Skoda Planning to Reposition the product lineup

MAS · 21st January 2010, 15:11

Seems like Skoda has suddenly woken from the slumber after its recent success of the New Superb and Laura.

As rightly put by others, the re-sale value would just disappear. Imagine the plight of people who would have recently bought an Octavia and Fabia. If Skoda is able to offer the cars at the prices given in the news article, then imagine the money they were making on these cars.

Shoka should concentrate on A.S.S or else they would go the GM way. With such low volume sales, Skoda's A.S.S and customer support is pathetic. Imagine, after repositioning and increased volumes, the A.S.S would be a nightmare.

recshenoy · 21st January 2010, 15:15

if they improve their A.S.S, Octy is a nice buy at around 8L.may be they will introduce new version of Octy and Fabia with lesser features / smaller engine! some thing like MSIL has done with ECCO and VERSA.

ashthedivx · 21st January 2010, 15:16

WOW.. this is some news. I feel now Skoda is doing stuffs into right direction. Now, Improve your A.S.S and you are ON again !!

rnidumolu · 21st January 2010, 15:18

I remember there was a news like this previously also. But did not think it happened.

theragingbull · 21st January 2010, 15:23

Skoda is doing everything to gain market share. Their vehicles are now becoming more 'bang for the buck' rather than the expensive premium cars they used to be 3-4yrs back.
If Skoda re-launches the Octavia with a facelift, it will have great potential to outsell the City. I hope Skoda does not compromise on the quality here plus improves the A.S.S, which is very important for any sub-10L car.

Ardy · 21st January 2010, 15:24

IIRC, there was some news last year about a completely new Octavia to be launched by end 2010 or early 2011. But the new Octavia was supposed to be on a completely new platform competing against the likes of City, Verna, Fiestas etc.

Tried searching for this piece of news again on the net just now, but could not get lucky. Will search for it more and post the source if I am able to find it.

Cheers,

KALINGA · 21st January 2010, 15:28

Yes ....at last this is happening.
SKODA need to improve the A*S*S first to persistent its customer.
But no idea when SKODA will wake up and improve the A*S*S

Ardy · 21st January 2010, 15:46

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ard

Tried searching for this piece of news again on the net just now, but could not get lucky. Will search for it more and post the source if I am able to find it.

Cheers,

Here are a couple of articles from 2009, that states Skoda's plans for India with respect to Octvia:

http://***************.com/2009/06/s...ecific-upgrade
New Low Cost Sedan from Skoda | CarTradeIndia.com

Cheers,

shuvc · 21st January 2010, 15:50

Resale values may not take a hit either. The new Octy will probably have lesser features and a lower spec engine.

diffsoft · 21st January 2010, 15:54

Octavia needs to drop price as it is aging, to be competitive, but dropping prices will reduce profits for Skoda which imports most of its parts.

Fabia's drop in prices may be managed by localisation and parts sharing with Polo, but the diesel is 1.4 PD vs 1.2 diesel Common Rail for Polo planned - thus Skoda will still take a hit on the bottom line.

It's a damn difficult situation for Skoda which was already reeling from losses last fiscal year. One could also figure that out from the delay / cancellation of its launches like Fabia Combi, Fabia Sport and the Yeti.

ankitaggarwal · 21st January 2010, 16:06

Todays HT newspaper also states laura starting at 11.99L exshowroom....this is sooo uber cool

I'd buy one right away if i had cash to spare.

however on a serious note:-
this might be the cornerstone for skoda india. which unfortunately has been at the recieving end mostly inspite of some really good cars.

ACM · 21st January 2010, 16:07

The new lower priced Ocatvia would be based on the smaller Fabia / Polo Sedan platform, so they are not necessarily repricing the octavia, the newer beter featured more powerful octavia would be actually a size smaller externally and the resale of the older versions may not be affected.

