Skoda India has unveiled two of its upcoming cars in India – the Skoda Octavia RS and the Skoda Kodiaq SUV. Both these vehicles will have enthusiasts sitting up and taking notice, but for different reasons.
Skoda plans to launch the Kodiaq SUV in the fourth quarter of the calendar year, which should be just in time for the festive season. The Skoda Octavia RS will go on sale a month earlier.
Also read: Upcoming Skoda cars in India
What’s Hot With the Skoda Octavia RS?
Skoda has offered the RS variant with every generation of the Octavia in India. This car holds a special place in the hearts of enthusiasts because of the kind of performance it packs. With each generation, the Skoda Octavia RS has been getting even better. And this time, it’s not just one VRS variant, but three Octavia RS variants that Skoda spoke of.
The Octavia RS will likely come in three variants – one petrol and two diesel. The petrol variant of the Skoda Octavia RS will be powered by a 2-litre turbo-charged petrol engine, that puts out 226 bhp of power and 350 Nm of torque. It will have a choice of either a six-speed manual or a six-speed DSG automatic transmission, driving the front wheels. There’s no confirmation on which ones will be available in India.
The diesel variant of the Skoda Octavia RS will come with a 2-litre turbo-diesel engine, that puts out 181 bhp of power and 380 Nm of torque. The diesel variant also comes with a choice of two transmissions – a six-speed manual and a six-speed DSG automatic. The big news is that this variant will come in front-wheel drive and all-wheel drive models. The all-wheel drive model will only have a 6-speed DSG transmission.
The petrol variant of the Skoda Octavia RS can go from 0-100 in about 6.7 seconds. It has a top speed limited to 250 kmph.
The Skoda Octavia RS will get a host of features in addition to what the facelifted Skoda Octavia comes with. This includes full LED headlamps, tail-lamps and fog lamps, dual pan-exhaust pipes in stainless steel, RS badging and a spoiler. The interiors are done up in black leather. It features lane assist, blind spot management, traffic alerts and an electronic limited slip differential.
What is the Skoda Kodiaq all About?
The Skoda Kodiaq is a seven-seater SUV that looks a lot like a junior Audi Q7. The Kodiaq is a fairly large SUV that will compete with the Toyota Fortuner and Ford Endeavour in terms of price positioning.
The Kodiaq is 4,697 mm in length with a wheelbase of 2,791 mm making it fairly spacious. With all rows of seats in place, the Kodiaq offers about 270 litres of boot space going up to 630 litres with the last row folded and 2,005 litres with two rows folded.
The Kodiaq too features LED headlamps and tail-lamps. The Skoda Kodiaq also gets park assist, 360 camera, and an app to control car functions besides the whole host of standard features.
The Kodiaq will come with two engine choices – a 2-litre petrol engine that puts out 177 bhp of power and 320 Nm of torque. The diesel will come with a 2-litre unit that puts out 147 bhp of power and 340 Nm of torque. There is a more powerful unit as well, but there is no confirmation if that would be launched in India. It will come with a six-speed manual and 7-speed DSG gearboxes.
Expect more updates on the Octavia and Kodiaq closer to launch. The Octavia RS will be launched in September, while the Kodiaq will be launched in the October-November period.
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