New Skoda Rapid launched; prices start at Rs 8.34 lakh

12.38 p.m. Skoda Rapid launch event concludes.

12.35 p.m.: The star of the event -- the new Skoda Rapid -- takes centre stage.

12.33 p.m.: The new Skoda Rapid gets a price tag starting at Rs 8.34 lakh (ex-showroom Maharashtra).

12.32 p.m.: New Skoda Rapid TVC is being played on the screen.

12.30 p.m.: Engines

At the heart of the Rapid facelift is

1.6 MP petrol /1.5TDI diesel

12.25 p.m: Safety

ABS, Dual front airbags, ESC, rear parking sensor

12.23 p.m.: Interiors

Dual-tone interiors

Premium leather seats and door arm rest

6.5 inch touchscreen infotainment system with Mirrorlink connectivity

Height and length adjustable steering wheels

Intelligent rain sensing wipers

Cruise control

Power windows and many more

Boot Capacity: 460 litres

 12.19 p.m.: The new Skoda Rapid gets

Signature grille with chrome surrounding and Skoda logo sit on top

New bonnet design with sharp edges

Newly designed front bumper with honeycomb grille

Sharp rectangular fog light

New projector headlights

New Rear bumper, C-shaped smoked tail lights, rear spoiler

Chrome detailing on the door, tail gate

New alloys

 12.18 p.m.: Ashutosh Dixit, director, sales, service & marketing takes over the stage from Sudhir Rao.

12.13 p.m.: The new Rapid launch is underway.

12.10 p.m.:Sudhir Rao, Chairman and Managing Director on stage to give the details of the new Skoda Rapid.

12.09 p.m.: New Skoda Rapid facelift launch event begins.

11.54 a.m.: The Skoda Rapid facelift launch event is expected begin shortly.

Skoda Rapid price list

Decks have been cleared to welcome the new avatar of the Rapid sedan in India from Czech carmaker Skoda. The new Rapid facelift will be launched in India on Thursday, November 3.

Skoda Rapid facelift is already open for bookings in the country and the company has started dispatching the models to its dealers. The new Rapid is expected to bear styling changes both inside and outside. While the changes on the exterior are likely to be limited largely in the front, the sedan in its new avatar is expected to get an updated infotainment system with Mirrorlink, automatic AC with dust and pollen filter, front centre armrest and rear AC vents.

The Rapid now gets new front bumper with sharper grille and angular headlamps with LED daytime running lights (DRLs). The front bumper now houses a wide air dam. While the side remains untouched, save for the relocation of indicator to the ORVM, the rear has been reworked. The projector headlamp is expected to be standard across the trims and the DRLs could be limited to the top-spec variant.

Under the hood, the new Rapid facelift will carry over the same 1.6 MPI petrol mill from the current model, while the the 1.5 TDI diesel mill will make way for the new 1.5-litre diesel unit of the Ameo compact sedan. The Ameo diesel generates 108bhp at 4,000rpm and 25Nm of torque at 1,500-3,000rpm. The transmission in the petrol variant is taken care of by five-speed manual and six-speed automatic transmission and five-speed manual and seven-speed automatic transmissions in diesel models.

From the rumours that are doing the rounds on the web, the Rapid facelift is likely to get a price tag starting at Rs 8 lakh.

Stay tuned for more details of the new Skoda Rapid facelift as we bring live updates from the launch floor.