Skoda to preview self-driving, EV tech with Vision E concept
Skoda will preview self-driving and electric drivetrain technologies with the Vision E crossover concept that the Czech automaker will debut next month at the Shanghai auto show.
The company said that the Vision E, which Skoda calls an SUV coupe, previews a production model due in 2020.
The concept has a range of up to 500 kilometers (311 miles) on a single charge, Skoda said in a statement.
The car also offers Level 3 autonomous driving, which means the vehicle can steer, accelerate and brake within its lane. This will allow drivers to take their hands off the steering wheel during stop-and-start highway traffic.
The Vision E is powered by twin electric motors that give it all-wheel-drive capability and a power output of 225 kilowatts (301 hp).
The concept is 4,645 mm (182.9 inches) long, 1,917 mm (75.5 inches) wide and 1,550 mm (61 inches) tall, making it longer than the VW Tiguan compact crossover but not quite as tall.
Skoda said the vehicle has short overhangs, and its long wheelbase gives it "extremely generous" interior space.
The Vision E continues the naming policy used by Skoda for concepts that preview the brand¡¯s latest design language. "You see the progression of the design from the Vision S to the Vision E," a Skoda spokesman told Automotive News Europe.
The Vision S previewed Skoda's Kodiaq SUV, which went on sale in February. Skoda chose to unveil the concept in China because sales of electric vehicles in that market are growing fast. "For electromobility, China is ahead of the European market and the government is strongly supporting it," the spokesman said.
China is also Skoda's biggest single market, accounting for 370,000 of the 1.1 million cars the brand sold last year.
Skoda plans to launch five battery-electric cars by 2025, using parent Volkswagen Group's modular MEB architecture for EVs.
As part of its electrification strategy, the brand's first plug-in hybrid, a version of the Superb sedan, will arrive in 2019.
The concept has a range of up to 500 kilometers (311 miles) on a single charge, Skoda said in a statement.
The car also offers Level 3 autonomous driving, which means the vehicle can steer, accelerate and brake within its lane. This will allow drivers to take their hands off the steering wheel during stop-and-start highway traffic.
The Vision E is powered by twin electric motors that give it all-wheel-drive capability and a power output of 225 kilowatts (301 hp).
The concept is 4,645 mm (182.9 inches) long, 1,917 mm (75.5 inches) wide and 1,550 mm (61 inches) tall, making it longer than the VW Tiguan compact crossover but not quite as tall.
Skoda said the vehicle has short overhangs, and its long wheelbase gives it "extremely generous" interior space.
The Vision E continues the naming policy used by Skoda for concepts that preview the brand¡¯s latest design language. "You see the progression of the design from the Vision S to the Vision E," a Skoda spokesman told Automotive News Europe.
The Vision S previewed Skoda's Kodiaq SUV, which went on sale in February. Skoda chose to unveil the concept in China because sales of electric vehicles in that market are growing fast. "For electromobility, China is ahead of the European market and the government is strongly supporting it," the spokesman said.
China is also Skoda's biggest single market, accounting for 370,000 of the 1.1 million cars the brand sold last year.
Skoda plans to launch five battery-electric cars by 2025, using parent Volkswagen Group's modular MEB architecture for EVs.
As part of its electrification strategy, the brand's first plug-in hybrid, a version of the Superb sedan, will arrive in 2019.
