Team-BHP - Skoda Scala : Official Preview

Wow. I would definitely see value in a car like this in lieu of a similar sedan like city / rapid / vento. I would pay similar or a smidgeon more money for it too than a Rapid but not a lot more.

It's got everything of a C segment sedan with similar luxury level, space but with even more practicality what with the drop down seats and everything. It will be a struggle though for people to prefer this over say a creta like alternative that gives all of the above plus SUV like shape and ground clearance. That will be the big challenge for acceptance.

Accepting super premium hatchbacks in our country is a bit like station wagons. They just dont seem to catch our fancy. Not for me though. I love both these product types.

Hope they launch it here at a proper price. Expensive but not halo pricing.

Exhaustive review of a great car!

I really dig the design of this car, and that 4 cylinder TSI engine with 150 horsepower + DSG is going to be a treat to drive!

As someone mentioned earlier, there weren't too many options for someone who wants to upgrade from a Polo 1.2 TSI without breaking the bank. You either have to look at used options or shell out 25+ lakh on something like an Octavia.

If it does come to India, and something tells me it will, that yawning gap between the Octavia and the Polo will be occupied by this little treat of a car!

It's ideal for those who want the space and practicality of a smallish sedan like the City or a Ciaz, without that appendage they call a boot.

My fear though, is that a well specified example of the Scala - with features like the panoramic sunroof, 17" wheels, virtual cockpit, LED headlight packages and what not - will be closer to the Octavia than the Polo price-wise. Let's hope it doesn't breach the 20 lakh barrier. Anything more for the double-cream full-fat version will be overkill and may not be worth the money.

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Originally Posted by Guite (Post 4516330)

In the Indian car market, size (bigger = better) and body shape (hatchbacks = cheap) matter a lot. This Skoda Scala is as long as Rapid, Vento, etc but is a hatchback. Moreover it is unlikely to be cheaper than Rapid. So it’s market would likely be limited.

I agree with your view. Such a car will not sell in volumes and may even be a dud with not enough sales to justify its presence in the market.

But I do believe that, at least in the tier-1 cities, there is a niche market for such a car and that it may have takers.

I also believe that the market is warming up to larger and more expensive hatchbacks.

In 2010, the idea of a 10-12 lakh hatchback would have been laughable. Remember the SR-V? That was 8 lakh and we barely saw a handful of those on the roads.

Today, we have the Polo TSI, the Baleno and the i20 breaching the 10 lakh barrier and still doing reasonably well. These days, even a top-of-the-line Swift tickles the 10 lakh in some cities.

People will recognize that although the Scala is hatchback-ish to look at, it offers the practicality of a small sedan with the features and equipment of a mid-size executive car.

Let's hope it makes it to our shores by 2020, and let's hope I can afford one by then because you will catch me at a Skoda showroom with my cheque-book if this thing makes it here!

It's too bad that it won't come with the Laura's sublime steering or 6-speed manual. That would have made it truly special!

Great coverage! Just shy of a full fledged review, rating this thread 5 stars.
Inviting Team-bhp for the first look seems to indicate that the car will be launched in India, but having said that, it is clear from its international positioning (vs the i30, golf) it will create a new segment sitting above the Rapid and below the Octavia if launched as is, which will be a tough sell for a station wagon-ish car like this going against various competent sedans and compact SUVs. If Autocar reports (quoted below) are to be believed this will be launched as a CKD which will price it out of contention and just act as a brand builder.

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“We will start with cars that are being developed specifically for India (as part of 2.0 strategy) and then look at more models for the Indian market and the new Scala could be one of them,” Skoda Auto CEO Bernhard Maier told Autocar India at the global debut of the Scala.

The company is currently gauging market feedback on the car and if it makes it to our market, it will be as a CKD (Completely Knocked Down) unit. The carmaker is not focusing on price – the Scala will not qualify for tax breaks as it measures over 4m in length – or even volume, but instead will be a brand builder for Skoda.

Source.Autocar has also put up a first look preview on Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-_BUMtBcso
I am of the opinion that, given the modular nature of the MQB platform, there might be a reworked version(read: <4m) of this car that might arrive at our shores to compete against the Baleno's and I20's. Given that VAG are 6 years too late, the least i hope for is a competent product.

Skoda Scala reviewed:

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The starting entry point for the Scala range will be a 1.0 SE, at £18,585. (This engine will be the mainstay for VAG products in India)

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Still, that version is tipped to be the best-seller anyway, and it doesn’t take long on the road to see why it’ll have wide-ranging appeal. Its three-cylinder motor has just about enough shove low down to get the Scala up to speed, and as long as you keep it spinning above 1,400rpm, you shouldn’t be too troubled by turbo lag. Acceleration is steady rather than strong, but there’s enough shove there to make things feel comfortable enough when getting up to speed on a motorway on-ramp, for example.

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The six-speed gearbox is slick enough, with a reasonably short throw, and while the steering is typically VW Group in its reluctance to communicate what the front wheels are doing, it is generally accurate and consistently weighted

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test car’s 17-inch rims, the Scala rode impressively over most surfaces, troubled only by a little low-speed patter and sharper imperfections, such as poorly aligned bridge expansion joints, which can thunk through to the cabin.

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It’s pretty refined, too. Should you feel the need to push the 1.0 petrol to the upper half of its rev range, you’ll be treated to the usual three-cylinder burble. But shift up at a sensible point and the Scala feels every bit as composed as the current Octavia

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the more potent four-cylinder petrol engine with the DSG gearbox, but while it does deliver a more grown-up experience, and the motor feels happier about life in a car of the Scala’s size, the software in the dual-clutch gearbox doesn’t feel quite as slick as it would in a Golf. Unless you need two pedals, we suspect the manual will be a better option.

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If anything, the cabin is even more impressive. There’s bags of leg, knee and headroom for four six-footers, and quality is a major step up from Skoda’s previous ‘middle offering’, the unloved Rapid. There are a few harsher plastics on the lower areas of the dashboard – not all of them quite low enough to be out of sight, sadly. But that aside, Skoda has been clever and put padded materials in the areas you’re likely to touch regularly, such as in the door linings around the armrests.

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