Upon its launch, Kushaq is expected to be offered at a price of Rs 10-17 lakh with Hyundai Creta and Kia Seltos as its targeted rivals
Skoda has commenced production of the upcoming Kushaq at its local manufacturing facility in Chakan near Pune, Maharashtra. This will kickstart the Czech automaker’s as well as its German cousin, Volkswagen’s, second innings at the Indian market under the India 2.0 program.
This program evolved around the philosophy of locally developed and manufactured models which gave birth to the India-specific modular MQB A0 IN architecture. The platform will be underpinning future Skoda and Volkswagen models in India including Kushaq whose first unit recently rolled off its assembly line in Chakan.
The compact C-segment SUV made its first appearance as a pre-production concept called Vision IN at last year’s Auto Expo. Since then, the crossover has been spotted on numerous occasions conducting pre-launch test trials.
The company had earlier confirmed that official launch is slated to take place by the end of June 2021 with customer deliveries expected to begin by July. This means that units of Kushaq will soon be ready for dispatch to Skoda dealerships across the country.
Locally developed platform
Coming back to the platform, the MQB A0 IN architecture is a localised version of the MQB A0 which underpins several models of the brand in Europe. The company claims that it has reached localisation levels of up to 95 percent which prompted Skoda to start a new assembly line at its Chakan-based facility.
The platform has been almost entirely developed at the new technology centre in Pune opened in January 2019 jointly owned by Volkswagen and Skoda. This architecture will spawn across various upcoming models such as Volkswagen Taigun, Virtus and Skoda Rapid’s successor.
Engine, Transmission Options
Details of Kushaq have already been revealed. Skoda will be offering two engine options with the compact crossover. A 1.0-litre three-cylinder TSI turbo petrol unit and a 1.5-litre 4-cylinder TSI turbo petrol mill. The former is capable of churning out 114 bhp and 175 Nm of peak torque while the latter pumps out 148 bhp and 250 Nm of torque.
A six-speed manual gearbox will be offered as standard across the range while a 6-speed torque converter and a 7-speed DSG will be offered with the 1.0-litre and 1.5-litre units respectively.
Features on offer
Some of the features that will be offered in Kushaq include a two-spoke steering wheel, an electric sunroof, ventilated front seats, dual-zone climate control, wireless phone charging, touchscreen infotainment system, etc. In-car connected tech features will be offered by the latest myŠKODA Connect. There will be a host of accessories to spruce up the vehicle according to the owner’s preference. Kushaq will be offered in three trims- Active, Ambition, Style and due to high levels of localization expect it to have a starting price of sub-Rs 10 lakh.
