Skoda Fabia 2012 News

Australia's most successful international rally driver claims that at 32 he can still force his way back into the top level of racing in the World Rally Championship. The quietly-spoken Gold Coaster is the hot favourite for this weekend's International Rally of Queensland where he is competing in round three of the Asia-Pacific Rally Championship that he is currently leading."I've still got a lot of years left in me," he said yesterday at the shakedown for this weekend's event through the slippery forest roads of the Sunshine Coast hinterland."Just look at (Petter) Solberg who got a factory drive with Ford at 38 and is still running at the front, so I reckon I've got at least another eight to 10 years in me."Atkinson won the Queensland event in 2004 before heading to the WRC with the Subaru factory team until 2008. He has since competed in the past two APRC seasons, coming a frustratingly close second last year."The break from WRC has really refereshed me and now I'm keen to get back to the top," he said.In an effort to revive his WRC career, Atkinson will compete in a Ford Fiesta in the Finnish and German events later this year for "drift king" Ken Block's team."I need to be doing WRC events. That is the only way to show your true speed up against the best in the world," he said."I've been in discussion with teams, but they want to see what we can do in the WRC."There are still only a handful of drivers who can run in the top three and we used to be one of those. But that was three years ago and people want to see I can still do it."Atkinson doesn't mind the pressure of being "hot favourite" for the third year in a row at the Queensland rally, despite mechanical issues in the past two years preventing him from converting that favouritism into victory."I guess that's expected at a home event," he said."I put the same pressure on myself and you have to work harder than the others. It's a rally I have to win."But rallying is a team sport and our team is better prepared this year."Atkinson has switched from a Proton to a faster Skoda Fabia S2000 this year and is leading the series with team-mate Gaurav Gill second."That's the first thing you have to do; beat your teamnmate, but Gill will be quick."His other main rival is his replacement at Proton, Per-Gunnar Andersson, a two-time Junior World Rally Champion. Atkinson said the wet clay surfaces in the forestry stages will make this event "tricky"."Usually it's a hard surface with plenty of grip here, but there are some new surfaces with clay on top and when it gets wet it's more like ice than dirt," he said."There will be a lot of changing from wide roads with good grip to narrow roads with no grip, so you will have to drive precise and choose the right tyres and car set-up."The 44th International Rally of Queensland also features other series running concurrently such as the Australian Rally Championship and, for the first time, the Side-by-Side Rally Challenge with former Australia including three-time ARC winner Cody Crocker driving with V8 Supercar racer Tim Slade.PROFILEChris AtkinsonBorn: November 30, 1979, BegaWRC career: Subaru 2004-2008, Citroen Junior team 2009. 68 rallies, 6 podiums, 41 stage wins, fifth in 2008 season.Career highlights: 2003-04 Super 1600cc Asia Pacific champion; second in 2004 ARC, winner 2002 Australian Privateers Cup 