Speeding@160mph · 21st January 2010, 16:11

Skoda is single handedly responsible for inflated prices of ALL Cars between the 8lac-35lacs! Instead of launching the New Octavia at then existing prices, it went ahead and created a new segment altogether with the Laura. Keep in mind, the Laura was priced higher than the Accord and at par with the Camry. The current gen Camry/Accord obviously had to raise their segment higher and did so, which caused Benz/BMW to go the same route with their respective entry level offers. Subsequently, Honda/Toyota also went the same way and priced their cars inline with the Laura. It was only with the current facelift, that they decided to revise their prices, albeit halfheartedly. Skoda made the entry of VW that much more difficult when people were forced to choose between almost the exact same item (laura/jetta, superb/passat) at almost the same prices. About time this revision happened, hopefully it will be a segment wise correction rather than just a brand. For all you know, it will be VW who ends up following Skodas Premium pricing strategy and everything remains the same..

Vibhanshu · 21st January 2010, 16:45

Whats the point reducing the price. They'll chop down the quality as well.
No matter how bad their a.s.s is but the quality is really good.
Instead of hammering the current Octavia, they can launch a new car. Maybe with 'similar' looks, but no point killing Octavia's image. IMHO.

harishsegar · 21st January 2010, 19:40

I have a silly question. If they can sell an laura at 11.9 ex and fabia in price range of 4.5L, then weren't they overcharging earlier and making a fat profit?

I dont think the car manufacturers here price based on cost of manufacturing the car but they price it according to where they want to position the car. This is not right.

21st January 2010, 15:11	#76
MAS Senior - BHPian Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Chennai Posts: 1,940 Thanked: 1,615 Times	Seems like Skoda has suddenly woken from the slumber after its recent success of the New Superb and Laura. As rightly put by others, the re-sale value would just disappear. Imagine the plight of people who would have recently bought an Octavia and Fabia. If Skoda is able to offer the cars at the prices given in the news article, then imagine the money they were making on these cars. Shoka should concentrate on A.S.S or else they would go the GM way. With such low volume sales, Skoda's A.S.S and customer support is pathetic. Imagine, after repositioning and increased volumes, the A.S.S would be a nightmare.
	() Thanks

21st January 2010, 15:15	#77
recshenoy Senior - BHPian Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Mangalore / Bangalore Posts: 1,128 Thanked: 254 Times	if they improve their A.S.S, Octy is a nice buy at around 8L.may be they will introduce new version of Octy and Fabia with lesser features / smaller engine! some thing like MSIL has done with ECCO and VERSA.
	() Thanks

21st January 2010, 15:16	#78
ashthedivx Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Delhi Posts: 1,356 Thanked: 24 Times	WOW.. this is some news. I feel now Skoda is doing stuffs into right direction. Now, Improve your A.S.S and you are ON again !!
	() Thanks

21st January 2010, 15:18	#79
rnidumolu BHPian Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Hyderabad Posts: 222 Thanked: 90 Times View My Garage	I remember there was a news like this previously also. But did not think it happened.
	() Thanks

21st January 2010, 15:23	#80
theragingbull Senior - BHPian Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Austin, TX Posts: 2,601 Thanked: 646 Times View My Garage	Skoda is doing everything to gain market share. Their vehicles are now becoming more 'bang for the buck' rather than the expensive premium cars they used to be 3-4yrs back. If Skoda re-launches the Octavia with a facelift, it will have great potential to outsell the City. I hope Skoda does not compromise on the quality here plus improves the A.S.S, which is very important for any sub-10L car.
	() Thanks

21st January 2010, 15:24	#81
Ardy BHPian Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Hyderabad Posts: 614 Thanked: 87 Times View My Garage	IIRC, there was some news last year about a completely new Octavia to be launched by end 2010 or early 2011. But the new Octavia was supposed to be on a completely new platform competing against the likes of City, Verna, Fiestas etc. Tried searching for this piece of news again on the net just now, but could not get lucky. Will search for it more and post the source if I am able to find it. Cheers,
	() Thanks

