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2012 Skoda Superb Scout
 
Our spy photographers have caught a very interesting prototype of a Super Scout testing. We say interesting because this particular Skout has parts that used to be produced by a Czech company that modifies Skoda cars, but this a prototype straight from Skoda itself. The prototype was caught testing together with a mule for the production Vision D. Rumors of a Superb Scout model have been floating around for awhile, but since Volkswagen is in the middle of their automotive domination and currently have the say in a lot of vehicles and their unveilings, the Skoda had to be out on the backburner until V-Dub’s Passat Alltrack was shown off first. Power for the Superb Scout will also be teetering on what’s good for the Passat, so expect it to carry the 140 HP TDI engine and not the 170 HP TDI. In all actuality, the Superb Scout should share the power setups of the Superb 4x4. The Skoda Superb Scout in these images barely has any camouflage, so expect it to be launched by the end of the year. 2012 Skoda Superb
The history of the Superb dates back to 1934 when Skoda first unveiled the original model. Then, in 1942, the model was dropped, never to be seen again until almost 60 years later when the marque decided it was time for a revival. Now the model is in its second generation and Skoda is making a few changes for the 2012 model year. The facelift Superb was recently caught testing in the European Alps, and judging by the camouflage it’s donning, expect to see only a minor update to the car’s front and rear ends. The vehicle’s front and rear bumpers will get modified slightly, and there will also be new LED headlights. Nothing will change in terms of powering the Skoda, so expect the same line of straight-four engines in petrol and diesel varieties, ranging from 1.4 L to 3.6 L. However, expect small changes to improve on fuel efficiency. The facelift Skoda Superb will make its world debut in March 2012 at the Geneva Motor Show and will go on sale shortly after. 2011 Skoda Mission L Concept
One of the most understated and conservative brands on the market has released a couple of new photos for their latest concept vehicle, the Mission L. The name of the car sounds far more exciting than the concept looks, but you really didn’t expect a whole lot from Skoda, did you? The only problem is that there doesn’t appear be anything ’concept-ish’ about it. We’ve seen the front end before from the 2011 Design Concept that was introduced at the Geneva Motor Show earlier this year. Nevertheless, the five-door hatchback concept was finally unveiled at the Frankfurt Motor Show and is being looked at as the possible inspiration for the next-generation Octavia or even a new C-segment model for Skoda that will slot in between the Fabia and the Octavia. Possible markets for the car will include Europe, as well as Russia, and maybe even China and India in the future. Speaking of its less-than-stellar concept looks, the Mission L is actually more production ready than its designation suggests. It’s got some nice elements to it, including a new grille set-up we first saw on the VisionD Concept and the running LED lights on the car’s headlights. “We have taken a very pure approach to this design study; we have structured the surfaces simply, but impressively,” said Eckhard Scholz, Skoda Board of Directors Member for Technological Development. “The car has a strong, sporty look which conveys a beautiful simplicity and a youthful and contemporary appearance. Many people look for clean, minimalistic lines, and the Mission L concept offers all that.” Engines offerings for the Mission L will depend on the market it’s being sold in, but all indications point to a 1.6-liter engine that produces modest output numbers. 2011 Skoda Octavia vRS
People usually associate the name Skoda with a family sedan that focuses more on fuel economy and not so much on performance. Those people are going to get the shock of their lives as Skoda is preparing a special Octavia vRS sedan for the world famous Bonneville Speed Week on August 13-20, 2011. The Octavia vRS was built to celebrate the 10th anniversary of its iconic vRS performance flagship badge and to achieve breaking the 200 mph barrier. Skoda has done this with the Octavia’s standard 2.0-liter four-cylinder TSI petrol engine by swapping the standard turbo with a specially designed turbocharger from respected component firm Garret. Adding this turbocharger has dramatically altered the vehicle’s output by adding a tremendous 380bhp and 170 lb-ft of torque for a total of 600 HP and 26-28 PSI of boost pressure. As if the engine updates weren’t enough, Skoda has also spiffed up the exterior of the Octavia with some aerodynamic updates. The vehicle has received a new sub-frame which houses a race prepared intercooler, a reinforced roll cage, a parachute, fire extinguishers, and a window cage. It was then lowered almost 80mm closer to the ground. Robert Hazelwood, Director for Škoda UK, said: "The 10-year relationship between the UK and the vRS badge has been extremely successful. This is a landmark anniversary and going to Bonneville is a fitting tribute." He adds, "It’s an ambitious project which might surprise a few people, but Škoda is all about engineering excellence and this car is pushing that to new limits." UPDATE 08/16/11: We already said that Skoda is the one of the last brands that you’ll associate with breaking 200 mph, but this Octavia vRS proved us wrong in a hurry when it recently hit a top speed of 202.15 mph at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah. The event corresponded with the brand’s UK branch celebrating the 10th anniversary of the vRS performance badge. Kudos to Skoda for the remarkable achievement; maybe next time they’ll start producing supercars that can routinely eclipse 200 mph on any given day. Just a thought. Mandy Lange named Miss Tuning 2011 at Tuning World Bodensee
