Škoda Auto and the automotive industry faced many challenges in the past year, including the ongoing semiconductor shortage, the war in Ukraine, supply chain issues, rising energy and raw material prices and continuing geopolitical uncertainty. Despite these obstacles, the company delivered 731,300 vehicles and maintains a high order backlog, which demonstrates the strong customer demand for its vehicles. The rapidly increasing popularity of the Enyaq iV (+20%) highlights the success of Škoda’s recently launched e-offensive. In addition, Škoda’s efficient combustion engine models remain very popular, with the Octavia being the most successful, followed by the SUVs Kamiq and Kodiaq. In 2022, Škoda also significantly strengthened its internationalisation initiative: In the strategically important growth market of India, the carmaker has more than doubled its deliveries. Another key step in leveraging growth potential will be its expansion into the Vietnamese market.

 

Klaus Zellmer, Škoda Auto CEO, says: “Never before in its recent history has Škoda Auto been confronted with such extensive challenges as in the past year. Despite these difficult times, our company is making steady progress thanks to an attractive and modern model portfolio comprising e-models and ICE cars, as well as our strong, motivated team and the close cooperation with our social partner, KOVO. We’ve demonstrated resilience, a quality that is more important than ever in a fast-changing environment. With the acceleration of our e-offensive, we’re well positioned for the upcoming years and will continue to strengthen the Czech Republic as a key automotive and e-mobility hub. The market situation will remain tense in 2023, but we’re cautiously optimistic that the situation will improve in the coming months. Furthermore, our strategy is already proving successful, and our products are very well received by customers. Thus, we’re building on a very solid foundation to successfully steer Škoda through 2023, when we will introduce the new generation of our Superb and Kodiaq, among other projects.

Martin Jahn, Škoda Auto Board Member for Sales and Marketing, adds: “We delivered 731,300 vehicles worldwide last year, and we more than doubled our deliveries in India, already one of our three most important markets. The models we launched in 2022 are receiving a lot of interest from customers. The new Fabia Monte Carlo has had a good start, and the all-electric Enyaq iV continues to enjoy a significant increase in popularity. We accomplished all these achievements despite the coronavirus pandemic, the semiconductor shortage and the war in Ukraine. I want to thank our customers for their patience with the long delivery times that have resulted. We’re working hard to bring the cars to the customers as soon as possible. I would also like to thank all our partners – especially our dedicated dealers – for their extraordinary efforts. Some promising highlights will follow this year: the new generation of the Kodiaq and Superb, as well as facelifts of the Kamiq and Scala. Meanwhile, the work on our e-offensive is in full swing. We’ll be launching three new all-electric models as early as 2026, with more to follow.”

Article source: www.skoda-storyboard.com

Škoda Auto and the automotive industry faced many challenges in the past year, including the ongoing semiconductor shortage, the war in Ukraine, supply chain issues, rising energy and raw material prices and continuing geopolitical uncertainty. Despite these obstacles, the company delivered 731,300 vehicles and maintains a high order backlog, which demonstrates the strong customer demand for its vehicles. The rapidly increasing popularity of the Enyaq iV (+20%) highlights the success of Škoda’s recently launched e-offensive. In addition, Škoda’s efficient combustion engine models remain very popular, with the Octavia being the most successful, followed by the SUVs Kamiq and Kodiaq. In 2022, Škoda also significantly strengthened its internationalisation initiative: In the strategically important growth market of India, the carmaker has more than doubled its deliveries. Another key step in leveraging growth potential will be its expansion into the Vietnamese market.

 

Klaus Zellmer, Škoda Auto CEO, says: “Never before in its recent history has Škoda Auto been confronted with such extensive challenges as in the past year. Despite these difficult times, our company is making steady progress thanks to an attractive and modern model portfolio comprising e-models and ICE cars, as well as our strong, motivated team and the close cooperation with our social partner, KOVO. We’ve demonstrated resilience, a quality that is more important than ever in a fast-changing environment. With the acceleration of our e-offensive, we’re well positioned for the upcoming years and will continue to strengthen the Czech Republic as a key automotive and e-mobility hub. The market situation will remain tense in 2023, but we’re cautiously optimistic that the situation will improve in the coming months. Furthermore, our strategy is already proving successful, and our products are very well received by customers. Thus, we’re building on a very solid foundation to successfully steer Škoda through 2023, when we will introduce the new generation of our Superb and Kodiaq, among other projects.

