Skoda expands Chinese presence
Volkswagen-owned Skoda Auto announced Wednesday that it is expanding its plans for China. With production of Skoda's Octavia scheduled to spool up in 2007 at Volkswagen's plant in Shanghai, the company announced that it will add its Fabia (pictured) and Superb models to its Chinese portfolio.Skoda plans a network of exclusive Skoda dealers in China, providing both sales and maintenance support. Echoing the words of every other auto industry executive you can think of, Skoda Auto's chairman Detlef Wittig said, "...we see China as one of the strategic markets for the brand's future growth."
Even with the resources of parent Volkswagen, it's hard to imagine how a small automaker like Skoda can establish an independent presence in China, and even harder to see why Volkswagen thinks this is a good idea.
[Source: Skoda]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
jb 6:14PM (6/21/2006)
How come Skodas aren't sold in the US?
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Whydrive 6:20PM (6/21/2006)
They are. They're known as VW here.
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N Z K 7:19PM (6/21/2006)
Actually, marketing Škoda in China makes a lot of sense. VW Group already has a strong presence in China, and of the four main VW brands, Škoda is the "value leader". Introducing Škoda to China allows both VW and Audi to move upmarket. This is exceptionally important for Audi if they are to bring their high-end cars to the growing luxury market; my Chinese friends tell me that Audi is currently thought of as a "people's car", and such an image is not conducive to upward expansion in a highly image-conscious market. VW Group has just learned this lesson with the Phaeton, have they not?
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Richard Warren 10:23AM (6/22/2006)
I've driven Skoda's in Europe, they are pretty nice and have some differences from the VW line in trim and handling. I think if they brought them here as their own point they would just be swapping sales with VW.
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autonews 4:53PM (7/12/2006)
China is a good step for any car maker
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tio 1:18AM (7/18/2006)
Sounds good to me. Also, VW should send the Fabia to the USA under the VW label. It would be a Fit, Yaris fighter.
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Mac.Phoil 5:37PM (7/21/2006)
Skoda isn't VW. This is gross miscarriage.
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