model, this motor puts out a whopping 220PS of max power and 350Nm of peak torque. This translates into a respectable naught-to-100kmph time of 6.8 seconds.
The vRS also comes in a diesel option, available with the 2.0-litre TDI motor. Although this engine is available with the stock Octavia as well, in the vRS, this oil burner puts out a generous 184PS of max power and 380Nm of peak torque. The diesel sprints from 0 to 100kmph in 8.1 seconds. Both engines can be had with a manual or a DSG dual clutch automatic, each being six-speed transmissions."

[Arjun Reddy]

Interesting read. Guess who's on top.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/cars/gall...-listed/skoda/

[Rehaan]

NOTE: The first few posts of this thread have been updated with a lot more details on these initiatives from Skoda.

[drmohitg]

That is some exciting news. A very good move by Skoda provided that they ensure it works the way it sounds in this post. It would have become even more mouth watering if they could provide extended warranty or service packs beyond the initial 4 years too. After all doesn't buying a long term service pack ensure that a customer is tied up with your product for those many years?

[RavenAvi]

Thank you for the updates and clarification, R.

Good initiatives by Skoda. For once they seem to be serious about committing to the Indian market. They have already spent close to 60 crores improving their back-end infrastructure and revamping most of their dealerships! Now we know exactly where the 100 crores are going in.

I for one would have preferred a 5-year warranty/maintenance package (as followed by most car companies) but even a 4-year one is good enough, specially for diesel car owners whose running is quite high. And yes, an extended warranty/maintenance package (something on the lines of Honda's 7-year plan) could have made the whole ownership experience even more appealing. Maybe with plenty of feedback in the near future, the company would seriously consider it and bring out related packages for committed customers.

Also, they should consider extending the packages to all MY2016 Skoda car owners, at the minimum. If I was one of the 1,000 customers who bought my Skoda in July 2016, I would be kicking myself right now! That should not be happening, and would leave me hopping mad! (specially if I bought a Skoda on 31st July!)

Let's give it to them - at least it's a start, unlike GM who kept things purely on paper. I wish them the very best for the next 3 years (at least) and hope things improve for the company.

It's time to consider the Octy again!

[Rehaan]

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

Also, they should consider extending the packages to all MY2016 Skoda car owners, at the minimum. If I was one of the 1,000 customers who bought my Skoda in July 2016, I would be kicking myself right now! That should not be happening, and leaves a bitter taste in my mouth. (specially for those who bought a Skoda on 31st July)

Agreed.

Their reasoning (which sounds logical enough) is that the service package is effectively based on the real-world ownership costs of the car -- so existing owners shouldn't worry. They claim the package is only slightly subsidized.

However, it's an emotional thing. Owners want peace of mind. In fact, I bet most owners would be happy to pay a small premium to avail of this offer on a pro-rated basis, and be able to relax the next time their car goes in for a routine service.

Owners should at least be given the choice - even if Skoda thinks it doesn't make financial sense for the owner!

[itwasntme]

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

Also, they should consider extending the packages to all MY2016 Skoda car owners, at the minimum. If I was one of the 1,000 customers who bought my Skoda in July 2016, I would be kicking myself right now! That should not be happening, and would leave me hopping mad! (specially if I bought a Skoda on 31st July!)

Fully agree being a MY16 A5 Octavia owner myself from January 2016. I hope they at least extend it at a reasonable price to us. I was on the verge of buying the 2 years EW from them for around 23k.

Now will hold on and see if they do announce anything for existing 'new' car owners.

[Rajeevraj]

Definitely heartening to see this initiative and focus. New products and focus on after sales. Good job Skoda. Of course, whether it translates well from paper to reality is a different question. Need to wait and watch.

Are they talking 6 products here? vRS, Kodiaq,Octavia Black Edition and Rapid Monte Carlo + 2 other launches, or are the 3rd and 4th products actually the Octavia Black Edition and Rapid Monte Carlo? From the below image in this post, it looked like 4 new products + 2 special editions.

[RavenAvi]

Originally Posted by Rajeevraj

Are they talking 6 products here? vRS, Kodiaq,Octavia Black Edition and Rapid Monte Carlo + 2 other launches, or are the 3rd and 4th products actually the Octavia Black Edition and Rapid Monte Carlo? From the below image in this post, it looked like 4 new products + 2 special editions.

4 product launches + 2 action models, so we will be seeing 2 all-new products along with the Octy vRS & the Kodiaq SUV. (latter part of your post is correct)

I sincerely hope that one of the "under wraps" products shortlisted for a future launch is the Fabia. If they are planning to increase their footprint in India, the new-gen Fabia can certainly provide a big boost to them in this regard.

The second, slightly bigger "under wraps" product is the all-new "global" Rapid, already shortlisted for India and currently bring tested. (link)

Or if they have really struck off the Fabia from our market, it could be the Rapid and/or the all-new Yeti. (link)

[wilful]

Really heartening to see Skoda focus on the service end of their biz which after all was the major problem area. As has been said above, we'll wait and see how all these translate into practice.
I just hope that at some point they'll bring the new compact SUV they are developing (a Nissan Juke rival) to India - hopefully choose India as one of the early countries to launch. By then the new service initiatives would have started kicking in and buyer confidence would be higher in the brand.

[baskar]

Good news from Skoda. The proposed revamped dealer experience is yet to be seen , at least in Chennai where they have only one dealer in 3 locations - that too in crowded place.

Is this only for Skoda vehicles? Will VW launch it for its parent brand ?

[himanshugoswami]

the core issue is unscrupulous dealers and the company's inability to put the fear of God in their dealers. If they set that right, things will improve dramatically. there's nothing wrong with their products, in fact they are by far the best in their respective segments.

[21Archer84]

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

4 product launches + 2 action models, so we will be seeing 2 all-new products along with the Octy vRS & the Kodiaq SUV. (latter part of your post is correct)

I sincerely hope that one of the "under wraps" products shortlisted for a future launch is the Fabia. If they are planning to increase their footprint in India, the new-gen Fabia can certainly provide a big boost to them in this regard.
(link)

I had the exact same question (4+2 or 2+2 launches) when I was going through the thread and thanks for answering.
I too honestly feel the Fabia should be here. As a matter of fact, it should have already been on the Indian roads. With the customers ready to spend some big bucks for a good hatch, it's the right time for the Fabia to come back along with the MonteCarlo Edition.

[kiran_cr]

Really good customer confidence building initiative from Skoda India. I hope they provide additional 2yrs/60000kms extended warranty package on top of existing EM to existing customers, for a cost ofcourse, so that they will retain their existing customers after 4 years of ownership. And this positive effect will encourage those customers to repeat purchase a Skoda again. I, for one, will be a part of that bandwagon.

[VeyronSuperSprt]

1. There will be no global Rapid for India.

2. Nor will there be a Fabia in India for some time.