Martin Jahn, Škoda Auto Board Member for Sales and Marketing, adds: “We delivered 731,300 vehicles worldwide last year, and we more than doubled our deliveries in India, already one of our three most important markets. The models we launched in 2022 are receiving a lot of interest from customers. The new Fabia Monte Carlo has had a good start, and the all-electric Enyaq iV continues to enjoy a significant increase in popularity. We accomplished all these achievements despite the coronavirus pandemic, the semiconductor shortage and the war in Ukraine. I want to thank our customers for their patience with the long delivery times that have resulted. We’re working hard to bring the cars to the customers as soon as possible. I would also like to thank all our partners – especially our dedicated dealers – for their extraordinary efforts. Some promising highlights will follow this year: the new generation of the Kodiaq and Superb, as well as facelifts of the Kamiq and Scala. Meanwhile, the work on our e-offensive is in full swing. We’ll be launching three new all-electric models as early as 2026, with more to follow.”

Investing in a strong future
Škoda Auto is accelerating its electric offensive and investing in transformation: Over the coming years, the Czech car manufacturer will allocate a further 5.6 billion euros towards
e-mobility and 700 million euros towards digitalisation. The transformation is already visible: In the summer of 2022, the company unveiled its new brand identity with a refreshed design language, a new logo and a comprehensive update of the corporate identity (CI).

The car manufacturer is also continuing to internationalise the company and is about to enter the Vietnamese market. In cooperation with Thanh Cong Motor Vietnam (TC Motor) as a local partner, Škoda Auto will offer the first European models there during the first half of this year.

Article source: www.skoda-storyboard.com

The ŠKODA OCTAVIA has successfully defended its 5-star score in the independent European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP) following the introduction of new, more stringent assessment criteria for the 2022 test year. The Czech car manufacturer’s bestseller achieved a total of 81% of the maximum points. The result will now be valid until the end of 2028 across the European Union as well as in the United Kingdom and Norway. The two previous OCTAVIA generations had also been awarded the maximum test score of five stars. Since 2008, all 14 new ŠKODA models have achieved the top rating.

 

Top scores for Adult and Child Occupant protection; higher rating for assistance systems
Under the new, stricter criteria, the fourth-generation ŠKODA OCTAVIA has successfully defended its five-star rating in the Euro NCAP reference test for crash safety, impressively confirming its reputation as one of the safest vehicles in its class. ŠKODA’s bestseller achieved the top score of five stars following its market launch in 2019. The new rating will be valid throughout the European Union, the United Kingdom and Norway until the end of 2028. The OCTAVIA scored 86% of the maximum possible points for Adult Occupant protection and 84% for Child Occupant protection. In terms of the Safety Assist systems included as standard, the OCTAVIA surpassed its 2019 result, rising from 79 to 81%.

Further upgrades to the safety equipment since summer 2022
In June 2022, ŠKODA AUTO further upgraded the OCTAVIA’s safety equipment. Since then, the hatchback and the OCTAVIA COMBI estate have been equipped with a central airbag between the driver and front passenger and a knee airbag for the driver as standard. Moreover, the latest generation of driver assistance systems automatically initiates braking manoeuvres when there is a risk of collision at junctions or with a cyclist riding across the lane. The Driver Alert fatigue detection system now also issues an audio-visual warning.

More demanding tests for more realistic accident simulation
The Euro NCAP test protocol valid since 2020 is more demanding than the previous one, when the fourth-generation OCTAVIA first achieved its five-star rating. The changes aim to achieve a more realistic simulation of actual accidents and their consequences. Up until 2019, the frontal impact test involved driving a vehicle into a solid wall with a deformable barrier at 64 km/h. Since early 2020, the test has used a 1,400-kilogram mobile barrier travelling at 50 km/h towards an oncoming vehicle also travelling at 50 km/h. In addition, a new generation of test dummy THOR-50M (Test device for Human Occupant Restraint) is used in the driver’s seat. It incorporates major advancements in terms of biofidelity and sensing and represents an average adult male weighing 76.6kg. In the side impact test, the speed of the barrier was increased from 50 km/h to 60 km/h, while its weight rose from 1,300 kilograms to 1,400 kilograms. These changes mean that the test vehicle has to safely absorb 55% more kinetic energy than before. The requirements for autonomous emergency braking have also become more demanding, for example, with the inclusion of more junction scenarios as well as collision protection for a cyclist crossing the road at right angles to the direction of travel and emerging from behind an obstacle. The speed range for autonomous braking scenarios has expanded by 10 and 15 km/h. Safety after an accident is now also evaluated. Among other things, this includes support for emergency services through safety data sheets in five languages and the eCall+ function for automatic communication with the emergency services. The Multi-Collision Brake and fatigue detection system delivering an audio-visual warning are also evaluated. The final score is based on a combination of the individual scores in four categories: Adult Occupant protection, Child Occupant protection, Vulnerable Road User protection and Safety Assist systems.

