Skoda Auto Volkswagen India (SAVWIPL) is planning an aggressive product push in 2026, with up to 19 product interventions across its portfolio. The group’s six brands - Skoda, Volkswagen, Audi, Bentley, Lamborghini and Porsche will see updates and new introductions during the year spanning locally manufactured models, imported units and updates across segments and powertrains.
Speaking about the roadmap, SAVWIPL managing director and chief executive officer Piyush Arora said, “We are talking about 18-19 product interventions across the group. This is what we are looking at for this year, and these product interventions are in the local product, parts and components, cars, CBUs, all kinds of segments of the complete portfolio which we have.”
- Volkswagen targets double-digit growth in 2026
- Focus on sub-4m SUVs and India 2.0-led growth
Focus on high-volume segments and India 2.0 strategy
Volkswagen has confirmed at least four product actions for India in 2026, which are expected to include additional units of the Golf GTI, a lower-spec Tayron, the Virtus facelift and the recently unveiled Taigun facelift. Volkswagen India brand director Nitin Kohli said, “We have already introduced two models this year, and every quarter, you will see one action from our side. So, we remain committed to that. As of now, the plan stays home.”
Audi is expected to introduce the Q3, A6 e-tron and e-tron GT facelift, while Skoda’s plans include the Slavia facelift and the Elroq.
Volkswagen India continues to evaluate high-volume segments such as sub-4 metre SUVs as part of its growth strategy. Kohli said, “Sub-4 metre is a volume-driven space. It almost caters to 28-29 percent of the segment and even higher if I take overall.”
He added that the company is continuously evaluating “various different markets, various segments and various different powertrains”, with current volumes largely driven by its India 2.0 models and ongoing product updates.
Volkswagen India is targeting double-digit growth, supported by its upcoming launches. Kohli said, “As a brand, we are looking at double-digit growth this year, given the new product interventions we have lined up.”
FTA uncertainty impacts short-term demand
SAVWIPL said it is seeing some near-term impact on demand, particularly for imported models, amid ongoing Free Trade Agreement (FTA) discussions. Arora said, “We are seeing some amount of challenge as customer expectations are changing with evolving FTA discussions,” adding that this has led to a wait-and-watch approach among buyers of completely built units (CBUs).
However, the company sees potential upside from these developments. Arora said, “This gives us an opportunity to get the cars faster, this will help us get new models to test the waters,” adding that the approach will begin with imports before scaling volumes locally.
Market outlook remains mixed
On broader demand trends, SAVWIPL said the market saw stronger-than-expected growth in the early part of the year following GST 2.0-led momentum. “Post GST, the demand that we have seen, the upswing we saw in the first quarter, the market has grown by double digits, which many of us were not expecting,” Arora said.
However, he cautioned that geopolitical developments could impact demand going forward. “West Asia war impact could be seen in the second quarter. It is a challenging quarter for the automotive industry,” he added.