The Octavia has been well-received by Chinese customers. Skoda expects the model's new exterior design and power options to further expand its customer base.?[China Daily]

Management at the Czech brand Skoda vows the car will play a bigger role in sales growth at SAIC Motor Co Ltd, its parent company Volkswagen Group's joint venture in Shanghai.

Zhang Hailiang, executive director for sales and marketing at the joint venture, said that due to its blistering growth, Skoda will account for 20 percent of overall sales for the partnership this year. The brand contributed 16 percent of all car sales by the venture in 2009.

"In the long term, the rate will rise to 30 percent," Zhang said.

He revealed the goal for Skoda recently when Shanghai Volkswagen (SVW), one of the top passenger car producers in China, launched a redesigned Skoda Octavia Mingrui compact sedan in the booming coastal city of Suzhou.

The joint venture also makes the Skoda Superb Haorui mid-sized sedan and Fabia Jingrui subcompact as well as a phalanx of Volkswagen models.

Skoda's China sales in the first quarter of this year skyrocketed by 112 percent year-on-year to 42,707 cars. Overall sales of Shanghai Volkswagen in the same period grew by 57.4 per cent to 211,191 units.

Zhang didn't reveal how many Skoda cars the joint venture plans to sell this year. If current momentum continues, Skoda could sell 200,000 units this year in China, analysts predict, up from 123,000 in 2009.

The new Skoda Octavia Mingrui, which retails between 123,000 and 185,500 yuan, has a more dynamic and fashionable front exterior than its predecessor.

In addition to previous options of 1.6, 1.8TSI (turbocharged stratified injection) and 2.0 liter engines, the redesigned Octavia has a new engine option of the fuel-efficient 1.4TSI that comes with two transmission options: a five-speed manual and seven-speed DSG (double-shift gearbox).

Since the Octavia Mingrui was launched as Skoda's first China-made model in the middle of 2007, its has sold 250,000 units in the country.

"The Octavia Mingrui has been well-received by Chinese customers. The new model will further expand our customer base by offering a new exterior design and power options," Zhang said.

"The Skoda brand has been an important pillar of Shanghai Volkswagen and will play a bigger role to enhance the joint venture's overall market competitiveness."

He said Shanghai Volkswagen will continue to introduce new Skoda products in the years to come, including derivatives based on its three strategic models - the Octavia, Fabia and Superb.

The joint venture is also conducting a feasibility study on offering Skoda's compact sports-utility vehicle, the Yeti, he said.

The Yeti was launched in Europe last May with five engine options ranging from 1.2 liters to 2.0 liters.

Zhang said Shanghai Volkswagen will further expand the Skoda dealer network to 300 outlets by the end of this year, up from 247 in 2009.