Euro NCAP tests since 1997
The European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP) based in the Belgian city of Leuven is a scheme founded in 1997 by transport ministries, automobile clubs, insurance associations and research institutes from eight European countries. It conducts crash tests on current vehicle models and evaluates their active and passive safety as well as their rescue and recovery safety. While initially only the results of crash tests were evaluated, the ratings of active safety systems, as well as driver assistance systems, now have a greater weighting in the overall evaluation. Until 2019, the assessment criteria were tightened every two years. Since 2020, three-year intervals have applied, now covering not only active and passive safety scenarios but also tertiary safety aspects such as Emergency Call and information about the damaged vehicles for the integrated rescue system.

Article source: www.skoda-storyboard.com

The ŠKODA lighting design team has been awarded with a prestigious People Awards by the British online portal Car Design News (CDN). In the first-ever award decided with votes, the Czech car manufacturer came out on top against top-class competitors in the “Best Lighting Design Team” category. Representatives of ŠKODA Design accepted the award at a gala dinner in London’s Leicester Square. The jury comprising 17 renowned international automotive and design experts presented the People Awards in 14 categories to personalities responsible for the final product design. In addition, ŠKODA was one of the four finalists in the “Equality by Design” category at this year’s awards ceremony.

 

Ambience, user-friendliness and communication through light
In the “Best Lighting Design Team” category, Car Design News (CDN) awarded car designers who use light to create a more pleasant ambience in the interior, to increase user-friendliness and driving comfort or to communicate with other road users. The lighting design team of the Czech car manufacturer prevailed against four top-class competitors. The 17 internationally renowned jury members from the automotive and design industry judged the lighting design of the entire current ŠKODA product range and praised its unique lighting signature. This also characterises the Crystal Face in the battery-electric models of the ENYAQ iV family, with 131 LEDs that illuminate not only the vertical ribs but also the horizontal bar of the ŠKODA grille. Before entering the vehicle, the Crystal Face, together with the full LED matrix headlights and rear lights, creates an animated welcome effect.

Awards for the “Faces behind the Product”
The inaugural People Awards recognise individuals and teams in all areas of automotive design, rather than products, and aim to bring together young talent in the industry. The awards in 14 categories represent every step of the design process and are open to all designers in the international automotive industry. The UK online portal Car Design News provides news, insight and background information for the global car design community.

Article source: www.skoda-storyboard.com

ŠKODA is trialling a new feature in its Traffication infotainment app. The latest version of the app, which is being tested in a pilot project in the Czech Republic, now warns of approaching trains, reducing the risk of accidents at level crossings. This feature complements other functions in the Traffication app, such as warning of wrong-way drivers and alerting the driver to the risk of inadvertently entering a motorway against the flow of traffic, to further improve road safety.

 

Safety first
ŠKODA is continually adding clever real-time solutions to enhance road safety. In collaboration with the Czech railway company Leo Express, ŠKODA is offering a new feature in its Traffication infotainment app as part of a pilot project. Customers already using the app can download the update now. An update notification will appear in the infotainment notification centre. Similarly, the in-car shop will show that an update is available. The app will be installed after being confirmed by the user.

Cloud-based solution
Real-time train locations are regularly transmitted to the cloud, which then communicates the information to any ŠKODA vehicle using the Traffication infotainment app near a level crossing with a train approaching. The warning about the approaching train is shown on the central infotainment display along with an acoustic and pop-up notification. ŠKODA is already working on integrating other railway companies across Europe, while discussions with several others are ongoing.

Easy download
Traffication is available for download from the in-car shop and online in the ŠKODA Connect shop. It can be installed in all current ŠKODA models apart from the ENYAQ iV, provided the vehicle is equipped with the top infotainment system from the third-generation Modular Infotainment Matrix. The app then runs automatically in the background without the driver having to switch it on. It immediately shows warnings on the central infotainment display whenever drivers encounter traffic hazards in their immediate vicinity.

More than trains: slippery roads and bad weather
Besides the newly added warnings of approaching trains, the app already displays other types of warnings either from traffic information providers or directly from ŠKODA cars. Traffication can warn drivers of severe weather, bad road conditions, or accidents ahead. In addition, the app can detect a wrong-way driver joining a motorway against the traffic flow and warn other drivers of the potential danger. Poor visibility can be identified, for example by ŠKODA vehicles switching the fog lights on, and this information is sent to the cloud. In addition, ŠKODA drivers can manually report traffic hazards to the cloud with a single click to warn all other ŠKODA drivers using Traffication. The app is now available in 32 European countries and issues warnings in 23 languages.

Article source: www.skoda-storyboard.com

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  1. Improving road safety: ŠKODA tests train warnings in Traffication infotainment app
  2. Hat-trick for ŠKODA: ENYAQ COUPÉ RS iV named ‘Switzerland’s Favourite Car 2023’
  3. ŠKODA FABIA and OCTAVIA triumph at the Auto Bild Company Car Awards 2022
  4. ŠKODA tops the 'Auto Trophy 2022' with five victories

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