Skoda Slavia 1.5-litre TSI Waiting Period To Come Down: Zac Hollis

• Over 30 percent of Slavia bookings are for 1.5-litre TSI.
• Component supply and semiconductor shortage are reasons for higher demand.
• Skoda aims to bring the waiting period down to two months.
• Slavia 1.5-litre TSI develops 150PS/250Nm, paired with a 6-speed MT and 7-speed DSG.

The Skoda Slavia 1.5-litre TSI might be on the pricier side of the spectrum, but that hasn’t deterred it from being quite victorious. With over 30 percent of the bookings for the larger engine, which Skoda wasn’t anticipating, the sedan currently has a waiting period of 4 months. In fact, Skoda had planned production to serve demand for one and a half months, which clearly isn’t the case at the moment. 

Moving ahead, Skoda is currently ramping up production of the 1.5-litre TSI variants. It is expected to bring it on par with the smaller 1-litre TSI engine, which currently has a wait time of around two months, confirms Zac Hollis, Director, Sales and Marketing, Skoda India. There are some challenges, though, based on Zac’s tweets, and that’s mainly got to do with component supply for the bigger engine. 

Skoda currently produces the 1-litre TSI engine in India and plonks in the imported 1.5-litre TSI mill from Europe. And with the current tiff between Russia and Ukraine, Zac says supply for certain components for the larger engine have taken a hit, therefore, affecting supply. Global semiconductor shortage also has a role to play, and Zac says things should improve from May. 

The Slavia’s 1.5-litre TSI engine develops 150PS and 250Nm, and comes mated with either a 6-speed manual or 7-speed dual-clutch automatic transmissions. Power figures are the same as the first-gen Octavia vRS, and Skoda says this heritage is helping to draw more customers for the 1.5-litre TSI variants. To know our impressions on the Slavia 1.5-litre TSI, read our in-depth first drive review. 

The Skoda Slavia 1.5-litre TSI is priced at Rs 16.19 lakh for the MT and Rs 17.79 lakh for the DSG (both prices ex-showroom). At these prices, the sedan’s only competition is the Honda City hybrid and the upcoming Volkswagen Virtus.