More luxury, more technology and a more striking design will be the hallmarks of Skoda's new Superb, the Czech brand's most expensive model.
This first official sketch shows the car to be a more visually striking proposition than its dowdy forebear, and the company will also pitch the big car as being more fuel-efficient thanks to a range of turbocharged four-cylinder engines, which could see the 2015 Superb ditch its V6 engine.
Currently priced between $31,990 and $52,690 in Australia, the new large car will be revealed a couple of weeks before the 2015 Geneva motor show in March before it goes on sale in Europe in the third quarter of next year.
With a strong character line along its flanks adding a premium look, extending between headlights and brake lights, and a redesigned front-end that carries over design cues first seen in the Skoda Vision C concept, the new-look Superb will set the tone for the Czech brand's forthcoming models.
As recent spy photos of the new Superb revealed, the rear-end of the vehicle has a more mature look and, together with its multi-faceted bonnet and striking headlights with LED running lights, will undoubtedly provide the car more road presence.
Jozef Kaban, formerly a senior Audi designer, is Skoda's head of design and responsible for overseeing the new Superb, which will be longer, wider and lower, adding to its premium look.
The new model will also be up to 75kg lighter as it adopts the Volkswagen Group's MQB platform that also underpins vehicles such as the VW Golf and Audi A3. The Skoda Superb will be the longest vehicle that uses the scalable MQB matrix, measuring 4850mm long -- up by 17mm. By comparison, it's about 10cm shorter than the Holden Commodore.
The increased size liberates more passenger and boot space, the latter growing from 595 to 625 litres in the sedan version. The current Superb is also offered as a wagon, which is expected to be replaced in future.
Improved infotainment systems, more efficient engines and the option of adaptive suspension will be technical highlights, but are likely to push the car's price higher.
Asked when new model would be coming to Australia, Skoda spokesperson Kurt McGuiness told motoring.com.au "We expect to see the new Superb locally in 2016".
The current Superb has sold more 750,000 units globally, but the Australian contribution is meagre – an average of 30 Superbs have found homes each month in Australia in 2014, accounting for less than one per cent of the large car market here.
The large car market in Australia has been steadily contracting for the past decade. It has dropped 7.5 per cent thus far in 2014.
It remains to be seen whether the termination of the Ford Falcon and Holden Commodore (which together account for 87 per cent of the segment) in 2016 and 2017 respectively will help or hinder imported products in the segment – cars such as the Hyundai Genesis, Peugeot 508 and the Superb.