Skoda promises distinctive new electric city car
SKODA IS SET to follow its Volkswagen and Cupra stablemates in offering a compact urban EV atop the Volkswagen Group’s MEB Entry architecture. The new model will essentially serve as a replacement for the axed Citigo-e iv.
Asked when Skoda will show off a sibling to the Volkswagen ID 2 and Cupra Urban Rebel, Skoda CEO Thomas Schäfer said: “Our colleagues from Seat, Cupra and Volkswagen are pushing ahead a little stronger on that side. Within the group, we’re balancing this a bit.
“We’re coming shortly with an announcement on this one but rest assured it will be differentiated from our sister brands and a beautiful concept that really fits Skoda.”
Volkswagen and Cupra unveiled radically different takes on the electric city car formula at last year’s Munich motor show, with the ID Life taking the form of a chunky, T-cross-size crossover and the Urban Rebel sitting closer to the ground and drawing obvious inspiration from hot hatchbacks.
Both are due on sale in 2025, but given that Skoda has yet to show its interpretation of the formula, the brand is likely to enter the segment some time later.
Skoda has historically pitched its models at a lower price point than their Volkswagen Group siblings, but whether it will be able to undercut the ID 2’s targeted £17,000 price remains to be seen. Nevertheless, it will be similar in its technical makeup, given the modularity of the MEB architecture.
The ID Life concept, which previews the ID 2, measures 4091mm long and 1845mm wide, figures that Skoda’s smallest EV is expected to broadly match. However, it’s unclear whether Skoda will seek to position it as an entry-level SUV or have it ride closer to the ground like a conventional city car.
Notably, Volkswagen has previously hinted that the
ID 2 will be twinned with a lower-slung but similarly sized model called the ID 1, which paves the way for Seat, Cupra and Skoda to each launch a pair of entry-level EVS.