[Aditya]

Mod Note: BHPian Mr.Perera's Skoda Karoq Ownership Review has been taken live at this link. Please continue the discussion over on the new thread. Thanks!

Big shoutout to Vid6639 for shooting these pictures & his coverage of the Auto Expo. Thanks for sharing, man!

Skoda showcased the new Karoq with a 1.5L TSI turbocharged petrol engine at the 2020 Auto Expo. The car is expected to be launched in April 2020. The company will import 1,000 units via the CBU route, while local assembly is expected to start from 2021. The company plans to absorb the import duties initially and price it competitively to start with. This means that the local assembly of the car is not likely to result in a price cut.

The Karoq will be positioned below the Kodiaq in the company's SUV line-up:


Familiar Skoda family front fascia featuring headlights with integrated DRLs, grille with vertical slats and bumper with a honeycomb mesh:


Like most compact SUVs, the Karoq gets roof rails and side body cladding to give it a rugged look. Dimensionally, it looks smaller than its competitors, the Compass and Tucson:


Styling is rather plain:


Split tail lamps and black non body coloured rear bumper with slim reflectors:


LED headlamps and fog lamps:


LED tail lamps:


Dual-tone interiors. One gets the impression he/she is in a mini Kodiaq. The car is loaded with features such as panoramic sunroof, electric seats with memory function and virtual cockpit:


Leather-wrapped, multifunction steering wheel is identical in design to the Kodiaq's:


Digital instrument cluster:


Touchscreen infotainment head-unit with SmartLink:


Climate control and other switches are taken from other Skoda cars:


Beige leather upholstery:


Puddle lamps project the letters "Skoda":


Rear space is similar to the Hyundai Creta and lesser than the Harrier:


Healthy boot space:

[Vid6639]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the Indian Car Scene!

[AnandB]

Could have easily launched as 5-seater Kodiaq. Looks exactly the same.

[groom]

Wonderful news, I have already registered my interest to take a look at it and may be pick one if I like. The equivalent version from VW will be T-ROC?

Going by its competition, it should be priced between 19 to 22 L, ex showroom.

[Skorp_Knight]

This is one car that deserves to get the BS6 Diesel ASAP. The segment it competes in is a diesel dominated one, and almost all of its competitors are larger, offer a diesel, more spacious, and going by the history of VAG group, most likely more affordable. In another thread, I learned VW is readying the 2.0 TDI for Passat, why not give it that then?

[fache89]

The only achilles heel is the lack of independent suspension at the rear which the Jeep Compass has it. Also, compass petrol churn out more horses. This car may not set the cash registers ringing for Skoda, but will make compact SUV all the more competitive.

[pavanmadhini]

Love the timeless styling, and feel this is one car which will age gracefully.

[StarrySky]

Originally Posted by Aditya

The company plans to absorb the import duties initially and price it competitively to start with. This means that the local assembly of the car is not likely to result in a price cut.

That's good news about the pricing, I suppose, if the company absorbs the import duties. But, considering that the car will be fully-loaded, I think we can expect it to be one of the priciest in its class. Local assembly should bring lower-priced variants.

[ashish2135]

Dimension wise, this seems to be the same size as the Vision IN concept or current gen Creta. How will both the product be differentiated?
It will difficult to justify the premium over larger rivals such as Harrier or Tucson.

[hondafanboy]

I am very puzzled by seeing Karoq and feel for Kodiaq. Where is the exclusivity ? Karoq looks exactly the same as Kodiaq , see it from any angle inside out. It will be cheaper than Kodiaq as well. IMO, if anyone is spending between 30-40L should go for Fortuner or Endeavor and if you are going 40L+ then from the Big 3 stable for exclusivity and of course for the quality .

[Carpainter]

Really good looking and classy. It does look like a smaller kodiaq and that's not a bad thing. If priced similar or lower than Octavia, it should sell. Whether Skoda can manage that with a CBU model remains to be seen.

[Vid6639]

Originally Posted by hondafanboy

I am very puzzled by seeing Karoq and feel for Kodiaq. Where is the exclusivity ? Karoq looks exactly the same as Kodiaq , see it from any angle inside out. It will be cheaper than Kodiaq as well. IMO, if anyone is spending between 30-40L should go for Fortuner or Endeavor and if you are going 40L+ then from the Big 3 stable for exclusivity and of course for the quality .

The design maybe similar but the Karoq is much much smaller and in reality looks very compact and nowhere near the presence of the Kodiaq.

The Karoq is 4382 mm which is 104mm lesser than the regular Tiguan. The Kodiaq in comparison is 4697mm long and wider and taller.

The Karoq should ideally be in Octavia pricing and would be perfect to slot in where the Octavia was once BS6 kicks in and there is no more Octavia till the next gen comes along.

[Sandeep500]

In the pictures it looks good and more proportionate than its elder brother . But it needs to have a diesel under the hood if Skoda wants it to sell beyond the metros.

[Annibaddh]

Drove the SEAT Ateca around Spanish islands (Tenerife, Las Palmas) for a few days, a couple of years back. Similar dimensions and the familiar VW cabin aside, we had the 1.4 TSi churning out 148 Bhp. The car had no trouble climbing steep roads around El Teide on full load. In fact, it pulled with gusto! And it felt so well put together, it achingly reminded me of tin-cans we get in India. With all the talk about the India version of MQB, if I ever pick up a VAG car I'd go for one of the CBU ones.

[khan_sultan]

Originally Posted by AnandB

Could have easily launched as 5-seater Kodiaq. Looks exactly the same.

Originally Posted by hondafanboy

I am very puzzled by seeing Karoq and feel for Kodiaq. Where is the exclusivity ? Karoq looks exactly the same as Kodiaq , see it from any angle inside out....

Originally Posted by Carpainter

....It does look like a smaller kodiaq ....

Well, in first glance, from various angles it does look like the Kodiaq. And spotting a Kodiaq on the roads is like once in a blue moon thingy, so to a casual person and on a cursory look it will be difficult to distinguish the two.

Originally Posted by Sandeep500

...more proportionate than its elder brother ....

Agree. The Kodiaq looks like a raised up station wagon compared to the Karoq. At least the Karoq has better proportions and is not trying to be station wagon masquerading as a wannabe SUV!


I had a short drive in Karoq during the Skoda visit to Czech Republic (A design & history trip with Skoda to the Czech Republic), and I found nothing that can stand out as an USP of Karoq, but it did feel like an honest vehicle that would do its job day in and day out. I wonder what is the USP that will make a customer buy this over other similar offerings in the market?

Let's see how this is priced to get customers part with their money -- that will be the key!