Skoda is punching hard as it lifts its profile, firing up cars as small as its budget-priced Citigo city car - expected here around February - and the new mid-size Rapid that will be on sale mid-year and take on the Mazda3, Ford Focus, Holden Cruze and Toyota Corolla.The entry of the Rapid - a Volkswagen Polo-based liftback - also opens the door to the 2013 Octavia that grows in size to dimensions shared with rivals including the Ford Mondeo and its own cousin, the Passat. Carsguide drove the five-door Citigo in Portugal earlier this year and was impressed by the compact car's ability to mix nimble inner-city handling with 120km/h open-road touring.The Citigo is Skoda's take on the Volkswagen Up, which is expected to go on sale in Australia before this Christmas. Skoda Australia spokesman Karl Gehling says that, officially, the Citigo is still "under consideration''.  But significant legwork has been done by Skoda to make the car fit into its Australian line up. It could be here by February and carry a price tag of about $15,000.The Rapid - which borrows its name from Skoda's sporty, rear-engined two-door model made from 1984 to 1990 - is almost the same size as the current Octavia. It is almost identical to the MissionL (CORR) concept car first shown by Skoda at last year's Frankfurt motor show and then at last month's car show in Beijing.Australia will get the Rapid from the Czech factory and not from Skoda plants making the car in India or, from next year, China. It will come with a choice of Volkswagen drivetrains, the most likely a 1.4-litre and 1.8-litre turbo-petrol and 2-litre turbo-diesel. The Rapid inherits the Octavia's liftback - a large hatch that makes it look like a sedan - and variable seating for SUV-like flexibility to make it a hit with families. Skoda hints that it will have a wagon version within a year of the liftback's launch.The arrival of the Rapid will kick start the launch of the bigger Octavia, giving Skoda by the end of 2013 an incremental model line-up from this car down to the Rapid, Fabia and Citigo. Skoda CEO Winfried Vahland told Carsguide at the Citigo launch in February that there were also plans for a larger SUV based on a platform similar to the Audi Q5. That SUV, to complement the Yeti and Octavia Scout, won't be seen until late 2014. 

The charge will be led by the Skoda Fabia small car range and the Yeti compact SUV, with both aiming to provide an entry-point for the Czech range as well as its VW parent when launched at the Australian International Motor Show in Melbourne mid-year. The Fabia small-car range will kick off with a hatchback model in manual petrol form - using the 77kW TSI engine - as well as a Monte Carlo model, with DSG and wagon models to follow later in the year. A hot RS variant - with 132kW and only a DSG transmission - is also set for touchdown before the end of 2011. The Yeti compact SUV will be the second star for Melbourne, with both two and four-wheel drive versions on the list of vehicles Skoda hopes will bring in younger buyers, with an emphasis on tapping the female side of the market. Local brand boss Matthew Wiesner says the two small vehicles will be price-competitive in the two fast-growing segments and have buyer appeal. "The Yeti will have very broad appeal, the whole segment is evolving with 2WD and 4WD, there's a strong younger buyer part to that 2WD segment," he says. "The Fabia - hatch, wagon, Monte Carlo and RS - offers a mix of vehicles for younger buyers, the wagon will get some older buyers in as well," Mr Wiesner says. The Australian International Motor Show in Melbourne will see these two debut, as well as the Skoda brand's new-look logo and refreshed brand personality first seen at the recent Geneva motor show. Wiesner is aiming to double the Skoda sales figure of 1632 (a 31 per cent improvement on 2009) for 2010 this year, with 2012 expected to double that already-lofty 2011 target. "We will go close to doubling our 2010 volumes this year, and again doubling that effort for 2012" he says. Wiesner says the brand's representatives in the larger segments are hamstrung by supply that's well short of demand - the Superg flagship will be expanded the front and all-wheel drive offerings for the large car range. "We'll be adding the 103 TDI drivetrain that's in the new Scout to the Superb range." The Octavia Scout could also have another engine on offer - "We'll see how it goes, a petrol TSI engine would be nice if and when it becomes available, there's still a significant petrol market there," he says.

