Skoda vocational students turn Kodiaq into a pick-up
BY JUSTIN HILLIARD | 26th Mar 2019
SKODA may be turning its Kodiaq seven-seat large SUV into a single-cab pick-up, but do not expect the new body style to make it into production anytime soon.
Instead, the Kodiaq pick-up will be a one-off project created by 35 students, aged 17 to 20 years old, from the Skoda Vocational School for Mechanical Engineering in Mlada Boleslav, Czech Republic.
As such, it will be the sixth show car to be produced since 2014 under the Azubi Car program but the first to use the Kodiaq as its basis, joining last year’s Karoq mid-size SUV-based Sunroq convertible.
Ahead of the wild concept’s reveal in June, the Czech brand has released a teaser sketch of its rear three-quarter angle, previewing the new-found tub, shorter rear side windows, and chunky all-terrain tyres that wrap around large five-spoke alloy wheels.
According to Skoda, “the choice of model series was quite deliberate” for the pick-up concept – the first light-commercial vehicle to be created under the Azubi Car program.
“It emphasises the role the Kodiaq plays for Skoda while using massive wheels, sharp edges and sculptural surfaces to demonstrate that the uncluttered, emotive design of the largest Skoda SUV still leaves plenty of scope for artistic licence,” it said.
Throughout the development process, the students, who are completing three- or four-year training courses, have been assisted by experienced staff from Skoda’s design, engineering and production departments.
This included the opportunity for students to observe Skoda chief designer Oliver Stefani and his team at the Skoda Design Centre that resides in the same city as the Skoda Vocational School for Mechanical Engineering, before they penned their first sketches.
The Azubi Car program also produced the Citigo micro hatchback-based Citijet convertible in 2014, the Fabia light hatch-based Funstar pick-up in 2015, the Rapid Spaceback small hatch-based Atero coupe in 2016 and the Citigo-based Element battery-electric vehicle in 2017.
Sales of the Kodiaq increased significantly this year, with 311 examples sold to the end of February – a 54.7 per cent improvement over the 201 deliveries made during the same period in 2018.
Nonetheless, the Kodiaq is only the 18th best-selling large SUV in the highly competitive sub-$70,000 segment, trailing the Toyota Prado (2919 units) and Kluger (1945), Subaru Outback (1245), Isuzu MU-X (1135) and Hyundai Santa Fe (1083), among others.
