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The measures to contain the coronavirus pandemic also had a negative impact on ŠKODA AUTO’s vehicle deliveries and financial indicators in the first half of 2020. The ŠKODA AUTO Group’s sales revenue was €7.55 billion in the first six months, but the operating profit still amounted to €228 million – despite the 39-day shutdown of the Czech plants and the disruption to the sales channels, particularly in April. Against this background, the return on sales stood at 3.0%. ŠKODA AUTO delivered a total of 426,700 vehicles to customers from January to June. Since June, the Czech automobile manufacturer has been experiencing the positive effects of its restart programmes, which have been adapted to each market, and incoming orders have recently exceeded last year’s level. Provided the COVID-19 situation does not deteriorate significantly again, ŠKODA AUTO expects the conditions on the world markets to stabilise gradually over the coming weeks and months. Investments in tangible assets remained at a high level of 261 million euros over the past six months; ŠKODA AUTO continues to invest consistently in the company’s future and development. 

ŠKODA AUTO CEO Bernhard Maier explains: “ŠKODA AUTO has performed well in recent years and has a solid financial foundation. In response to the current exceptional situation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, we immediately implemented comprehensive measures to stabilise sales, sales revenue and operating profit. These measures are already proving effective and we will consistently continue along this path in the months ahead. I am convinced, that ŠKODA will emerge from this situation even stronger.”

Klaus-Dieter Schürmann, ŠKODA AUTO Board Member for Finance and IT, adds: “Our goal is to continuously improve on the current level through to the end of the year. To achieve this, we are consistently pursuing our ongoing performance programme. The same applies to our recently introduced short-term special measures focusing on overheads and material costs as well as optimising expenses and current assets. ”

Despite the 39-day shutdown of its Czech plants and the economic impact of the measures to contain the COVID 19 pandemic, ŠKODA AUTO posted an operating profit of 228 million euros. At the end of April, the car manufacturer gradually ramped up vehicle production again as planned, observing the necessary health protection measures. As the car dealerships in the European markets have reopened, customer demand for vehicles has noticeably increased. At the same time, the sales channels have been largely restored and are functioning smoothly.

Alain Favey, ŠKODA AUTO Board Member for Sales and Marketing, explains: “Although our worldwide deliveries to customers decreased in the first six months of the year due to the exceptional starting position, the outlook is positive: in June we were able to make significant gains compared to the previous months. We are particularly well positioned with our attractive, modern model portfolio. In order to support the positive developments on the international markets, ŠKODA has introduced comprehensive restart programmes for its trade partners alongside the government support measures, which we warmly welcome. Against this background, we expect a recovery in the third quarter and anticipate a return to the previous year’s level in the fourth quarter.”

The company remains committed to its medium and long-term goals and is consistently rolling out the largest model campaign in its history. The manufacturer plans to launch 30 new models, derivatives, product upgrades or variants between 2019 and the end of 2022. Also, with the all-electric ENYAQ iV, it is taking a major step forward in implementing its electric mobility strategy – the SUV is ŠKODA’s first electric vehicle to be developed as such from the outset. The most important ŠKODA model in 2020 will be presented to the public for the first time in September.

Article source: www.skoda-auto.com

ŠKODA will be presenting its first all-electric SUV in Prague on 1 September 2020. The model marks the beginning of a new era for the Czech car manufacturer, which is why the brand is also taking another step forward in design with the ENYAQ iV. Emotive lines and balanced, dynamic proportions are combined in the first ŠKODA based on the Volkswagen Group’s modular electrification toolkit (MEB), which offers a generous interior and a sustainable yet fun driving experience. 

The silhouette of the new ŠKODA ENYAQ iV gives an idea of the proportions of the brand’s new flagship. A short front section and an elongated roofline create a dynamic exterior while at the same time offering a generous amount of space typical of the brand. The new SUV has a similarly spacious interior as the ŠKODA KODIAQ, despite being shorter in length than a ŠKODA OCTAVIA.

The ENYAQ iV is available with a choice of rear-wheel or four-wheel drive, three battery sizes and five power levels. The ENYAQ iV can be charged quickly, with a maximum capacity of 125 kW. It has a range of up to 500 kilometres in the WLTP cycle, making this practical, fully battery-powered SUV the perfect companion for everyday driving.

Emotive, efficient, electrifying: the new ŠKODA ENYAQ iV marks a pioneering step forward in the Czech carmaker’s electromobility strategy. The first ŠKODA production model based on Volkswagen Group’s MEB modular electric car platform combines brand-typical virtues such as a generous amount of space and an emotive design with fun yet sustainable driving. There is a choice of three battery sizes and five power variants, depending on requirements. The all-electric SUV is set to be built at ŠKODA’s main plant in Mladá Boleslav, making it the first MEB-based Volkswagen Group vehicle in Europe to be produced outside Germany.

