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The 19th Millionth Skoda is a White Fabia

Before Skoda started making cars in 1905, brothers Vaclav Laurin and Vaclav Klement used to make bicycles and motorcycles. Fast-forward to December 2016 and, after 111 years of producing cars and trucks and 25 years with the VW Group, the Czech brand celebrates its 19th millionth vehicle: a white Fabia.
19th Millionth Skoda 11 photos
Photo: Skoda
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Truth be told, a lot has changed during those 111 years. From a single production facility in Mlada Boleslav, the Czech automaker now manufactures its cars in places as far away from Europe as India and China. Call it a chance meeting with the Volkswagen Group back in 1991, but there is no denying that the Volkswagen-owned brand is on an upward trend as of late.

“We have 19 million reasons to be proud,” said Michael Oeljeklaus, the board member responsible for production and logistics. “This milestone underscores the performance of our Czech and international production sites, as well as the competence of our team.” That would be "teams" with an “s”, not "team," for a couple of reasons: a) 7 model series from the Citigo city car to the Kodiaq and Superb; b) 14 assembly plants located in 7 countries.

The 19th millionth Skoda was built on December 19, 2016, less than a year after the automaker announced that it had completed the 18th millionth vehicle on January 19, 2016. The 18th millionth car was a Superb Combi. To put these numbers into perspective, Skoda produced its 5th millionth vehicle in 1991, the same year Volkswagen acquired 30 percent of the company.

What’s next for Skoda? Well, according to the mothership’s Strategy 2025 plan, the future is three things: electrified, autonomous, and a place where alternative taxi services reign supreme. The first Skoda models slated for electrification are the Superb sedan and Kodiaq crossover SUV.

Michael Oeljeklaus reiterates VAG's plans for Skoda Auto as follows: “We are going to build on this development over the coming years. The foundation for this is our Strategy 2025, which will prepare Skoda sustainably for the processes of change in society and the automotive industry.”
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About the author: Mircea Panait
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After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well.
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