What's the news?
Skoda is rapidly filling in its SUV line-up and has given us a glimpse of a forthcoming addition to its portfolio, ahead of its debut at the Geneva Motor Show in March.
Although the Czech company is being coy about this newcomer for now - not offering much in detail beyond the image you can see here - it's worth looking elsewhere in the Volkswagen Group for an idea of the Skoda's market positioning and a rough guide to its physical size.
Volkswagen itself, and upmarket Audi, are well ahead of Skoda and SEAT in terms of their SUV offerings. So, moving up in size from B-segment through the C- and D-segments (and a few executive market sectors for good measure), Volkswagen has the incoming T-Cross, while the T-Roc, Tiguan and Touareg are already on sale.
Audi's hierarchy is even more simple to understand: there's the Q2, then the Q3, then the Q5 and finally a choice of the Q7 or the Q8.
Skoda and SEAT, then, in trying to play catch-up, used existing technologies to launch their first contenders in 2016. Skoda went big first of all, doing its D-segment Tiguan/Q5-rivalling Kodiaq before moving down to its C-segment T-Roc/Q3 analogue, the Karoq, in 2017.
SEAT instead started with the C-segment Ateca, which is built on the same line as the Skoda Karoq, before going down to the B-segment with the Arona, comparable to a T-Cross or Q2, also in 2017.
However, as Skoda and SEAT have a little friendly 'in-house' rivalry with each other, it has obviously irked the Czech company that Spain released its third SUV, the D-segment Tarraco, in 2018. So here's Skoda hitting back with what is almost certainly its smallest crossover/SUV model, designed to fit in beneath the Karoq in the model line-up.
What little Skoda does say about its Geneva-bound machine is that it has 'distinctive' new LED headlamps with separated daytime running lights above. These incorporate dynamic indicators, which is to say directional-sweep affairs like those first seen on various Audis. Skoda also adds that the 'urban crossover' has the agility and handling of a compact car, yet all the benefits of an SUV, such as a raised seating position, greater all-round visibility and easier ingress/egress to/from the cabin.
The company finally confirms that the incoming crossover will be based on the MQB chassis and will feature new driver assistance systems, as well as plenty of the brand's 'Simply Clever' hallmark interior features.
Anything else?
One thing we do know about this as-yet-unnamed crossover is that whatever moniker Skoda picks for it, the word will begin with 'K' and end in 'q', following the Czech firm's preferred system that has already given us Karoq and Kodiaq.