Snapshot
- Czech carmaker accelerates EV plan by four years
- A trio of new dedicated electric SUV models to launch
- Battery costs a key challenge to affordable Fabia-sized EVs
Skoda has brought forward its plans to launch three new battery-electric car models from 2030 to 2026.
The Czech brand is expected to launch a small electric crossover, likely called the Elroq, in 2025. It’ll sit underneath the Skoda Enyaq medium SUV – which is confirmed for Australia – and may even undercut its smallest crossover, the petrol-powered Kamiq, in terms of size.
Additionally, a large family electric SUV based on the Vision 7 concept will debut in 2026. It’ll adopt Skoda’s new ‘Modern Solid’ design theme, come with seven-seats, and be one of the last models in the Volkswagen Group to use the current Modular Electric Toolkit (MEB) platform instead of its unified Scalable Systems Platform (SSP) successor.
In the same year, the company is expected to release a more affordable, entry-level city SUV based on a modified entry-level MEB platform shared with the forthcoming Volkswagen ID.Life and Cupra UrbanRebel concepts.
“The biggest challenge at the moment is the cost [of making] battery-electric vehicles, especially when producing a car [of the size of] the Fabia. We will have to stay a little patient,” Skoda CEO Klaus Zellmer told Autocar.
Volvo Cars CEO Jim Rowan recently predicted EVs would reach price parity with internal combustion engine vehicles by 2026 with “technology” allowing automakers to use smaller batteries, but with more range.
The Cupra Born warm hatch will be the first MEB-based EV to land in Australia in the H1 2023, followed by the Volkswagen ID.4 and ID.5 family SUVs later in the year.
The related Skoda Enyaq and Enyaq Coupe has been confirmed for Down Under, but Australians may need to wait until 2024 for deliveries – four years after its European debut.
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