Car Advice

Skoda makes record-breaking sales across the globe

By Brett Davis |

Recent sales numbers have been released and it seems Skoda UK sold 23,248 cars in the first half of 2010. This is a sales increase of 61 percent in the UK compared to this time last year. And, almost half of the units sold were sold to new Skoda customers.

Here at home, 5743 new vehicles were delivered in June, a 16.6 percent increase on 2009 numbers. Globally, 378,747 vehicles were sold in the first half of 2010 too, an overall increase of roughly 15 percent on last year’s sales.

Skoda Uk Director, Robert Hazelwood, said in a recent headlineauto report,

“We have sold 61 percent more cars in the first half of this year than compared to 2009, making the first half of 2010 the most successful six-month trading period in Skoda UK’s history.”

Although this news may not seem very close to home, if sales of a product sold in Australia are on the rise, regardless of where the sales are made, more revenue is made by the company. More revenue heightens the ability for further expansion and development within production. This can also result in even better products for all the consumers, and, possibly, greater deals presented by the company.


 
  • Grammar Nazi

    This goes to show that Australians largely have blinkers on when it comes to brand/badge perception.

    This is a hugely competent (and good value) package that deserves to set the local sales charts on fire.

    • Mikey_94

      Why do you think everyone still blindly buy Toyota’s? Good brands such as Skoda that don’t have an established name in Australia are automatically disregarded because of their lack of brand recognition to the average Joe… Shame, because as you said, this is a really great package. Let’s hope someone knocks Toyota off its perch! :)

    • noj

      You`re spot on Grammar Nazi!

    • A warning for people reading this.

      This blog has been overrun by the skoda fanboys………….LOL anti-spam word Skoda LOL.

      • Golfschwein

        You’d censor enthusiasm? Why? My message to people who don’t like Skodas is to stop reading about them. Reading about them causes hatred and insecurity as it starts to sink in how good they are. Racism, or any ‘-ism’ or phobia, works the same way.

        Stage a lockdown in your nominated suburb, keep the invaders at bay, the newspapers closed and stay happy.

        • Hung Low

          Oh dear, banging your pinhead against the dartboard on the wall again Golfschwein?, Has it not occurred to you the real issue on these Skoda blogs is not the articles or solely the Skoda brand or cars, in reality they need homes too.
          It is the supporters like yourself dishing out the ‘hatred’ or ‘phobia’ of others brands (predominantly the locals) all over these blogs and expect some sympathy and support with your brand of vested interest!
          It is a 2 way street, put up or shut up!

          • Golfschwein

            Show me where I’ve criticised the locals.

  • Blitzkrieg

    That may be true Herr Nazi but nobody in Aust wants to buy one and then try to sell it 3,4,5 years later in a market where no one remembers the name skoda.Same thing happened to Seat in Aust.Cars will be worth a fraction of their initial cost.

    • Jimmy

      I see your point but comparing Seat to Skoda is like apples and oranges. Skoda have product of much higher quality, they have the VW/Audi connection to help their cause too. I suspect they will have pretty good resale value in years ahead. The Top Gear luxury car award has helped quite a bit too.

      • Mikey_94

        Seat has a VW/Audi connection as well, mate. So you may be right about their resale in a few years, but that VW point is irrelevant…

        • Jimmy

          Yep. And Seat is hugely successful. So just remind me how my VW/Audi connection point is irrelevant again?

      • Captain Nemo

        Yeah right Jimbo

        I paid over $40K for my Skoda Octavia the thing has been nothing but trouble since i bought it spends more time off the road than on. So i decided to offload it the best i have been offered was $12K trade in after only 2yrs of ownership pretty poor resale i think.

        • noj

          Keep pulling your pud Nemo!

        • Tomas79

          Last hour it was obvious that usual scitzo troll was going through rigging votes…

          I hope CA do something about her!!

          • noj

            Yeah the CANT can not help herself!

        • jojo

          Captain Nemo
          Your not the only customer apparently burnt by skoda reliability and poor resale value.

          Current Wheels mag has feedback from another disatisfied Skoda customer with ongoing problems. He paid 46K new and sold it at market value for 27k just 2 years later…ooouch.

          Pays to do your research…makes Saab look respectable.

