Swoopy coupe-SUV first on the list?
Czech manufacturer Skoda has detailed its plans for the future, with a firm commitment to a greener, more sustainable tomorrow. As an entity within the Volkswagen Group, the direction that Skoda wants to take is decidedly electric, in keeping with the Group’s intentions of dominating this end of the sector.
Skoda intends to add to its portfolio no less than 5 fully-electric vehicles by 2025, which will be spread across “various segments,” as well as a series of plug-in hybrid variants, the first of which will be hitting roads in 2019.
“This decision underlines the Group’s confidence in the Skoda workforce. This is an important step for the future of the Skoda brand and the Czech Republic as an automotive location. We are pleased that the first all-electric Skoda will be built in the Czech Republic.” — Bernhard Maier, CEO, Skoda Auto
In one statement, Skoda confirmed that its first EV will be made in the Republic, a decision that was likely made on the back of the firm’s recent underlining of its commitment to its Czech workforce after VW Group board members were rumoured to be looking to move Skoda’s manufacturing to Germany to offset Volkswagen’s overcapacity there.
The PHEV that’s expected to come to fruition in 2019 is expected to take the form of a Superb hybrid, though it’s still unclear what form Skoda’s electric car will take. Pundits suggest that the most likely body style will be that of a coupe-crossover, as seen in the Skoda Vision-E concept that we saw earlier this year. The Vision-E concept also showed off autonomous driving capability, suggesting that this might also be on the horizon for the Czech marque.
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