New Skoda Rapid sedan coming to India in festive season

Skoda Auto India Private Limited (SAIPL) launched the new generation Superb sedan on Feb. 23. At the launch of the new Superb, Sudhir Rao, MD of SAIPL, announced that the company is targeting a double digit growth in India this year.

To attain such a growth, the company will launch the face-lifted version of the Rapid sedan in the festive season, reports AutocarIndia. Skoda India's volumes are driven by the Rapid midsize sedan, which was launched in 2011. Being an important model in the line-up, the Rapid will feature a new design which is in line with the Rapid sold globally. The report also says the India-spec model will not be identical to the international one and will feature country-specific changes.

The new Rapid will trade off the current Rapid's previous generation Fabia-inspired design to a more angular and crisp design. The new bonnet, grille and creases on either sides of the rear number plate is expected to be similar to the elder sibling, the Octavia.

Most importantly, Skoda will make every effort to maximise the localisation of the vehicle. The aggressive localisation effort will also result in pricing the new Rapid very competitively. The new Rapid is expected to come with carry-over engines of the current model. The 1.6 MPI petrol mill currently develops 103bhp and 153Nm of torque available in five-speed manual and six-speed automatic transmission. The 1.5 TDI diesel mill develops the same power of petrol unit with higher torque of 250Nm available with five-speed manual and seven-speed automatic transmissions.