          • noj

            Well I guess there are 2 unhappy Skoda owners, wait 1 because Captain Nemo is just a BOGAN TROLL.

    • Will

      Wishful thinking Blitz.

      Skoda will be marketing quality cars for the local market long after the General Motors Australian subsidiary for example, is reduced to assembling Korean knock ups for Delhi market.

      Skoda is here to stay Blitz, unlike some US subsidiaries. Get used to it.

      • Rhubarb

        I guess after Skoda go belly up here in Australia, VW will be left with a couple hundred warranties to have to cover.
        Shame really for all those who took a punt on buying this orphan brand…pays to do your research before buying.

        • Will

          As per Blitz, Rhubarb. Get used to it.
          Research, lets see your data…

  • Tomas79

    Actully in europe the skoda residule is very high, just watch the fifth gear video where they compare the skoda to a merc!!
    Even though the Skoda take up in Australia is slow, its still expanding, so skoda wont be going anywhere!!!

    But you knew that you troll!!

    • Mikey_94

      LOL @ Fifth Gear

      Top Gear owns :D

      • Tomas79

        Well according to UK TOP GEAR, Skoda Superb is the BEST LUXURY CAR OF 2010, and Skoda Yeti is the BEST family car of 2010!!

        • Frenchie

          Opinions in Europe differ to that in Australia.

          • noj

            That`s because Europeans aren`t uneducated BOGANS!

          • Tomas79

            Thats only a matter of time for Australia to catch up!!
            Skoda Superb all ready won the Best Bang for your buck Best large Car, and Best Bang for your buck best medium car on another Australian Motoring site!!

  • Tomas79

    Funny how a lot of the trolls, or a single troll on this site are/is afraid of Skodas, they make up anything in a bid to try scare uninformed potential customers!!! I reckon CA should should really investigate and prosecute them!!

    • Hung Low

      Imagine that, anyone who does not agree with your diatribe is a troll!
      Tomas79, Will, Jimmy and a few others out here are paid freelance bloggers for Skoda! They troll automotive websites under different aliases demeaning local cars and glorifying the Skoda brand.
      That is all the Skoda marketing budget allows for folks, unfortunately they can only run in the red for so long in Aus and it will take almost a decade of doing so until the public here sees them as a viable and better alternative to an already crowded and competitive market!

      A top seller does not make a car or brand any better than the competition, and who cares about Europeans choice of cars! They needs and requirements for cars by no means reflect or give any indication to the market here in Aus!
      The day I buy and drive a 1.2l diesel hatchback as the family vehicle is the day I would rather neck myself!

      • Hung Low

        “Their needs”

        • Tomas79

          Funny, I have been commenting on this site before SKODA even started selling cars in Australia!!

          I guess 1.2 l diesel won’t be up to your expectation when you roll in a old Datsun, and live with your parents hung short!!

          • Hung Low

            Yes git, you were probably freelancing for another dud brand like Daewoo back then!
            You must think your the king of the streets with your blinged decade old Polo, and your Minto trophy wife occupying the width of your back seat, Pimp daddy!

          • Tomas79

            Daewoo?? Nah, never been a fan of holden!!
            And I don’t drive Polos, but i’d have one over a datsun 120y anyday!!

        • noj

          The BOGAN TROLL has spoken!

          • Hung Low

            Oh dear Noj, you are so far up Tomas79′s ar##, all I can see is you cheap Dunlop Volleys hanging out!

          • noj

            They aren`t dunlop volleys you can see TROLL, they are Nike`s. That`s the problem with BOGANS like you, you can`t tell the difference between quality products and rubbish ones, abit like not being able to see the Skoda is quality and the Aussie cars being garbage.

          • Hung Low

            No worries Noj, as long as you look “upper class” in your Nike’s whilst hanging out of Tomas79′s ar##!
            I fully support your well thought out priorities in life, moron!

      • noj

        Wish you would hurry up and buy a 1.2l diesel Hung Low. Actually I am happy to buy you one, so you can neck yourself.

  • http://caradvice.com.au Brett Davis

    What’s with all the negativity? Skoda make great cars; they are Volkswagen/Audi.
    Sure, they might be made slightly cheaper than the other two brands, but the German quality still outshines most ‘other’ products on the market. Or at least is of equal level. Above all though, they are available at a reasonable price. What’s the big deal?
    Maybe it’s just biased-day today and we were not informed.

