Skoda Auto India has removed the Karoq SUV from its official website lately. The Czech automaker launched the SUV in India in May last year at a starting price of Rs 24.99 lakhs (ex-showroom). Furthermore, the Karoq SUV was brought into the country via the CBU route as a result of which it demanded a premium price tag. Initially, Skoda bought only 1000 units of the SUV. But by October 2020, the first batch of the SUV was sold out. Post this, the vehicle was temporarily discontinued.
In June last year, the company was planning to locally assemble the SUV in India itself. However, with the Karoq being removed from the official website of Skoda, we are still not sure if the automaker will still consider assembling it locally. Coming back to Karoq, the SUV was based on Volkswagen’s MQB A0 platform. In terms of design, the model looked bold and aggressive. Its design highlights included full-LED headlamps, a panoramic sunroof, 17-inch alloy wheels among many others.
The cabin of Skoda Karoq boasted of features such as a virtual cockpit digital instrument cluster, an 8.0-inch touchscreen infotainment system with SmartLink connectivity, configurable ambient lighting, dual-zone climate control, wireless charging, and cooled seats. The safety kit on the SUV comprises ABS with EBD, ESP, Electronic Differential, Anti Slip Regulation, driver alert system, reverse camera (with washer), and 9 airbags.
Under the bonnet, the SUV was powered by a 1.5-litre, four-cylinder TSI petrol engine that generated 150 bhp of power output with 250 Nm torque. The motor was further linked to a 7-speed DSG dual-clutch gearbox.
At present, Skoda has three models on sale in India - Rapid, Octavia RS 245, and the Superb. Besides these, the Czech automaker is planning to globally reveal a new SUV named Kushaq in India in March this year.
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