Car News That Mattered: Launch Reports, Price Hikes, New Spy Shots, Details On Upcoming Models, And More

The last week’s highlights were new car launches, price hikes, and commencement of bookings for upcoming three-row models

The second week of January 2022 saw multiple launches in the form of facelifts and a new-gen luxury SUV. It was also when Kia and Audi opened bookings for the Carens and the facelifted Q7, respectively.

Here’s a brief look at everything that happened in the last week:

Launch Reports

2022 Skoda Kodiaq Launched: Skoda’s flagship SUV, the Kodiaq, has returned to India in its facelifted avatar after it was discontinued in 2020. The 2022 SUV comes with cosmetic enhancements and a couple of feature additions, but with a big update under the hood. The SUV was sold out for four months within 24 hours of its launch.

Facelifted Toyota Camry Comes To India: The facelifted Toyota Camry has arrived in India. The hybrid executive sedan comes with cosmetic and feature updates, for a premium.

Fifth-gen Range Rover Launched In India: The Land Rover Range Rover has always made a statement for itself, and its fifth-gen iteration is no different. While international markets got it in 2021, the carmaker has brought the luxury SUV to India, with a range of powertrain options and an expansive list of features.

Spy Shots

Citroen C3 Spied Undisguised: Citroen’s second launch for India will be the C3 and the petite SUV has been spied undisguised for the first time. The spied model seemed to be  production-ready as indicated by some of the details seen.

Jeep Grand Cherokee Spied: Jeep’s flagship SUV, the Grand Cherokee, was unveiled in its fifth-gen avatar in 2021 in two versions: two-row and three-row. A heavily camouflaged test mule of the former was spied in India recently, ahead of its expected launch in September.

Price Hikes Galore

Multiple carmakers such as Honda, Citroën, Renault, Mahindra, and Hyundai joined the likes of Skoda and Volkswagen who have increased prices of their offerings. Among the new batch, the hike has been as steep as up to Rs 98,000.

Bookings Open For Kia And Audi’s Three-Row Models: Kia and Audi have opened bookings for their respective three-row models. While the Kia Carens will be launched in the first quarter of this year, the facelifted Audi Q7 will go on sale in January itself.

Upcoming Models, Teasers, And Unveil

Toyota’s Pickup Truck Has A Launch Date: Toyota seems to have set its eyes straight on Isuzu’s D-Max V-Cross with the Hilux. The carmaker recently teased the pickup truck, hinting at its launch date later this month.

Tata Safari To Get The Black Treatment Soon: The Safari will finally be getting the Dark Edition that is offered on every premium SUV from the Tata lineup. It’s arriving soon and we have all the juicy details, just for you.

Mercedes-Benz India’s Plans For 2022 Revealed: Luxury carmaker, Mercedes-Benz, has announced its plans for 2022 for our country. It apprised us that it will bring the flagship electric sedan, the EQS, to India as a locally assembled offering to keep the prices competitive. And if you think that’s all, be ready to be surprised.

Volkswagen Sedan’s (Virtus) Unveiling Timeframe Confirmed: As per a recent report, Volkswagen’s top personnel has divulged that its new compact sedan to replace the Vento (that could be called the Virtus) will be revealed in the production-ready form in March.

Jeep Compass Trailhawk To Make A Comeback: While Jeep introduced the facelifted Compass Trailhawk globally in 2020, it’s set to make a comeback in India in the following month. We have detailed all its updates and expected powertrain in our story.

Facelifted Citroën C5 Aircross Unveiled: While the Citroën C5 Aircross has only been on sale for less than a year, the carmaker has already revealed the facelifted SUV for the European markets. As you can expect from a facelift, it gets a range of cosmetic changes and a few new features.