Indian Market First Stop for New Skoda Shown at Frankfurt

FRANKFURT – Skoda expects its unnamed, semi-small car that will arrive next year in India to give a similar boost to the brand that the first Octavia did more than decade ago.

The car, whose codename here is Mission L, will be produced in a special variant for India, says Juergen Stackmann, board member-sales and marketing in an interview with WardsAuto.

Versions that more resemble each other will be produced in the Czech Republic, Russia and China, he says.

The car will fit between the Fabia and current Octavia. At about 15-ft (4.5 m) long, it is the size of the first Octavia that launched the brand under Volkswagen’s guidance and over the years sold 1.5 million copies.

That number “is the bar above which this new car must go," Winfried Vahland, chairman of the Skoda management board, says in his presentation here.

The Mission L is the first vehicle to be launched since Skoda promised to more than double in size by 2018 to 1.5 million units. Vahland says the brand this year should sell 800,000 units.

The Mission L hints at the styling cues of future Sodas, taking a page from new Renaults, including the facelifted Twingo debuting here, with a grille that grins from headlight to headlight.

Skoda sedan code named Mission L.