New Roomster confirmed

Skoda commits to replacement for oddball family wagon, but can't – or won't – name a year

The quirkiest small family machine out there will definitely be replaced, but even its maker, Skoda, isn't sure when.

But they are sure its signature massive rear-seat windows will be retained in the second generation, even if they make the designer's job more or less impossible.

Speaking at the Skoda Fabia launch last week, product marketing head Stephanie Labussier-Metz admitted there were still plenty of questions she had to answer over the next Roomster.

"There is a new Roomster coming, but how and in what shape is not decided yet," the Frenchwoman admitted.

"It's not decided whether we should make it longer or wider or taller, or long enough to have seven seats. These are things we are still figuring out.

"But the big window is a must as far as we are concerned."

The confusion about the Roomster's replacement boils down to two basic issues, Skoda insiders said. The first is that Skoda's resources are being concentrated to deliver a new, larger SUV by the end of 2016, the second is the debate over what size of the Volkswagen Group's MQB architecture to use, with both an extended Fabia and an Octavia in the mix. The current car uses the same underbody architecture as the Volkswagen Golf IV and the last Octavia. 

Unknown to most, the ungainly, large windows were designed to give a view to children belted into protective seats and capsules in the rear seat.

"That's why it drops down so much further than the front seats. It's so the children can see more things outside and can be more stimulated and involved," Labussier-Metz said. 

"The parents who use the Roomster tell us they love the big window, so that's not up for negotiation."

Discontinued by Skoda Australia, the outgoing Roomster found just 378 buyers in a seven-year career, peaking at 111 cars in 2008.