The votes are officially in for the title of Miss Tuning 2011 and 23-year-old hot blonde, Mandy Lange, beat out 17 other finalists to take home the crown at the recently-concluded Tuning World Bodensee. As the biggest tuning fair in Europe - it’s similar to SEMA in our neck of the woods - the Tuning World Bodensee has been one of the most popular auto events in Europe and as such, the Miss Tuning competition is considered one of the most important aspects of the show. In addition to beating out 17 other women, Lange beat out over 500 applicants for the title, earning the crown from 2010 winner Kristen Zippel and officially becoming the face and ambassador of the European tuning world. As part of her win, Lange, a fitness instructor from Brandenburg, was awarded a new Skoda Fabia RS to go with a two-month promotional contract with Pizza.de and a gig as the face of the ultra exclusive 2012 Miss Tuning Calendar. Congratulations to Mandy Lange for being named Miss Tuning 2011! It’s an honor well-deserved! 2011 Skoda Fabia Monte Carlo
Skoda is celebrating the 100th year anniversary of the Monte Carlo Rally and the 110th year anniversary of the brand’s motorsport efforts with the launch of the special edition Fabia Monte Carlo Edition. This new version made its first public appearance at Rallye Monte Carlo back in January and has now been introduced at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show. While we’re not completely enamored with these type of cars, we do have to give the boys over at Skoda some serious love for the way they designed this special edition Fabia.The powertrain may not be on the powerful side, but Skoda certainly makes up for it by designing the special edition Fabia with a very nice red and black two-tone finish, highlighting an aggressive rally-inspired exterior that completely masks the subdued engine under its bonnet. It may not be the fastest car out of the block, but for a car that you can take to the city for some nice, little joy-riding, the Skoba Fabia Monte Carlo is about as good an option as any B-car segment vehicle. Details on the Skoda Fabia Monte Carlo after the jump. Full story 2010 Skoda Fabia RS IRC Special Edition
Skoda’s 2010 IRC Championship win may not have gotten a ton of headlines from the press, but it certainly hasn’t stopped the automaker from releasing a special edition Fabia RS that was created to celebrate the automaker’s title win in the IRC, or as some folks would call it, the breeding ground and stepping stone towards the more famous WRC. For their special edition vehicle, Skoda decked the Fabia RS with a Rally Green exterior paint with racing livery all around it and stickers taken from the official championship-winning S2000 rally car. There’s also the addition of a white roof to complement the Rally Green body color, as well as a set of 17-inch alloy wheels to finish off the dazzling look of special edition Fabia RS. As for performance, Skoda gave the car a turbocharged 1.4-liter four-cylinder engine that produces 177 horsepower and 184 lb/ft of torque and is mated to a 7-speed DSG transmission that accelerates from 0-60 mph in 7.3 seconds with a top speed of 139 mph. The special edition Fabia RS IRC has yet to be given a price tag by Skoda, but according to the company, the model will only come in limited quantities with only 200 units being built. Press Release after the jump. Full story 2010 Skoda Superb 1.6 TDI CR
The Skoda Superb isn’t exactly the king of sedans, at least not for us Americans who have never driven in one and most likely will never even see one in the flesh. Of course, the sedan is a little more popular over in Europe, and now it’s received another piece of ammo in its small bag-o-guns. Skoda UK has announced the addition of a new 1.6 TDI CR 105bhp engine to the Superb line-up. The new engine will be available for S and SE models and will be available for order starting today with prices starting at £17,480. This engine provides better driveability and fuel economy than the previous engines with its 105hp and 56.5 mpg. Breaking it down a bit, the new engine gets 6.9mpg for the Hatch and 5.6mpg for the Estate. CO2 emissions have also been reduced by 19g/km and 20g/km respectively. The new Superb follows along the lines of every other Skoda model in the lineup. This great little car has provided enough style, practicality, and comfort to earn Top Gear Magazine’s ’Luxury Car of the Year’ and Auto Express’ best ‘Family Car’ and ‘Estate Car’ of the year. Press release after the jump. Full story Skoda Joyster will go into production
Skoda unveiled the Joyster Concept at the Paris Motor Show back in 2006. This concept was a three-door front-wheel-drive compact vehicle that Skoda decided to aim directly at a younger demographic. Its dynamic shape was definitely eye-pleasing, but nothing ever became of it after its world premiere. That is until now. We can officially confirm that the concept will go into production soon and will become the cheapest model in Skoda’s line-up. The future Joyster will be based on the Volkswagen Up and will be revealed in the first half of 2012. With a price of around 9,000 euro (around $11,500 at the current exchange rates), the Joyster will target models like the Toyota iQ and the Peugeot 107. The 2012 Joyster will be a front engine, front wheel model that will most likely feature a choice of two engine versions: a 1.0-liter three-cylinder petrol and a 1.2 three-cylinder diesel, both of them having a CO2 emission of less than 100g/km. However, unlike the future Volkswagen Up (production version known as Lupo), the next Joyster will not get an electric version. Skoda Fabia Cabrio in the works?
Skoda Fabia is one of the most successful models on the European market. It comes with a choice of three petrol and two diesel engines, with power ranging from 58 HP to 103 HP. Now what do you think would happen if Skoda decided to bring forth a convertible version for the popular Fabia? The Czechs are actually really taking this type of modification into consideration, but the fact is, outside of Europe, a convertible model isn’t high on the list of demands and Skoda will have a tough time recuperating their production costs. Of course, if built, the Skoda Fabia Cabrio would share the same platform with the future Audi A1 Cabrio, making it a cheaper alternative. The convertible version will be offered with a choice of both TDI and FSI engines. Skoda is expected to make a final decision in the next year. Now, if Volkswagen has plans to produce a Golf Cabrio then some might say that they should go ahead and give the Fabia Cabrio a try. It should prove to be a cool little car in Europe. | featured reviews:Skoda cars reviews2013 2012 2011 2010
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