    • Tomas79

      Brett,
      All of this negativety just comes from one or 2 people…
      Thats why their nicks are so short, and havent really commented on any other articles… Just trolls!! I reckon CA should take them to court for cyber stalking!!

      • Jimmy

        I have a feeling that Brian, Oh Goody, and Milsie are the same person. They all have the same style, opinion, sporadic use of CAPS, etc etc.

        Anyway, wholeheartedly agree with Tomas79, Brett, Mark et al. There is no bias toward Skoda here, Car Advice are simply reporting on a new, quality product. That’s there job. I’ve really enjoyed reading about the Skoda Superb, it seems like such good value and a real competitor to the other luxury brands.

        Keep up the good work CA.

    • Mark

      I kinda have to agree with Brett. So let me understand the thinking…
      So a brand that is trying to be successful in this market is ostracized for having positive reviews made about their vehicles…i am also having a tough time understanding why there is this massive resistance to the brand?
      I read complaints that Skoda is a dying brand, (I have never heard so much positive talk about a dying brand from 3rd party’s before) or the fact that they have grown YoY in sales not only overseas as this article shows, but as well as here in Australia.
      In regards to the ‘absurd level of endless Skoda propaganda’, have a look at the other car manufacturers that are reviewed here,or anywhere, but it doesn’t seem to be a problem for you to be seeing these other, more familiar brands having things said about them.
      I guess people are truly afraid of the unknown. Instead of trashing it based on positive reviews, go have a test drive and decide for yourself, the folks at CA are attempting to enlighten the Australian public about a good value car (i hope at least), hence the name Car ‘Advice’…or they can keep satisfy the masses and move the sheep to the more familiar big name brands…

    • http://caradvice.com.au Brett Davis

      I’m sorry you feel that way, Brain.
      We like cars, all cars, we don’t really have a hatred toward a particular brand, nor are we obliged to cover stories on any.
      We also welcome and celebrate the introduction of upcoming makes into our country – especially good ones – so we’re happy to report the latest information on them, to help you.
      Thomas79 makes a good point about the Skoda brand and it’s size overseas, too, which may give confidence and reassurance to new buyers thinking of a particular brand that isn’t so common here in Aus.
      As for, “absurd level of endles Skoda-propaganda”. Powerful and painful words. News is news. From tuning, awards to concepts, it’s all written by very different writers, too. Hardly ‘endless Skoda-propaganda’.

  • Blitzkrieg

    By the monthly sales reports on this site Skoda has sold roughly 400 to 500 cars this year in Aust.I would hardly think those figures are enough to maintain a presence in Aust.

    • Hung Low

      The Skoda dealerships will be switching their lights off and cleaning their own toilets to save on overheads with those figures!

  • Tomas79

    Well considering there were only 2 Skoda articles (including this one) in the last month i suggest you find a better site!!

  • Milsie

    Ben, do us a favour and get in your Hyundai Excel and drive it off the nearest cliff. You clearly haven’t driven a Skoda or even sat in one by the looks of things. It’s funny how their “pitiful” Australian sales mean they will close up shop… If this is correct why I am on a 5 month WAITING LIST for my RS to be delivered? It’s not the fact they aren’t selling here, there is limited supply due to European demand.
    Love a good uninformed blogger!

    • Jimmy

      Amen brother.

  • http://caradvice.com.au auto

    if only skoda would wake up and get a LOT MORE dealers out there, their sales would go through the roof.

  • Stitch

    I can remember about 20 years ago when this new Korean manufacture started selling cheap cars in Australia and everyone paid out on them not lasting through the 90′s….Hyundai I think they were called.

    Funny there seem a lot of people afraid of Skoda, give them time and the ability to get some volume of cars into Australia and we will have a winner, no Volkswagen but better than French or Italian brands.

    • Blitzkrieg

      Yes stitch it was 1986 when Hyundai started selling cars here but they didn’t ask $40,000 for their cars knowing in a couple of years they’d worth $12,000.They started at the cheaper end of the market and built their way up to todays,i have to admit fairly solid looking cars.I cant see how Skoda can charge a premium price for their products with a sub premium non existant recognition in this counrty.