Article source: www.skoda-auto.com

Following its official presentation, the ŠKODA SLAVIA held up to the scrutiny of Jan Kopecký, the fastest ŠKODA team member. The ŠKODA Motorsport factory driver and 2018 WRC2 World Champion, accompanied by his new co-driver, Jan Hloušek, went to the Bělá pod Bezdězem racetrack to put the seventh ŠKODA Student Car through its paces. The two rally pros also took the sporty ŠKODA 1100 OHC prototype from 1957 for a spin. This was the car that inspired the 31 students from the ŠKODA vocational school to transform a ŠKODA SCALA into the dynamic SLAVIA spider. 125 years on from the founding of the company, the name SLAVIA pays homage to the first bicycles produced by its two founders, Václav Laurin and Václav Klement. 

Jan Kopecký, ŠKODA Motorsport’s factory driver, commented, “The apprentices of the ŠKODA vocational school have done a great job again this year, presenting an impressive student car with the ŠKODA SLAVIA. It has breathtaking lines, shows a passion for detail in all areas, while the quality of workmanship is exceptional, given that this car was built entirely by hand. Thanks to its torsionally stiff body, the SLAVIA delivers a very sporty drive and evokes similar emotions to the car that inspired it, the ŠKODA 1100 OHC.

This outing in Bělá pod Bezdězem was special even for the professional race driver, Jan Kopecký. Together with his new co-driver, Jan Hloušek, the ŠKODA Motorsport factory driver tested the new ŠKODA SLAVIA, the seventh ŠKODA Student Car, and was also given the opportunity to drive a few laps in the ŠKODA 1100 OHC. It was this sports car prototype from 1957 that inspired the 31 participants in the Student Car project to transform a ŠKODA SCALA into a sporty spider. It is still fascinating today to experience the kind of sporty potential this prototype from over 60 years ago offered in its time.”

Jan Kopecký has been driving for ŠKODA Motorsport on rally tracks all over the world since 2009. The 38-year-old Czech was the 2013 European Champion, 2014 Asia Pacific Champion and the 2018 season’s World Champion in the WRC2 category. He has also won the Czech national championships for seven times. Since the start of this season, Jan Kopecký has been racing his ŠKODA FABIA Rally2 evo alongside his new co-driver, Jan Hloušek, who was also in the shotgun seat during the test laps with the ŠKODA SLAVIA and the ŠKODA 1100 OHC in Bělá pod Bezdězem.

ŠKODA 1100 OHC – a milestone in ŠKODA Motorsport history

The ŠKODA 1100 OHC sports prototype served as an important source of inspiration for the 31 students involved in the 2020 Student Car project. The two-seater race car presented in 1957, of which only two open-top examples were ever built, followed by three coupés later on, is a milestone in ŠKODA’s 119-year motorsport history as well as an impressive demonstration of the engineers’ skills at that time. Designed for long-distance races, the vehicle was based on a lightweight tubular frame welded from thin-walled tubes and featured a low, aerodynamically optimised body made of glass fibre reinforced plastic, resulting in an overall weight of just 550 kilograms. Its 1.1-litre four-cylinder engine producing 92 hp enables a top speed of 190 to 200 km/h, depending on the axle ratio – a level of sports car performance that continues to impress people like racing pro Jan Kopecký to this day.

Jan Hloušek, co-driver at ŠKODA Motorsport, emphasises, “For me, this day was like a fast rewind through more than six decades of ŠKODA history. To take a pure-bred ŠKODA race car from 1957 on a track used to fine-tune many of the brand’s successful rally cars was especially exciting for me, as a ŠKODA newcomer. The ŠKODA SLAVIA attests to the high level of education at the ŠKODA Vocational School and demonstrates the impressive knowledge of the apprentices. In this respect, the ŠKODA SLAVIA offers a foretaste of the future work of the experts of tomorrow and therefore the company’s future.”

Longstanding ŠKODA tradition in Bělá pod Bezdězem 

The Czech brand has been fine-tuning its successful rally cars for around 30 years in the Bohemian forests on the Motorland race, rallycross and test track at Bělá pod Bezdězem. This tradition began with the rally version of the ŠKODA FAVORIT, which won its class four times in the legendary Monte Carlo Rally in the 1990s. ŠKODA Motorsport also tested the ŠKODA FABIA Rally2 in Bělá pod Bezdězem, and the ŠKODA FABIA Rally2 evo was even presented there in 2019.

Article source: www.skoda-auto.com

ŠKODA AUTO is taking an extraordinary journey through 125 years of company history with twelve automotive milestones. The motorcade, featuring some of the Czech car manufacturer’s most important models, around the company’s headquarters in Mladá Boleslav is a highlight of the company’s 125th-anniversary celebrations. The selected vehicles range from the L&K Voiturette A, the brand’s first car dating back to 1905, to the still camouflaged ŠKODA ENYAQ iV. The new electric SUV will be officially presented later this year and heralds the start of a new era for ŠKODA. It combines the ideas, innovations and influences from ŠKODA’s 125-year corporate history in one vehicle.

