AutoBeta(AutoBeta.net)11/03 Report--

On November 3rd, the new generation Skoda Express was officially released, and the new car will be produced in Mlad á Boleslav, Slovakia, and is expected to officially launch on overseas markets in 2024. As a fourth-generation product, the new generation of Speed School will still offer hatchback and travel versions, and it will also be the last generation of Speed School to provide fuel engines.

Although it is a new generation of models, but the overall is more like a mid-term change, because its appearance is still familiar to us, still retain the elements of the old model, the former China net uses a polygon style similar to the current Skoda Kodiak, the matrix LED headlamps are more refined than the old speed style, and the front enclosure also uses a new design, and the through-type air intake shape is more straight.

In the rear of the car, the new generation of speed school still adopts a relatively simple design style, the taillight part changes relatively greatly, the overall outline increases the fillet design, and the internal structure of the lamp cavity is also integrated with radial elements, which is expected to have a high degree of recognition after lighting. In terms of size, the new car will still offer a hatchback version and a travel version, with lengthened body sizes. The length, width and height of the hatchback version are 4912/1849/1481mm, the length, width and height of the travel version are 4902/1849/1482mm, and the wheelbase is 2841mm.

In terms of interior decoration, the new generation Speed School uses the latest digital cockpit, which is equipped with a 12.9-inch suspension central control screen, a 10-inch full LCD instrument, and an optional HUD head-up display. The bottom of the screen is equipped with three 1.25-inch touch control knobs, both sides of the knobs can control air conditioning and seat heating and other functions, the central knob can respectively adjust the volume, driving mode and some air-conditioning functions and so on. It is worth mentioning that the new car adopts a shielding design for the first time, which sets aside more storage space for the center console.

In terms of power, the new Skoda Speed School will offer fuel, diesel, light hybrid and plug-in hybrid versions, of which the gasoline version is equipped with a 1.5T engine with a maximum power of 150 horsepower; the 2.0T engine front version has a maximum power of 204 horsepower and the four-wheel drive version has a maximum power of 265 horsepower; the transmission system all matches the seven-speed dual clutch gearbox. The plug-in hybrid model is composed of 1.5T engine and motor, the comprehensive power of the system is 204hp, the transmission system matches the 6-speed double clutch gearbox, the battery capacity 25.7kWh, it can provide pure electric life of 100km and support 50kW fast charging.

Although Skoda Superb has only 4 generations of models, it has a history of 90 years. The ancestor of Superb, who served from 1934 to 1949, made Skoda a household name and quickly gained a foothold in the luxury car market. Until 2000, Skoda was officially acquired by Volkswagen, and then launched the first generation of Superb in 2001, which is produced on the same platform as Passat B5. This generation of speed school has not been introduced into China, but the domestic production of Passat Leader is based on Superb.

In 2008, the second-generation Superb was produced based on the PQ46 platform and finally had its own design style, offering hatchback and travel models. In 2009, the second generation of Superb was officially introduced into domestic production, the hatchback version was named Hao Rui, and then changed its name to Speed School, and the travel version was named Suzun. In 2015, the third generation Speedway switched to MQB platform production, using a younger design style. However, it is a pity that the speed of product update is becoming more and more difficult to keep up with the changing frequency of the times, the development of Skoda brand in the domestic market is beginning to have a crisis, even if a new generation of models come, it seems difficult to arouse the interest of the Chinese people.

Retail data show that in the first three quarters of 2023, SAIC Skoda sold only 18108 vehicles, with the top three models being Cormick, Mingrui and Kodiak, with sales of 5661, 3409, 2925 and 1306 respectively, making it the lowest-selling model in the Skoda brand.

It is understood that Skoda's focus in the Asian market has begun to shift to Southeast Asia. Skoda has entered the Vietnamese market and plans to sell 40,000 vehicles in the local market by 2030. Subsequently, Skoda plans to launch a series of pure electric Enyaq models in the Indian market. As for the Chinese market, although there is no clear exit yet, Skoda is already having a hard time in the Chinese market, even if it does not quit. Earlier, according to the European Automotive News, Skoda will not sell a new generation of Kodiaq models in China, or it may mean that Shanghai Skoda Kodiak will stop production and sales in the future, and it is also unknown whether the new generation of speed faction will be introduced into China.

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