Skoda has sold all the Karoq SUVs that were brought to the Indian market via the CBU route the Skoda’s director, sales, service and marketing, in a Tweet confirmed that the brand had imported 1,000 units of the premium SUV and the company has now run out of stock. The Skoda Karoq was well received and the team at Skoda was able to achieve this in less than 9 months time.
Earlier reports have suggested that the Czech marque could be planning to locally assemble the Skoda Karoq in the Indian market, considering its demand. The Skoda Karoq was brought under the homologation free rule for 2500 cars and was launched in India in May 2020 at the price of INR 24.99 lakh ex-showroom. The Skoda Karoq SUV is powered by 1.5-litre TSI turbocharged direct injection petrol motor that generates 150 PS of power and 250 Nm of torque mated to a 7-speed DSG automatic gearbox with the engine powering the front wheels. The SUV claims to return a fuel economy of 14.49 kmpl on the WLTP cycle.
The Skoda Karoq is based on the MQB platform and comes with features such as LED headlamps, integrated LED daytime running lights, LED taillamps, a muscular bonnet with a raised ridge in the centre hallmark of the Skoda design, chrome window beltline, roof rails, 17-inch alloy wheels, a panoramic sunroof etc. On the inside, the Karoq SUV features a dual-tone dashboard, a centrally mounted 8-inch touchscreen infotainment system with SmartLink features, dual-zone climate control, ‘Virtual Cockpit’ fully digital driver’s instrument console, control mounted steering wheel and safety features such as 9-airbags, ABS+EBD, Electronic Stability Programme (ESP), hill start assist, reverse parking assist, over-speed alert, seatbelt reminder for both driver and passenger.
As of now no timeline on the CKD units is available and Skoda is likely to revise the pricing on the locally assembled Karoq. The SUV competes with the Volkswagen T-Roc and the Jeep Compass which significantly undercut the pricing.