4th gen Skoda Fabia design sketches revealed

The fourth-generation Fabia is on its way and the unveiling is scheduled for May 2021. For now, Skoda has handed out the design sketches, and few technical details. Will the new Skoda Fabia be considered for India? Find out below

Skoda Auto has given out the design sketches of the new Fabia hatchback. Along with the teaser of what the hatchback could look like, Skoda has also given out a few facts and details of the new Fabia ahead of its unveiling sometime in May 2021.

To begin with the looks, the front three-quarter angle of the Fabia showcases a fascia that’s in line with the family design. The bonnet gets a mild bulge that runs from the nose of the car to the windshield. The vertically slatted grille gets a chunky chrome surround and flanked by slim LED projector headlamps.

The side profile exhibits minimum body moldings and Skoda has confirmed that the new Fabia has a 0.28 co-efficient of drag. Coming further back, the tail lamp assemble gets new sharper styling cues. Similar to what we have observed on the recently showcased Kushaq and Kodiaq facelift SUVs. The hatch is expected to be redesigned to offer a greater aperture for easy access to the boot. The sketches show the new Fabia shod with a newly designed set of five-spoke alloy wheels. The standard size on offer could be 15-16-inch whereas larger wheels could be optional in the international markets. The new Fabia has also grown substantially. The car is now 111mm longer and 48mm wider than its predecessor and has gained 94mm in its wheelbase. 

While there is no glimpse of the inside, the dashboard will be largely changed and the steering wheel will sport a new design – the two-spoke steering wheel that’s seen on recent Skoda cars. Expect a new software and user interface for the infotainment multimedia system.

The engines on offer could be a 1.0-litre naturally aspirated unit and a 1.0-litre turbo-petrol motor. While the former will deliver a power output of 80bhp, the latter could be available in two states, 94bhp and 108bhp. The choices of gearbox could be a five-speed and six-speed manual, or a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic depending on the variant.

There is a possibility that Skoda could offer the new Fabia with its new 1.5-litre turbocharged petrol EVO engine – the same unit that does duty in the Skoda Kushaq, new Octavia and the Volkswagen Taigun – and offer a vRS model for the enthusiasts. The engine is capable of churning out 148bhp and can be had with a six-speed manual or a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox.

The Skoda Fabia that was on sale in India was based on the company’s PQ24 platform – a derivation of which is the PQ25 that underpins the current Rapid and Vento on sale in India – which is also the base of the India spec Polo. The new Fabia will be based on Volkswagen’s MQB platform. Also, there exists a heavily Indianised and localised version of the MQB platform called the MQB-A0-IN that is the base for the upcoming Skoda Kushaq and Volkswagen Taigun.

The international spec Polo that was showcased at the Auto Shanghai Show 2021, and the upcoming Fabia are above 4-metres in length. It is very unlikely that VW Group would consider both the hatchback for the Indian market, as both the Polo and Fabia will lose the tax benefits that vehicles under 4-metres in length get. Also, the vehicles based on the MQB platform could be sold in India via the CKD route, which in turn could be an expensive affair in the market that is largely SUV driven. However, there is a possibility that the VW group could commission an Indianised version of both the new Polo and the Upcoming Fabia that will be based on the new MQB-A0-IN platform making the cars comply with the length advantage and localisation benefits.

Also Watch,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Z9lP91LcmM