Skoda Auto India could make a U-turn on the Volkswagen Group’s strategy to go petrol-only in India. At a recent media interaction, Skoda India brand director Petr Janeba, confirmed the company is considering bringing back the option of a diesel engine with the introduction of the new Superb. The latest-gen Superb was revealed for global markets late last year and is expected to arrive in India later this year.
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Skoda discontinued diesel engines in India in 2019, going with a petrol-only line-up, a move followed by all Volkswagen Group companies in the country. The return of the diesel engine could help the carmaker bolster its sales in the premium segment, with most other luxury car brands continuing to offer diesel engine options in India.
Skoda discontinued diesel engine options from its India line-up back in 2019.
The new Superb is sold in global markets with a pair of 2.0-litre TDI engines developing 148 bhp and 190 bhp respectively. The latter is currently only offered in all-wheel drive spec in European markets though Skoda could introduce the more powerful unit in two-wheel drive-spec at some point in the future. It however remains unclear at this point which unit could come to India.
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The return of the diesel engine to Skoda’s line-up could open the doors for diesel engines to be reintroduced in other models in the brand’s line-up as well. For now, any diesel engines that are reintroduced will likely be a full import, with the VW Group having long stopped producing diesel engines in the country.
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New-gen Superb is offered with a pair of 2.0-litre TDI engines in European markets.
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Skoda’s range of India 2.0 cars however are likely to be unaffected by the move. The mass market segments have slowly and steadily seen diesel engines be phased out with few in the segment still offering the option. In the sedan space, the Verna was the last diesel sedan to be discontinued in India with the launch of the new-gen model in 2023 while the compact SUV segment only has the Creta and Seltos diesels. The sales in the segment have also skewed in favour of petrol vehicles over the past few years making investing in bringing diesels back an unlikely scenario.