The facelifted Fabia hatch unveiled at the Geneva motor show is now firmly in contention thanks to more favourable exchange rates that should bring a sub-$20,000 starting price. Until now, and despite coming from the Czech republic, the Fabia would have been a $25,000-plus car and that would have priced it well above the baby Polo and close to the Golf which come from the same Volkswagen Group product pen. And that means it would have been well beyond the reach for budget-conscious Australian buyers. But Skoda is finally getting a Fabia plan that could work, building it around the hot RS model which starred for the brand in Geneva and pushing hard for a value starter car. “There’s still some way to go but clearly the RS would make a great halo car. It’s high on our wish list," says the head of Skoda in Australia, Matthew Wiesner. He says the success of the company’s existing performance flagships, the Octavia RS sedan and wagon, means there is a ready fit for the Fabia RS, which is also available as a hatch and wagon. “It would be in good company,” he says. The go-faster Fabia RS gets a Volkswagen-developed turbocharged 1.4-litre TSI engine that develops 132kW/250Nm. So the Fabia will hit 100km/h in 7.3 seconds and has a top speed of 224km/h. Like Volkswagen's Polo GTi, the RS also gets a seven-speed DSG gearbox with paddle shifters. Wiesner says Skoda Australia has been trying to make the numbers work for the Fabia for 18 months but Czech costs and unfavourable exchanges rates have been a problem. The Fabia is the car always needed for Skoda in Australia, as the quirky Roomster has struggled for sales and the Octavia and full-sized Superb (both very good cars), have not been able to draw the youthful converts needed to give the brand any real traction. “If you look at the areas we’ve launched in, we’ve had to battle into very traditional conservative segments. We’ve effectively been the Octavia car company but that’s changing and we’re seeing that with the Superb," Wiesner says. If the Fabia does get the green light, it is likely to sit at the top of the light-car segment and go head-to-head with its Volkswagen Group cousin, the Polo. It too, has recently been updated, but with a complete overhaul that should give it a much better bottom line for Australia. Apart from the Fabia, Wiesner says the Yeti soft-roader remains Skoda's main new-model priority. The high-rider wagon was unveiled last year at the Paris Motor Show. “The whole focus has been on Yeti, and from a brand volume and dealer perspective it has probably been more important than the Fabia,” Wiesner says. “The compact SUV segment is continuing to get stronger, which makes the Yeti very important for us. I think that once we’ve got a full complement of Yeti derivatives it will have a far greater impact than the Octavia." The Yeti is a Volkswagen Tiguan sized off-roader and set to arrive by the end of the year, when it will be available in both front and all-wheel drive with diesel and petrol engines.

At the car’s unveiling in Geneva yesterday, Skoda Australia boss, Matthew Wiesner, says favourable currency rates are now putting the Fabia into the picture for Australia. “There’s still some way to go but clearly the RS would make a great halo car,” he says. “It’s high on the agenda.” Wiesner says the Fabia RS would be a good fit with the company’s Octavia RS range. For the time being the company is focused on the Yeti, which is set to arrive by the end of the year. The VW Tiguan size off-roader will be available in both front and all-wheel drive. The RS uses a VW sourced 1.4-litre TSI engine with 132kW and 250Nm from 2000 revs, and can hit 100km/h in 7.3 seconds and has a top speed of 224km/h.

The Toyota Yaris-size Fabia is considered to be a good sales prospect in the current market. However, currency exchange rates are making it difficult to build a case for the light car locally, Skoda spokesman Karl Gehling says. Earlier this year the head of Skoda Australia, Matthew Weisner, gave a glimmer of hope by saying that the Fabia RS Concept shown at Geneva could be the best way to launch the car here. The RS could help launch Fabia with a top-down strategy. Like Suzuki and its Alto, Skoda also has an option of sourcing the future Fabias from a low-cost country like India, where the car will be built alongside the new-generation Polo. The RS uses a 1.4-litre TSI four cylinder engine, from the Golf, which has a turbocharger and supercharger for performance and economy.

