In case you hadn't noticed, the Volkswagen Group is building up for the annual Volkswagen love-in known as Worthersee and each brand is trying to outdo each other. Audi seemed to have the lead initially with the A3 Clubsport concept, but that was quickly wiped from people's minds by the bizarre SEAT Ibiza Cupster. Skoda retaliated with the CiitiJet concept and has now taken a second shot at the headlines with this, the Yeti Extreme.
Compared to the Cupster or CitiJet it looks fairly tame, but looks can be deceiving. Under the matt-grey paint and fluorescent yellow highlights lives a car that would not be out of place on the Dakar. Designed to demonstrate the 'versatile potential of its popular compact SUV' the Yeti Extreme is powered by a 150hp 1.8-litre TSI petrol engine. With a top speed of 190km/h and 0-100km/h time of 9.0 seconds it is not exactly what you would call quick (certainly not when compared to the 503hp VW GTI Roadster Vision Gran Turismo), but the Extreme does feature the brake system from the Octavia RS and a height-adjustable chassis for scaling sand dunes - do they have sand dunes at Worthersee?
Flared wheelarches house 17-inch alloy wheels that are shod in knobbly off-road tyres and because someone took a saw to the exhaust silencers the dual pipes out back are said to emit a much throatier sound than one would expect from a Yeti.
Inside, the standard perches have been replaced with four Recaro bucket seats and the luminous yellow highlights have also spread. A spare wheel sits in the boot - no foam and compressor for the Extreme - and it is joined by a set of recovery tracks that provide extra grip should the Yeti get caught out off-road. Though we do have to question their effectiveness considering the interior fit-out is also completed with a sand shovel, belt cutter, fire extinguisher and thermos flask.
Anything else?
Werner Eichhorn, Skoda Board Member for Sales and Marketing commented: "Skoda Yeti Xtreme - as a dynamic and powerful compact SUV concept - demonstrates the brand's strong expertise in four-wheel drive technology, as well as our know-how when it comes to rally sports", which is nice. Now if you could kindly prove it Werner by building a version that will do battle with the MINI ALL4 Racing and Peugeot 2008 DKR on the actual Dakar rather than just a lakeside in Austria...