Almost 65km from Czechia’s capital city of Prague, lies Mladá Boleslav: a quaint city in comparison, but one that is equally, if not more, important than the capital itself. Mladá Boleslav has been home to Skoda Auto since its inception in 1895 and everything about the headquarters is extremely impressive. But you’d expect that from a global auto manufacturer; what’s more impressive is the rich heritage and archival data that Skoda has preserved.
To start off, there is a multi-storey museum with some of the most iconic cars and even bikes that came out of the Mladá Boleslav plant. Everything from the first Superb to the Slavia (which was not a car, but a bicycle!) has been preserved and restored to original spec. The walk through the museum is breathtaking, but there is a secret location in the vicinity of the factory that requires exclusive clearance. Thankfully, we had that.
A room full of archives and data going back to the 19th century with blueprints of some of the early cars Skoda produced. It even has service records from the early 1900s looking at classified data from the secret service. Nobody gets access to these drawings and historical prints, so looking at them firsthand was a surreal experience. There was also a leaflet about a long cross-country drive. Skoda was introduced to India in 2001, but it wasn’t actually the first time the Czech brand touched down on our home soil. In 1934, Skoda Auto went on a trip in a Skoda 420 all the way from Praha (present day Prague) to Calcutta (present day Kolkata), traversing over 10 cities all the way across Europe and into India. It was a true test of resilience, showing the world Skoda’s reliability and build quality, which holds true to this day.
And it’s not just data that’s being preserved here; old models like the Rapid, the Pick Up and the Popular get exclusive restoration done by an in-house team of mechanics. Stepping into the restoration area is like going back in time. The tools, hand-beaten panels and analogue instruments are in stark contrast to Skoda’s current state-of-the-art factory that makes the Octavia and even the all-electric Enyaq on the same assembly line.
And how can you talk about Skoda’s finest moments without mentioning its motorsport heritage. Skoda has been one of the forerunners when it comes to the arduous sport of rallying. The 130 LR, Felicia, Fabia, and of course, the Octavia, have all participated in rallies and won. There is an incredible pedigree and heritage that translates into the modern form of the sport as well. A walk through the stunning rally cars shows some incredible ingenuity and race smarts. Parked alongside the rally cars were some of the concepts Skoda used at various auto shows. Some made it into production, some didn’t, but it was incredible to see the genesis of some of the products that made it to India, like the Superb and the Yeti.
Getting access to such iconic locations is not only rare but also very humbling. We drive cars today with so much taken for granted. When you get a first-hand look at what the companies have gone through to get to where they are, you will surely appreciate every little detail and feature on the modern cars. They might not be as exciting or characterful as the classics, but they sure carry a lot of weight in terms of their lineage.