21st January 2010, 15:28	#82
KALINGA BHPian Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: PUNE Posts: 724 Thanked: 374 Times	Yes ....at last this is happening. SKODA need to improve the ASS first to persistent its customer. But no idea when SKODA will wake up and improve the ASS
	() Thanks

21st January 2010, 15:50	#84
shuvc Senior - BHPian Join Date: May 2005 Location: Kolkata Posts: 2,913 Thanked: 352 Times View My Garage	Resale values may not take a hit either. The new Octy will probably have lesser features and a lower spec engine.
	() Thanks

21st January 2010, 15:54	#85
diffsoft BHPian Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Bangalore Posts: 773 Thanked: 404 Times	Octavia needs to drop price as it is aging, to be competitive, but dropping prices will reduce profits for Skoda which imports most of its parts. Fabia's drop in prices may be managed by localisation and parts sharing with Polo, but the diesel is 1.4 PD vs 1.2 diesel Common Rail for Polo planned - thus Skoda will still take a hit on the bottom line. It's a damn difficult situation for Skoda which was already reeling from losses last fiscal year. One could also figure that out from the delay / cancellation of its launches like Fabia Combi, Fabia Sport and the Yeti.
	() Thanks

21st January 2010, 16:06	#86
ankitaggarwal Newbie Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: noida Posts: 15 Thanked: 29 Times	laura price dropped to 12L Todays HT newspaper also states laura starting at 11.99L exshowroom....this is sooo uber cool I'd buy one right away if i had cash to spare. however on a serious note:- this might be the cornerstone for skoda india. which unfortunately has been at the recieving end mostly inspite of some really good cars.
	() Thanks

21st January 2010, 16:07	#87
ACM Distinguished - BHPian Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Mumbai Posts: 4,745 Thanked: 4,361 Times View My Garage	The new lower priced Ocatvia would be based on the smaller Fabia / Polo Sedan platform, so they are not necessarily repricing the octavia, the newer beter featured more powerful octavia would be actually a size smaller externally and the resale of the older versions may not be affected.
	() Thanks

21st January 2010, 16:11	#88
Speeding@160mph BHPian Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Delhi Posts: 185 Thanked: 6 Times	Skoda is single handedly responsible for inflated prices of ALL Cars between the 8lac-35lacs! Instead of launching the New Octavia at then existing prices, it went ahead and created a new segment altogether with the Laura. Keep in mind, the Laura was priced higher than the Accord and at par with the Camry. The current gen Camry/Accord obviously had to raise their segment higher and did so, which caused Benz/BMW to go the same route with their respective entry level offers. Subsequently, Honda/Toyota also went the same way and priced their cars inline with the Laura. It was only with the current facelift, that they decided to revise their prices, albeit halfheartedly. Skoda made the entry of VW that much more difficult when people were forced to choose between almost the exact same item (laura/jetta, superb/passat) at almost the same prices. About time this revision happened, hopefully it will be a segment wise correction rather than just a brand. For all you know, it will be VW who ends up following Skodas Premium pricing strategy and everything remains the same..
	() Thanks

21st January 2010, 16:45	#89
Vibhanshu BHPian Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Mumbai Posts: 242 Thanked: 152 Times	Whats the point reducing the price. They'll chop down the quality as well. No matter how bad their a.s.s is but the quality is really good. Instead of hammering the current Octavia, they can launch a new car. Maybe with 'similar' looks, but no point killing Octavia's image. IMHO.
	() Thanks

21st January 2010, 19:40	#90
harishsegar BHPian Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Mumbai Posts: 178 Thanked: 2 Times	I have a silly question. If they can sell an laura at 11.9 ex and fabia in price range of 4.5L, then weren't they overcharging earlier and making a fat profit? I dont think the car manufacturers here price based on cost of manufacturing the car but they price it according to where they want to position the car. This is not right.
	() Thanks