Volkswagen Group owned Skoda has published a new video of its first-ever dedicated proposal in the compact crossover segment, the Yeti, filmed during the final-preproduction tests that took place in the area around Oslo, Norway. The vehicles tested in Oslo were a 1.8 TSI petrol and a 2.0 TDI diesel, both 4x4 models.

The very first series-production Yeti, a four-wheel drive model fitted with a 1.8 TSI engine, rolled off Skoda’s assembly line at the Kvasiny plant in the Czech Republic on Tuesday 12 May 2009. Sales of Skoda’s RAV4 rivaling crossover are set to start across Europe this summer.

The secretive Yeti is about to come out of hiding – as Skoda’s super-cool new SUV will go on sale here in just over a year’s time.

Auto Express has learned that the car will be available only in five-door form when it reaches showrooms in early 2009. Buyers will be offered a choice of front-wheel-drive or four-wheel-drive versions as Skoda targets the likes of the Toyota RAV4 and Honda CR-V. The engine range is set to include the latest turbo­charged and supercharged petrol motors from parent firm VW.

(more…)