  • Brad

    Why don’t we have more dealers in Aus? There’s only 1 in Perth, but very few across the board. For a great quality car and well prices, I don’t understand why more aren’t popping up all the time?

  • vrx26

    Skoda is an emerging brand. The model offerings are good with excellent quality to their built. Depreciation is part of buying any car for that matter, regardless of what brand it is. It’s just a matter of what is personally acceptable to you. With a reasonable price entry for a Skoda depreciation is not an issue and I think 5 years from now every petrol or non- hybrid type of car would go down in depreciation. Alternative fuel technology would be the hype by then and I wouldn’t mind about depreciation as long as enjoyed driving the car now and not going to dealership every now and then to fix a recall.

  • Riker

    How quickly some peoples negative perceptions of Skoda would change if they simply visited a dealership & had a good long look at them. Maybe they should take their Commodores, Falcons etc & see how bad they are quality wise against the equivilent Skoda Superbs. Take one for a drive & feel how much more solid & secure they are on the road than an equivilent Holden or Ford. Sure the Superb sedan/hatch isn’t the best looking car but damn it’s standard features package is quite sensational especially in the base car. The Octavia’s are a little old now but still represent great value & safety. The RS is basically a GolfV GTI & a sweet deal, plus it comes in a wagon.

    If the business case can be made to work, Skoda will have a great future here & with the full backing & support of VW the cars will continue to be very well engineered cars. Solid/smart brand marketing will be the clincher here for Skoda.

  • Walter

    Duh, carAdvice? More sales does not always equal more revenue – so be careful of what you say from now on please.

    This is your first and final warning…

    • Frenchie

      Well if you sell/produce more product ie Skodas, your cost come down thus increasing profit?

      • Hung Low

        Not really, you need more capital for infrastructure, you have greater overheads, which mean profit per unit goes down to a level where selling and producing more does not always give a larger profit margin!

  • Cinderella

    I had my Golf 118TSI in for a service last week and the dealership gave me a Skoda as a loan car. I was very dissapointed at first until I got into it and drove it. It was the same to drive, DSG was standard not optional, RCD510 radio was standard as well. The boot was huge.
    All in all I was very surprised with it, if only I looked at one last year.
    Cheaper than my Golf but the styling I am still not sure about.
    I think VW are on a winner with Skoda.

  • Nick K

    Skoda make worthy cars and appear more reliable than vw or Audi. Problem is that they are only slightly cheaper than a VW. To give Skida a chance it needs to re-price the product to get market traction.

  • Vibe

    They need to get the brand awareness out and then I’m sure it would sell really well.

  • noj

    The fact is Skodas are better built than the locals and going off the amount of negatives votes for any positive comments about Skodas, I`m pretty sure I`m right. Get use to it BOGAN`S, the Skoda is here to stay. Climb out of the cave you live in Neanderthals and experience abit of culture, like the finer things in life, like Skodas.

  • Cinderella

    Why are all the positive comments to the Skoda brand receiving so many thumbs down?
    Is some one upset there are choices now?
    Well little boys there is more to life than what you have always driven, watch out your girlfriend may one day turn up in one.

    • Tomas79

      Cinderalla,
      Those thumbs down are being given by a troll that has been banned many times… And it’s actually a crazy women, with nothing better to do!

      • noj

        Yeah BM and the nut

        • Captain Nemo

          Why don’t you stick to 1 user name then Tommy??
          Tomas/Noj same troll
          Will/Jake02/Jake Williams same troll

          • noj

            Haha Nemo, aren`t you just a TROLL of multiple identities? Fact is Tomas79 isn`t me you dumb TROLL

    • AussieCars

      I do not think its so much Skoda as it is Will, Tomas and others. Instead of being open minded about cars, they defend to the grave anything VW/Skoda and bash just about any other car that does not wear those badges.

      Not saying these people are the only ones on here doing this (you get fanboys everywhere) but its hard to take these peoples comments serious when all they do is defend Skoda and contribute very little elsewhere on this site except to bash another brand.

  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=668475019 Jake Williams

    This is getting a little desperate here, so much as to say that Hung Low thinks that I’m Jake02 and I’m Will. Right…Bit too much alcohol or something there.

