Box Autos

​“2013 will be all about the model offensive,” says ŠKODA CEO Winfried Vahland. “We have never released eight ŠKODA models in one year. We will be launching the next stage of our model offensive a few weeks after the launch of the new ŠKODA Octavia with the fundamentally revised Superb.”

The ŠKODA flagship stands out with its new, striking design, lots of room, fresh interior, lower fuel consumption and new, innovative features. “This comprehensive upgrade has made our top-of-the-line model even more attractive. The ŠKODA Superb offers comfort beyond the standard in the middle segment. This means lots of space, outstanding functionality, high comfort, high level of safety, unbeatable value and timeless elegance. We always mean to offer our customers a little bit extra car. With the revised Superb and of course the new Octavia, the new Rapid and our entire attractive range of cars, we are confident that we will be continuing our brand’s positive growth this year as well,” claims the ŠKODA CEO.

ŠKODA Superb: best-selling top model with a tradition

The carmaker has given its best-selling model, the Superb, a striking exterior. Incorporating attractive elements of the new ŠKODA design the Superb and Superb Combi set clear signals: with a superior front end, attractive rear end, clear shapes, and precise lines – prestigious and elegant. The interior has also been improved – with new steering wheels and seat covers, new decorative elements and colour combinations. Not to mention new engine/transmission combinations and significant improvements in fuel consumption and emissions. Innovative technical features such as the new Automatic Parking Assistant or easier operation of the Superb sedan’s clever dual-use Twindoor hatchback make the flagship of the ŠKODA models even more attractive.

At the same time, the new Superb confirms once again the outstanding attributes that have been making the model so successful for the last twelve years: lots of room for passengers and cargo, top-of-the-line safety equipment, clever features, and high levels of functionality and efficiency. This includes the umbrella inside the door, something otherwise the preserve of models in the absolute luxury segment.

The revised Superb is also yet more fuel efficient than before. The engine range’s fuel consumption and emissions have been decreased by up to 19 per cent thanks to a start-stop system and regenerative braking. As the ŠKODA Superb GreenLine, the model features CO2 emissions of only 109 g/km, which corresponds to a fuel consumption of 4.2 litres of diesel fuel per 100 km.

The ŠKODA Superb stands for Czech quality on the world markets. In launching the first Superb generation in 2001, the carmaker continued the tradition of large, prestigious ŠKODA limousines that started in the 1930s. From 1934 to 1949, it mass-produced a luxury passenger car called the Superb in Mladá Boleslav. A Superb has once again been the crown of ŠKODA models since 2001. The second generation was launched in 2008, and the Superb has been available as an estate since 2009. To date ŠKODA has sold around 557,000 units of its top-selling model worldwide, delivering approximately 109,100 Superbs in 2012, around 40 per cent of which to customers in China.

Largest model offensive in company history

The Superb is the latest innovation in the largest model offensive in the company’s
almost 117-year history. The carmaker wants to redesign its entire range of cars and expand into additional segments by 2015. A new or revised model with the winged arrow logo will be launched every six months on average until 2015.

The new ŠKODA Citigo subcompact was the model offensive’s first launch at the end of 2011. The new ŠKODA Rapid compact limousine has been selling on the European markets since fall of 2012. ŠKODA increases the number of its models from five to seven with the Citigo and Rapid. Both cars are selling very well on the market. The Citigo, which is sold in Europe, won over around 30,000 customers in its first sales year, 2012. The Rapid has also been very well received and has already won a number of national and international awards. Both new models were also immediately awarded the best rating of five stars in the Euro NCAP crash test.

In addition, the new ŠKODA Octavia was launched on the European markets in early January of this year. The responses from customers and the media have been very positive so far. “The Octavia is the heart of the brand,” says Winfried Vahland. The best-selling ŠKODA model wins people over with its unrivalled capacity, new design, high level of functionality, innovative safety and comfort systems, economical fuel consumption, numerous ‘Simply Clever’ ideas and a price-value ratio that is typical of the ŠKODA brand.

Focus on internationalisation

The model offensive is the heart of ŠKODA’s 2018 growth strategy. By 2018 ŠKODA intends to increase its sales to at least 1.5 million units a year. To achieve this goal, the carmaker is not just building on its home market of Europe, but is also investing heavily in the growth markets of China, Russia and India. ŠKODA has been continuously improving its position in these countries in the past few years.

China is now ŠKODA strongest single market, accounting for around one fourth of all of the brand’s sales. The company expects further growth in the next few years. Sales of the locally built Chinese Rapid will begin in April 2013. The Superb Combi and Yeti will also be available in China, both as import vehicles. In 2014 the new Octavia will follow as a locally produced model for China.

GreenFuture: Strategy for more sustainability

As part of its growth strategy, the company is also increasing its efforts in the area of sustainability. ŠKODA calls its new sustainability strategy GreenFuture. The aim is for all of its cars to be more fuel-efficient and to improve water and energy economy in its manufacturing plants and retail. GreenProduct deals with ŠKODA’s efforts to lower the average CO2 emissions of all vehicle models. The GreenFactory pillar is aimed at achieving a 25 per cent reduction in energy and water consumption and the amount of waste and emissions generated per vehicle in the manufacturing process by 2018. The third pillar of ŠKODA’s GreenFuture strategy is GreenRetail, which focuses on sustainability in dealerships and repair workshops.