Indian Skoda Fabia due for a facelift soon

: New 2010 Skoda Fabia Car

Skoda is premiering a bunch of it’s facelifted Fabia hatchback variants at the 2010 Geneva Auto Show and we’re leaning on the facelifted versions, making it to our Indian shores sometime later this year. A primary reason for that would be the Indian Skoda Fabia’s dismal sales which shows now signs of an upward swing despite massive price cuts from Skoda India’s side. Another reason is that the Skoda Fabia, though well built suffers from a couple of underpowered engine options that are just too slow, too noisy and a bitch to maintain for this day and age of frugal, ultra refined engines like the K-Series engine range from Maruti Suzuki.

Adding insult to injury, Skoda India’s shoddy and corrupt after sales service is a major pain in most Skoda owners’ behinds. Here’s the killer punch for the Skoda Fabia, right from within the family. Presenting, the Volkswagen Polo. Volkswagen India as we all know has pulled off a coup of sorts by pricing the Polo hatchback extremely competitively and in the process has completely obliterated the little chance the Fabia has had to trumpet it’s German build quality to potential buyers.

On the ropes and reeling from all these punches, Skoda India needs to desperately do something to boost Skoda Fabia sales and the Geneva Auto Show could have a few answers in store. The facelifted Skoda Fabia, to be unveiled at Geneva doesn’t look too dissimilar to current versions except for a grille redesign and a wider bumper that now sits a wee little lower.

While the Skoda Fabia hasn’t been great friends with the beautician, it looks like the Fabia has been flitting around with the heart surgeon for a while now. So, it gets half a dozen new engines that include four petrols and couple of diesels.

Here’s the entire bunch of variants for you.

1.2 6V 60 bhp
1.2 12V 70 bhp
1.2 TSI 85 bhp
1.2 TSI 105bhp (manual and DSG)
1.6 TDI CR DPF 90 bhp
1.6 TDI CR DPF 105 bhp

Now, from these engine options, we’re particularly enamored with the 1.2 TSI Petrol with 105 horses and 1.6 TDI Diesel with 90 Bhp. If Skoda India indeed manages to shoehorn these engines into the Fabia’a engine bay, we’re pretty sure that they’ll get come decent volumes spinning with the diesel and the status of a hot hatch maker, pun intended, with the delightful TSI petrol.

Of course, good pricing will be the key and we hope that Skoda India gets it right this time around. All this and more could happen in the next six months. Keep an eye out.

Update: Skoda Fabia Car Launch 2011: New Models & Engine Options

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One Response to “Indian Skoda Fabia due for a facelift soon”

ravinder sharma on April 26th, 2010 3:58 pm

Can you give the complete details of 1.2 tsi 105 hp engine.The fabia must increase its ground clearance to 170mm or more for sure success. ravinder kumar.PL REPLY OR CONTACT. 09810833339

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