Leasing is turning out to be a popular alternative to buying vehicles outright. Allowing a user to own a car on a “pay-as-you-go” basis, leasing options these days are far more comprehensive and also take care of the vehicle’s maintenance and insurance needs. Skoda Auto India has introduced a Clever Lease program for salaried individuals, working professionals, SMEs, corporate entities, and PSUs. Under this initiative, the monthly lease for Skoda’s model range will start at INR 22,580.
The programme is offered across eight metropolitan cities: Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Kolkata and Hyderabad. The Clever Lease program incorporate road tax, insurance, breakdown assistance, accidental repairs, end to end maintenance, scheduled tyre and battery changes, and a replacement vehicle.
With a gamut of flexible solutions: plain, dry, or wet lease, one can avail monthly rentals for a tenure of 24, 36, 48, and 60 months on the Skoda Rapid TSI and the Skoda Superb. Along with the aforementioned eight cities, a nationwide rollout is planned in the subsequent phase, as part of the ‘INDIA 2.0’ project. The carmaker has partnered with ORIX for this initiative.
Commenting on this new program, Mr Zac Hollis, Brand Director – ŠKODA AUTO India, said: “The automotive industry, the world over, is witnessing a transformation and it is imperative that we evolve too: from a traditional automobile manufacturer to a mobility solution partner. Be it state-of-the-art products or services, as a customer-focused organization, we at ŠKODA AUTO India strive to meet the ever-changing needs and requirements of our discerning customers. We expect leasing to grow multi-fold over the next couple of years and with the tangible benefits of ‘Clever Lease’, we intend to suitability cater the demand of a generation that weighs convenience over ownership.”
Going forward, Skoda Auto should introduce its premium B-SUV next year, based on the Vision IN concept which was unveiled at the Auto Expo 2020. This new product will be built entirely in India on a completely new platform and will be up against the likes of the Seltos and the Creta. The same platform will also be shared with new Skoda products for India, which is said to include the new-gen Rapid sedan.