Skoda Australia: We are officially a mainstream brand

Skoda has confirmed it is on track for 7000 Australian sales in 2019, a milestone that has prompted officials to declare the Czech brand a mainstream offering.

Primed to overtake Swedish car-maker Volvo in the Australian sales charts, Skoda has been on a long but steady upward trajectory ever since it arrived in Australian showrooms in 2007 under the ownership of the Volkswagen Group.

Volkswagen Group Australia corporate communications boss, Paul Pottinger, said Skoda had completed its transition to a mainstream brand.

"Skoda is no longer a niche player in the Australian market,” he said. “We're proving that with this year's sales and we're well on track to 10,000 cars a year in the next couple of years."

Pottinger says that the 2020 introduction of both the Rapid-replacing Skoda Scala hatch and all-new Skoda Kamiq small SUV are the products that will help the Czech brand maintain a 'steady' 10,000 cars a year.

Set to match both Renault and Land Rover in the Australian sales race, Skoda’s reach could have extended even further this year if it weren’t for supply issues from the factory, according to Pottinger.

Missing from the line-up this year was the flagship 140TSI version of the mid-size Karoq due to continual delays.

Volkswagen Australia’s PR man said the SUV’s blend of a punchy 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder and all-wheel drive could have seen the Karoq become a best-seller within the Australian line-up, outperforming even the large Kodiaq SUV.