Europe’s largest car maker has decided not to go with M&M’s INGLO platform for launching EVs in India, and will instead develop four models based on a modified version of its CMP or China Main Platform. Ketan Thakkar and Hormazd Sorabjee report.
15 Jan 2025 | 6002 Views | By Ketan Thakkar, Hormazd Sorabjee
Skoda Auto Volkswagen India, the local subsidiary of Europe’s largest car maker, Volkswagen AG, has decided to go with its own internal, electric vehicle architecture while continuing to explore alliances and partnerships in the country. The company had explored Mahindra’s INGLO EV platform and NFA or New Flexible Architecture for ...
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Skoda Auto Volkswagen India, the local subsidiary of Europe’s largest car maker, Volkswagen AG, has decided to go with its own internal, electric vehicle architecture while continuing to explore alliances and partnerships in the country. The company had explored Mahindra’s INGLO EV platform and NFA or New Flexible Architecture for internal combustion engine vehicles.
However, these conversations did not fructify, and the European auto major has instead decided to localise its own global architectures—the CMP platform for EVs, and the MQB A037 vehicle architecture for petrol and hybrid vehicles.
As such, the carmaker has kicked off the development of the IMP, or ‘India Main Platform’ for EVs – a derivative of the CMP (China Main Platform), with strong localised elements to cater to the domestic cost structure and regulations.
This platform will spawn four electric SUVs for the group, with two models each for the Skoda and VW brands: A compact SUV EV and a mid-size SUV for both Skoda and Volkswagen brands are planned on the IMP platform.
The company also intends to use India as an export base for these EVs, which will be shipped to markets around the world, said sources.
On the ICE side, the MQB A037 will be the base for the next-gen Skoda Kushaq and Volkswagen Taigun, which will be bigger and wider and will come with new electrical and electronic architectures to offer SDV features. The platform is compatible with hybrid technology.
Several people in the know say that six to eight products are on the drawing board based on these vehicle architectures, and the program will require an investment of 1-2 billion euros.
Mooted as a PEAK EV project, the Indian office of VW Group had started exploring a localised EV version of the group’s Europe MEB21G platform. However, the project was seen as unviable, forcing the company to shift focus to the CMP architecture from China.
Given the deadline to meet the upcoming CAFE 3 norms, it is a race against time for Skoda Auto VW to introduce its cleaner alternatives for the Indian market.
Without confirming or denying the plans for these vehicle platforms, a Skoda Auto Volkswagen India spokesperson emphasised that India is crucial to the growth strategy of Skoda Auto Volkswagen India group; and that it wants to bring the broadest and most up-to-date product portfolio to customers here.
"The capabilities we have to build in India, for India, and related export capacity are helping the group’s internationalisation strategy,” the person said, adding that the group recently unveiled the Skoda Kylaq.
“At the same time, we continue to consider other models across our brands for Indian consumers, including hybrid and electric powertrains, apart from efficient ICE vehicles,” the spokesperson added.
The company exited the diesel powertrain market after the global ‘dieselgate’ scandal, and the group’s powertrain options have been limited to petrol and turbocharged petrol for the Indian market.
Given the rise in electrified vehicle options across vehicle makers in India, VW Group has been compelled to look at electric and hybrid vehicle options to stay relevant. Skoda Auto Volkswagen India believes that EV penetration in India is expected to grow to between 15% and 30% by the end of the decade. VW’s global strategy is to offer customers the ‘best of both worlds’ in terms of powertrain options and body variants.