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VW CEO Winterkorn happy with rebounding Seat, Skoda

Martin Winterkorn is a happy man: Volkswagen is putting up big numbers in North America, its latest field of dreams, Audi, is breaking records every month, there are exciting cars in the pipeline - from Bugatti down to the XL1, Porsche's digestion continues, and now Skoda and especially Seat are turning in no-questions performance.
It seems Skoda has been on the ups for years, making the most of keen pricing and modern redesigns of the chassis and tech it gets handed down from big brothers VW and Audi. Winterkorn predicts the Czech brand will just about double its 2010 sales by 2018, going from 762,000 to 1.5 million.
Seat, on the other hand, wasn't just on the hotseat a year-and-a-half ago, phrases like "uncertain future" - code for "possible demise" - were rumbling in the background. A new CEO was brought in, new money and new models were thrown against the wall, and the efforts have stuck. The Spanish brand has hit three strong chords with Winterkorn, with increased sales, strong performance in China and anticipated models due. If this keeps up there won't be much left for him to do but, a la Alexander the Great, break down and cry with no worlds left to conquer.

Skoda reveals new Rapid

Just a couple of days after images of its sister car, the Seat Toledo, leaked onto the Internet, the Škoda Rapid gets an official unveiling. As expected, it is a 99.5-percent facsimile of the Škoda MissionL "concept" revealed at last year's Frankfurt Motor Show.
Given plenty of creases and sculpting, the Rapid is a sign of Škoda designs to come, which the brand calls "clear, precise, fresh, timeless and elegant." To our eyes it certainly isn't a bad way to keep an erstwhile Volkswagen Jetta fresh.
As with the Toledo, the price-value equation will be the Rapid's unique selling proposition for those not smitten with its looks, yet being a VW product it still won't skimp on engines: seven will be offered, five gas-powered and two diesels. Slotted between the Fabia and higher-end Octavia, the Rapid's brand new looks should help it make a name for itself among family types.

Skoda recreates Stonehenge out of old cars

The UK has a burgeoning car market filled with all sorts of cars we don't get here. So to get buyers' attention, automakers need to make a real splash. To that end, Skoda has erected a fresh take on one of the island nation's oldest landmarks... only in a more automotive form.
Dubbed Citihenge, the installation is inspired by the ancient Stonehenge in Wiltshire, recreated out of old cars. It was built over the course of three months under the direction of renowned installation artist Tommy Gun, and put in place in less than 12 hours. Using eighteen scrap cars weighing a total of 36 metric tons, each of the henges measures five meters tall by five meters wide and is made to withstand force-12 hurricane winds. Still, it can be entirely recycled.
The installation was erected on the south bank of the Thames next to London's famous Tower Bridge just in time for the summer solstice, and marks the arrival of the Skoda Citigo (the Czech version of the Volkswagen Up!) in the British market.