The Fabia RS Concept was revealed at the Geneva Motor Show last month and is being targeted as the best way to bring the Skoda starter car to Australia. The RS uses the 1.4-litre TSI sports engine from the Volkswagen Group, with a combination of a supercharger and turbocharger, as well as a body kit which pumps the car out to a similar look to Czech company's latest S2000 rally challenger. "We've said this is where we need to be with the Fabia to make it work in Australia. It's exciting stuff," says the head of Skoda, Mathew Wiesner. "If we can get a hero car like that then it could be a better option, to feed the car in from the top down. Particularly given that many of our colleagues in the industry have been looking at going the other way." The Fabia RS, which will be built under the company's V-sport division, is headed for the road in Europe next year and Wiesner would like to get it as soon as possible. The brand has just re-worked its Octavia range and is also planning for the arrival of the prestige Superb before the end of this year. "The timing is 2010 in Europe so it would be the second half of 2010, at the earliest, for us," Wiesner says. But work on the regular Fabia models is still stalling on prices, as Skoda would need to get the car well under the $20,000 price point and away from the Volkswagen Golf. "Every time we've sat down and done the numbers it's been difficult. And currency has made it more difficult. "Once we've got more information on the RS we might re-think the Fabia strategy. We know how cars like this can go in Australia, with the cult following for cars like the Subaru WRX. It would be good to built that sort of cult status with a Fabia. "We're not sure what engine will be in the car, expect that it will be a petrol motor and not a diesel." Wiesner knows he also has the updated Octavia RS coming later in the year, with more punch with a 147 kiloWatt engine and DSG gearbox as well as some body changes, and believes the brand could take a different path in Australia. "We need to do some better and smarter things with the larger cars we've got coming. The way we evolve here could be very different to the way Skoda is seen in Europe. "RS is in the third quarter and Scout should be around then, hopefully. We're still waiting for confirmation, but the trick is to get the production lined up so we can do both at the same time."

The VW-owned Czech brand has given its strongest hint yet that it will take on the small car market in Australia next year as it looks for a way to increase its volume after what has been a mediocre rebirth of the brand in this country. Skoda has been struggling as a niche player in the increasingly crowded Down Under market - its sales volume so far this year of just 575 units puts it behind its established European rivals Alfa Romeo, Saab, Fiat and Jaguar. Skoda sells the Octavia liftback and wagon, Roomster hatch/people mover and Scout crossover wagon. An upbeat Skoda Australia boss Matthew Wiesner says the brand will weather the financial crisis and should finish the year with about 850 sales, which is well down on its earlier market penetration forecast. He admits the range is predominately top heavy and needs an entry in the light or small car market to increase volume. "The next step is to broaden our range; obviously we need a smaller entry car, that's where the volume will come from," he told CarsGuide. The availability of a direct shift manual/automatic transmission (DSG) across the range is also expected to win the hearts of buyers, especially women. He revealed at the launch of the Octavia RS Tdi this week he had meet with Skoda officials at the Paris Motor Show - the one hour meeting extending to three hours as he successfully argued the case that Australia needed to diversify. The small Fabia, a five-door hatch and wagon, will likely go sale here by the third quarter next year to take on the likes on Peugeot's 207/307, Honda Jazz and Citroen C3/C4. "It's looking (the arrival of the Fabia) more likely. We had a good and long meeting in Paris. We are now down to talking about models, transmissions, engines and specification," Wiesner said. But price may be the sticking point. `We would love to get the Fabia at $19,990, that seems to be the starting point nowadays, but the spread of models will fit in the low to mid $20,000 bracket." And a slow down in production at the Skoda plant near Prague because of a fall in demand for new cars in Europe due to the economic crisis may work in Australia's favour, he said. It would free up space on the production line for right-hand drive models. Mr Wiesner says Australia still has its hand up for Skoda's forthcoming Yeti, the brand's first proper SUV. Meanwhile, Skoda Australia is planning to freshen and widen its existing line up next year. From February, the existing petrol Octavia RS will come with the availability of a manual/automatic DSG gearbox for the first time; it and the diesel version will gain audio controls and DSG paddle shift mounted on the steering wheel. Skoda will add the larger four-cylinder Superb mid year and follow that with a V6 flagship model at the end of next year - a saloon which will be optioned with a self parking guidance system. Meanwhile a restyled Octavia, shown at the recent Paris Motor Show, will arrive in March and will feature a new 1.8-litre engine and a seven-speed DSG transmission A new RS model, based on the new Octavia, will come later in the year but retain its six-speed DSG gearbox, not the seven-speed which will be fitted to base models.