    As usual, it’s the people who actually know Skodas against the people who don’t know Skodas, and don’t really seem to know much about anything TBH. And as usual it’s aimed at Skoda Australia’s sales (or lack thereof). To Jojo (you’re a stupid bitch if you believe two bad Skoda stories and realise that those two are the only cases in 3200 cars sold), Captain Nemo (I know you’ve never owned a Skoda – people don’t hate ‘their’ own cars that much), Hung Low (don’t know where to start) etc I say this: get a life. You have no reason to comment on Thomas79/Will/Noj’s posts because you are just as bad :) .
    Thomas79/Will etc: Don’t even bother repying to their comments, if you sink down to their lows then you deserve what’s coming to you. If they say something offensive towards you, don’t even take the liberty of replying because it’s only attention that they want.

    I also offer this, for you lot who are whining on about resale, consider this: it’s not even Skoda’s fault that their resale is low. If you’re new and you launch onto a Market, yes your product is new and unknown, it’s a fact of life in any industry around the world. Hardly worth bashing Skoda Aus over… Imagine if I started bashing Ford/Holden for the same reasons!

    Hopefully over the next year or so (and yes Skoda will be here) this Skoda-bashing will lessen severely. It’s like racism in the car world really; there’s no basis to it. What y’all don’t realise is that Skoda is a high-quality, great value brand that offers tonnes to the Australian Market. If JoJo’s reliability problems are so concerning you have to take your head out of your bum and realise that no car maker offers perfect reliability :) .

    • Tomas79

      Your right Will, there is no point arguing with the trolls.
      Off course, I’m always willing to debate a genuine issue, but there aren’t any to be had here, just sad trolls, dribbling their banter, that have been banned many times before!!
      By the way, funny how some sad psychopath spent her all night going through this site, rigging votes… How sad and lonely the person is!!

      • Will

        Tomas, Jake:

        This is quite sad. The preferential system here needs work. The extent that this blog has been interfered with by a few trolls with head space issues is appalling, if not a little bizarre. Why some people find a car brand so threatening I’m unsure, but it would seem a few trolls suffer the ‘full moon syndrome’ at the smell of the name Skoda. Hopefully they don’t have access to children.

    • Hung Low

      Learn to read! Your identity was questioned by Captain Nemo, not me. But after all that desperate post of recognition by yourself, I do not blame Captain Nemo for calling you out as a FAKE!

  • Hung Low

    Please bet alot of your money on me being Captain Nemo! It will be a change from the pokies for you dimrod!

  • Jimmy

    CarAdvice – I think this comment thread is a classic example of why the thumbs up and down system doesn’t work.

  • ABMPSV

    Skoda is an excellent car. When in England the first Superb come out Top Gear covered the badge and asked people what car it is. Many though it is a BMW, VW…etc when they discovered it is a Skoda they were surprised. Anybody who criticising should drive this car first.

    • Roger Ramjet

      I thought the crooked Skoda grille would be a dead give away even without the badge!

  • RK

    My but this comment thread is a sea of red.

    Fact: Skodas aren’t bad cars.

    Fact: Many years ago, before VW revived the brand, Skodas were regarded like Ladas (certainly out here) and had jokes made about them.

    Fact: VW has made very little effort to educate the average Australian consumer about Skodas, or give them a good reason to make an effort to seek out a Skoda. Heck, I don’t know why I should make an effort to seek out a Skoda, and I would know more about cars than most of the population.

    Fact: Re-sale value is a factor in purchases. Cars which are less familiar with the public and have less of a dealer/servicing network available have reduced re-sale value.

    People not buying Skodas is not because people are silly, but because VW has not put in the effort to promote the brand here, and Skodas don’t bring anything unique to the table to cause people to take a chance on something unknown and which is likely to have worse re-sale.

    I really don’t know why VW bother with Skoda out here if they’re not going to make the effort to differentiate them in some way. The way they position them here, they’re basically pushing Skoda at the same demographics as VW, the same semi-prestige zone.

    • RK

      Which is to say, nothing wrong with the cars, but no reason why they shouldn’t sell them in Australia with a VW badge if they’re not going to do anything with the Skoda brand to give it a different reputation to VW.

  • Blitzkrieg

    I have to agree with those facts RK.Resale and brand recognition are important when you by a car.