SUVs, perhaps, have grown exponentially in India, primarily because they have a higher ground clearance than sedans, which we need in a country like ours. SUVs now also have sub-segments such as compact SUVs, sub-compact SUVs (sub-4m), mid-size SUVs, premium SUVs, full-size SUVs, and electric SUVs. There are several reasons why sedans have lost popularity in the Indian market. As observed, nothing can beat a sedan in terms of comfort, handling, mileage, and better performance.
Skoda Auto India is confident that it can revitalise the sedan segment. The carmaker further claimed that they have been known for delivering great sedans for the last 20 years. As per one of the senior officials of Skoda Auto India, the country has limited options in the sedan segment, and no carmaker has launched anything new in the Indian market.
The Skoda Slavia, with aggressive pricing, might catch up with the sales of compact SUVs and may bring back the audience to the sedan segment. That will indicate whether Skoda Auto India has successfully paved the way for sedans or not.
The façade:
The Skoda Slavia’s exterior features a reinterpreted butterfly grille surrounded by chrome and is accompanied by a sleek pair of LED headlights, which are similar to the fourth-gen Octavia. The bonnet exudes a sharp style, giving the car a masculine appeal. The Skoda Slavia has a wheelbase of 2651mm, which makes it the longest in its segment. In terms of dimensions, the Skoda Slavia is ahead of its rivals except for the height, as the Honda City is just 2 mm taller. The Skoda Slavia also holds the highest ground clearance of 180mm in its segment. Depending upon the variant chosen, it gets a tyre profile of 195/65 R15 or 205/55 R16. The Skoda Slavia either runs on steel or alloy wheels, depending upon the variant chosen. Unlike the lower variants, only the Style variant is equipped with LED headlights, fog lights, and LED DRLs. In terms of the overall design, the Skoda Slavia looks premium and has a mini-Octavia-like appearance.
What’s the Skoda Slavia’s interior like?
From the inside, it looks similar to the Skoda Kushaq because of the overall design of the interior. The interior gets a dual-tone black and beige colour combination, and the use of good quality materials gives it an upmarket feel. The cabin also feels roomy and practical. It also offers a lot of storage compartments. Furthermore, the Skoda Slavia also gets an option of a 7-inch or 10-inch touch infotainment unit. Please note that these features will vary across the variant chosen.
It also gets a 2-spoke multifunctional steering wheel and a grainy patterned dashboard, paired with piano-black inserts. The Skoda Slavia also has front and rear power windows, a navigation system, lumbar support, rear parking sensors, etc., as standard across all variants. The top variant, the Style variant, is packed with a single-pane sunroof, an 8-inch digital instrument cluster, cooled ventilated front seats, a wireless charger tray, a cooled glove box, and leather upholstery, rain-sensing wipers, six airbags, and an auto-dimming IRVM, among others. Upper variants get 60:40 split seats, except for the base model, Active. The boot capacity of the Skoda Slavia is 521 litres, which is expandable to 1050 litres with folded seats.
What powers the Skoda Slavia?
About the engine
As far as the engine specifications of the Skoda Slavia are concerned, it gets a 1.0-litre TSI engine that produces 113hp at 5000rpm and 178Nm of torque at 1750rpm, whereas the 1.5-litre TSI engine churns out 147bhp at 5000rpm and 250Nm of torque at 1600rpm. It gets a 6-speed manual transmission, which is available in both engines. In automatic transmissions, it has a 6-speed torque converter available in the 1.0-litre TSI and a 7-speed DSG, which is exclusive to the 1.5-litre TSI engine. It has only petrol-spec engines on offer since the Volkswagen group has discontinued the production of diesel engines. However, the Skoda Slavia’s mileage ranges from 18.07kmpl to 19.47kmpl, depending upon the engine and transmission combination. Both the engines have a fuel capacity of 45 litres.
Prices and variants:
The Skoda Slavia price starts at ₹10.69 lakh and goes all the way up to ₹17.79 lakh. All prices are ex-showroom, Delhi, as of May 2022.
Furthermore, it has three variants: Active, Ambition, and Style. There are five colours on offer: Brilliant Silver, Carbon Steel Grey, Crystal Blue, Tornado Road, and Candy White.
As for the rivalry, the compact sedan stacks up against the Hyundai Verna, Honda City, Maruti Suzuki Ciaz, and the newly launched Volkswagen Virtus. But it is also worth mentioning that neither the Slavia nor the Virtus will cater to diesel-oriented buyers. However, the Hyundai Verna, the City, and the Ciaz have diesel engine options.
For more information on the Skoda Slavia review, prices, and comparisons, check out autoX.