Starting out from the ŠKODA Museum at the company’s headquarters in Mladá Boleslav, where some of these vehicles are on display as exhibits, the journey through time continues around the town. The route takes the twelve historical models past Mcely Chateau and Loučeň among other sites. ŠKODA’s test centre in Úhelnice is also on the planned circuit.

Each of the twelve milestones of this unique motorcade has shaped its time and added a chapter to the development history of ŠKODA vehicles. The automaker’s tradition is represented by the L&K Voiturette A built between 1905 and 1907, the first generation ŠKODA SUPERB (1934 to 1949) and the ŠKODA POPULAR MONTE CARLO (1936 to 1939) as well as a ŠKODA FELICIA convertible (1959 to 1964), a ŠKODA 1000 MB (1964 to 1969), a ŠKODA TREKKA (1966 to 1972) and a ŠKODA 110 R Coupé (1970 to 1980). The period from the mid-1980s to the present day is represented by the FAVORIT (1987 to 1994), the first generation of the modern OCTAVIA (1996 to 2010), a ŠKODA YETI (2009 to 2017), the ŠKODA SCALA produced since 2018 and a camouflaged ŠKODA ENYAQ iV, which will be presented to the global public soon.

Everything begins with the L&K Voiturette 
A The foundation stone for ŠKODA AUTO’s success story was laid by the founding fathers Laurin and Klement in 1905 with the L&K Voiturette A. It was the company’s first automobile ten years after the company, which began by producing bicycles and later motorbikes, was founded. Highlights from the 1930s include the impressive ŠKODA SUPERB, which was the brand’s flagship model even at that time, offering a spacious interior and a high level of driving comfort, and the ŠKODA POPULAR MONTE CARLO, which, thanks to its transaxle design with a transmission on the rear axle, had outstanding handling characteristics. It was in honour of this special model, which celebrated victories at the legendary Monte Carlo Rally, that ŠKODA introduced the MONTE CARLO designation that still denotes the sporty model versions of the FABIA, SCALA and KAMIQ today. Just like the POPULAR MONTE CARLO, the ŠKODA FELICIA from 1959 is also a design icon. ŠKODA reinvented itself visually with the convertible, reflecting a style that was the height of fashion at the time. 

ŠKODA 1000 MB with self-supporting body and aluminium engine block in the rear 
Three models from the 1960s are also in the line-up. In 1964 ŠKODA introduced a self-supporting body in the revolutionary ŠKODA 1000 MB, thus ushering in the era of the rear engine. The engine block was produced using a patented aluminium die-casting process and underlines the high level of mechanical engineering expertise at the Mladá Boleslav site. The drive concept with rear engine and rear-wheel drive was also utilised in the ŠKODA 110 R from 1970. The ŠKODA 130 RS, which was successful both in rallies and on circuits, later built on the sporty two-door coupé and is still remembered today in ŠKODA’s sporty RS models. Based on the original OCTAVIA, the TREKKA, which was built in New Zealand starting in 1966, is an early forerunner of today’s SUVs. The off-roader was tailor-made to meet customer needs and requirements specific to the market. 

Front-wheel drive and debut of the modern OCTAVIA 
Another milestone in the historical cavalcade is the ŠKODA FAVORIT. In 1987 ŠKODA launched the front-wheel drive with the compact model designed by Bertone and offered COMBI and PICKUP variants in addition to a hatchback. The 1996 OCTAVIA was the first ŠKODA model to be developed wholly under the umbrella of the Volkswagen Group, paving the way for the company to become a volume manufacturer. Its spaciousness and attractive price-performance ratio subsequently become an integral part of ŠKODA’s product identity. The ŠKODA YETI marked the brand’s successful entry into the SUV segment in 2009. This segment, in which the KAMIQ, KAROQ, KODIAQ and the upcoming ENYAQ iV form a complete SUV family today, is opening up new customer groups for the brand. The YETI also enjoyed great popularity thanks to its many innovative Simply Clever ideas, such as the individually adjustable VarioFlex seats. ŠKODA introduced a new design language with the SCALA in 2018 and now offers an even more emotive exterior in addition to the generous space characteristic of the brand. At the same time, the manufacturer took a leap forward in the area of connectivity – the SCALA is the first ŠKODA ‘always online’. 

ENYAQ iV leads ŠKODA towards an electric future 
Just as the other eleven milestones have shaped their eras, the new ŠKODA ENYAQ iV will have a significant impact on the coming years. It combines all ŠKODA’s virtues such as ingenuity, inventiveness, design expertise and boldness with forward-looking technologies. It represents the essence of all the brand values; it is surprising, practical, and Simply Clever. The ENYAQ iV is the result of 125 years of development experience, creativity and passion and is leading the company towards a sustainable and electric future. The world premiere will take place in the second half of the year, and the market launch is set for the first quarter of 2021.

Article source: ww.skoda-auto.com