Skoda India To Reintroduce Diesel Engine With New Superb? | V3Cars

New Skoda Superb And Kodiaq Likely To Launch In Mid-2025

Skoda Auto’s Head Of International Sales, Petr Janeba, confirmed the carmaker’s TDI diesel engine could return with the new Superb sedan, which is scheduled to launch in India in mid-2025. The Superb is likely to be followed by the new Kodiaq SUV.

The new Superb and Kodiaq are expected to go on sale via the completely knocked down route (CKD) with locally manufactured 2.0-litre petrol engines. However, considering there is still demand for diesel engines in the country, Skoda could offer the Superb and Kodiaq with the 2.0-litre diesel engine in limited numbers via the completely built unit (CBU) route.

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Why Are Diesel Cars Still Popular In India?

Carmakers like Hyundai, Kia, Tata and Mahindra have remained bullish on diesel engines compared to manufacturers like Maruti Suzuki, Honda, Skoda, and Volkswagen, among others. Their strategy to continue offering diesel engines in models like the Creta, Alcazar, Seltos, XUV300, XUV700, and Scorpio N have paid dividends in the long run. In the case of the Creta, Hyundai claims 45 percent of Creta sales in India comprise diesel variants, while over 60 percent of Tucsons, which rivals the Skoda Kodiaq, are equipped with diesel engines.

Diesel cars remain popular in India for several reasons. But what continues to drive diesel car sales in India are their relatively lower running costs. Despite the closing gap in prices of petrol and diesel fuel, the km-to-breakeven for diesel cars is quite acceptable, especially if you intend to own them for a long period.

For example, the base variant of the Hyundai Creta diesel is priced at a premium of around Rs. 1.0 lakh over the corresponding petrol variant. However, with a cost-per-km difference of Rs. 1.57, you can recover the higher upfront cost in just under 70,000km. Between the Kia Sonet turbo petrol and diesel variants equipped with the auto-clutch manual transmission (ACMT), the km-to-breakeven is even lesser at just 13,000km.

Further, diesel engines are a lot more reliable in the long run, especially when compared to modern turbo petrol and hybrid engines. Thus, they appeal to buyers who want their cars to last longer. They also offer higher torque and lower RPMs, which improves drivability and also well-suited for hauling loads or tackling challenging terrain, which is beneficial in India's varied driving conditions. Last but not least, thanks to their perceived longevity and fuel efficiency, diesel cars often hold their resale value better than petrol cars in India.

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