Skoda to launch seven cars by 2013

Skoda India is set on expanding its line of cars by mid 2013. After staying in the luxury sedan segment for the past decade, the company now plans to foray into the SUV and small car segment as well. Skoda Laura RS along with the Skoda Rapid Sedan, which is based on the Fabia small car, will be the first ones to be launched towards the end of year 2011.

The beginning of year 2012 will see the launch of a stripped down and low cost version of Skoda Yeti SUV. It will be followed by the Skoda Fabia Scout, a compact crossover SUV which will compete with the leading Indian SUVs in the segment such as Mahindra Scorpio, Mahindra Xylo and Tata Safari. The company will launch the next generation Skoda Octavia 2012 by the end of year 2012.

Two small cars are also expected to be developed by the Czech car manufacturer. The length of these cars will be less than 4 meters to capture the tax advantage. Moreover, an aggressive pricing strategy will be employed for these cars to tackle the competition in the Indian small car segment.