Skoda baby SUV to take fight to Nissan Juke

Skoda has confirmed that its long-rumoured new baby SUV has been given the green light and will be in showrooms as soon as 2019, where it will join the Kodiaq and next year’s all-new Yeti.

“We are already working on the car,” said Christian Strube, Skoda’s technical development chief.

The small SUV is based on the Volkswagen Group’s MQB A0 architecture, which will also underpin the next Fabia and VW Polo. Although different in concept and execution, the new SUV should, in effect, fill the space vacated by the slowselling Roomster, which will not be replaced.

Details of the small SUV are scarce, but with the Yeti increasing in size to become a fully fledged rival to the likes of the Nissan Qashqai, this frees up space for a fun and funky SUV to take on models such as the Nissan Juke and Renault Captur.

The platform provides for both front and four-wheel drive, but no decision has been made yet about the availability of all-wheel-drive models. Engines will most likely be small-capacity turbo petrol and diesel engines, with any electrified versions some years down the track.

Skoda’s electrification plans start with a plug-in Superb, which will also be seen in 2019. That will be followed by an all-electric SUV now scheduled for release in the same year, a little earlier than previously thought.

Strube confirmed that a plug-in hybrid version of the Octavia will be built, along with a plug-in Kodiaq that’s currently being prepared for the Chinese market but may well go on sale in Europe, too.

Skoda’s plans also include vRS high-performance models. Currently, the only vRS on sale is the Octavia, available in petrol and diesel forms with outputs of up to 227bhp. But Skoda is seriously considering vRS versions of the Superb and Kodiaq, with power outputs nearer the 300bhp mark for all-wheel-drive models.