Different automotive markets have different specifications. This also applies to India, for which the Škoda brand has recently prepared two models. What are their peculiarities? We asked one of the most professional.
The Škoda automobile company has many years of experience in the Indian market. Until now, however, in the local environment, it offers two separate models aimed at local customers – a sedan Slavia an intersection Opera. Both cars are also produced in India and we were interested to know what their specifications are compared to European standards.
And so, collecting the impressions of driving with the aforementioned cars, we interviewed Jan Řepa, head of the product marketing department at the Škoda representative office in India, directly at home. It would be hard to find someone more professional, Beet has been living in India since 2017 when the Škoda program was India 2.0 still in diapers. It was he who participated intensively in the preparation of the entire project and knows Indian Škoda cars like the back of his hand.
“You will notice the first difference at first glance. Compared to European cars, cars have higher ground clearance. It depends on the road conditions. Many times the bumps on the roads are so brutal that it is like a hill. If the ground clearance was lower, you would damage the car there.” The list of attractions in Repa begins.
Customer needs are also reflected in the equipment itself, which takes into account the specific climate. The air conditioning has to work perfectly, Škodovka, unlike most of its competitors, also offers ventilated seats in the given car segment. While it may surprise many, the connection to the car is also a big topic in India: “Every Indian has one or two mobile phones. The services of mobile operators are very cheap here, as is the Internet. So connectivity is extremely important, people like to play with connectivity.” says Repa.
Probably the biggest difference to European cars is found on the dashboard. “Indians are very religious. They love their god, he brings them luck and protects them. For both cars, together with the designers, we have created a space for the gods on the dashboard.” the Škoda representative describes the shelf on the dashboard. It is also said to be designed in such a way that in the event of an accident there is no danger to the crew.
In addition to Slavia and Kushaq, Škoda also sells well-known cars from Europe, such as the Octavia and Kodiaq, on the Indian market. “These models are imported here in a partially disassembled state. Here they are assembled and delivered to customers via dealers. The design is the same, the engines must meet local emission standards. The second thing is the modification of the car in terms of driving conditions. They have undercarriage protection and we sell them with bespoke Indian traffic tires to withstand the tough conditions” adds Repa.
You can listen to the whole interview with Jan Řepá not only about the specifics of the Indian market in the form of a podcast. You can already find it on the services Spotify, Apple Podcasts or TuRadio Talk.
