► All-new Mk2 Kodiaq SUV driven in UK spec
► Roomier, higher-tech and more refined
► Choice of engines with PHEV to follow
The outgoing Kodiaq has been a real money-spinner for Skoda, with more than 860,000 examples of the original built. It was always judged to be a keenly priced large family car that offered five or seven seats without pretention and with a rugged, square-shouldered look about it. With that in mind, the Kodiaq has been a popular and profitable image booster for the Czech carmaker.
It’s no surprise then, that the new Kodiaq promises more of the same. It relies heavily on technology from parent company Volkswagen, but has generally been perceived as being a better package than in-house rivals such as the Seat Tarraco and the now-departed Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace.
To find out just how good it is, we’ve driven the new Kodiaq to see if it continues the good work. Keep reading for the full review, and check here to see how we test.
Should I buy a Skoda Kodiaq? Probably. There are lots of choices in this sector, but the new Kodiaq does enough to remain one of the best.
At a glance
Pros: Roomy inside, lots of spec choice, inviting interior, quiet at speed.
Cons: Prices creeping up, not particularly exciting to drive, ride isn’t as good as it was.
What’s new?
The new Kodiaq is longer and roomier, for passengers and luggage alike. It has some significantly new elements in the cabin, with a greater emphasis on sustainability.
There are new lights, a new logo, a new grille with new air intakes underneath, a new spoiler sticking out the back of the lengthened roof, and some new colours. Put them side by side and you won’t have to think twice about which is the old one and which is its replacement. There are new alloy wheels, from 18 to 20 inches.
But visually it’s more of the same: not exactly handsome, and not a world apart from various Seat, VW and Audi products, and it’s lost some of the hunky appeal of the original car. There are more curves, contrasting exterior panels and a wider colour palette to choose from – but it’s a conservative design compared with the latest Kia Sorento and Hyundai Santa Fe.
What are the specs?
Initially there are two spec levels, SE and SE L. Sportline will be along soon, with marginally more visual pizzazz. There’s also now a Kodiaq vRS which we’ve also driven.
The SE comes with 18-inch wheels, front and rear LED lights, heated front seats and three-zone climate control, plus a bunch of safety-enhancing electronics. SE L – priced from £41,700 – has 19-inch wheels as standard, adaptive matrix LED headlights, an electronically adjustable driver’s seat and electric boot opening. There are also various interior design packages available, called ‘selections’, following the pattern established by the Enyaq.
There are several engines to pick from: a 148bhp mild-hybrid 1.5-litre petrol four-cylinder, a 201bhp 2.0-litre TSI (which is all-wheel-drive only), a 148bhp 2.0-litre diesel four and a 190bhp version (the latter being only for all-wheel drive). Some models are available with DCC adaptive suspension, which when set in Sport mode adds a welcome firmness.
The PHEV is front-wheel drive and five seats only. It has a six-speed DSG automatic transmission, where the others all have seven speeds. But there’s no electric option. If you want a Skoda SUV with EV propulsion, you need to be looking at the Enyaq.
And for reference, the vRS uses a 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo to make 261bhp and 295lb ft of torque. That also equates to 0-62mph in 6.4sec and a top speed of 143mph.
What about the interior?
This is best aspect of the Kodiaq, and rightly so for a family-focused load hauler. There’s nothing radically different or innovative inside, but it’s a very successful mix of familiar and new, of traditional and advanced.
It’s still very roomy – in fact slightly roomier than before, with an expanded boot and more headroom for those in the third row, while having a sleeker shape that has reduced aerodynamic drag.
If you go for seven seats you get less boot space than five-seaters, and if you go for the plug-in hybrid version you get less luggage capacity than those opting for versions that don’t have a big battery under the floor. But even the least capacious boot is still usefully roomy, and the largest is cavernous: 910 litres with the second row in use, and 2105 litres with them folded down, which is done with a simple flick of a lever.
The passenger seats split 60:40 and can be slid forwards or back to give more boot space or more legroom. Even with the front seats back and the back seats forwards, adults will be comfortable. Rear passengers get heating controls and chargers plus a centre console of sorts, with oddments space and two cupholders. This can be removed if an adult is going to sit in the middle seat.
Up front the centre console is a masterclass in practicality. As the new Kodiaq is not available with a manual gearchange, the selector has been moved to the steering column, freeing up lots of space, which Skoda’s interior designers have used well. There are up to four cupholders, depending how you choose to arrange it, plus wireless charging areas for two phones, a couple of USB-C ports, and a lot of space in the armrest.
The dashboard now hosts a 13.0-inch central touchscreen, which is logically laid out and configurable. It can be largely ignored on the move, thanks to three physical multi-purpose dials below the screen, which between them control functions including driving modes (on those models that have DCC), volume and heating. It’s an intuitive, effective arrangement.
The steering wheel isn’t overburdened with controls, but those that are present are easy to operate without taking your eyes off the road. The wheel itself may look as though it’s flat-bottomed, but that’s an illusion – it’s actually round, with a decorative protrusion around the 6 o’clock mark.
The doors have those useful removable bins for sweet wrappers and the like in their pockets, and slotted into the driver’s door itself is an umbrella – a familiar ‘simply clever’ Skoda touch, along with the ice scraper clipped into the fuel filler cap. A new detail, along similarly user-friendly lines, is the cap on the screenwash reservoir under the bonnet. It opens up into a funnel that will reduce the amount of wasteful splashing.
Interior fabric choices include a really nice material that is made of recycled plastic, and leather that is treated with coffee-bean waste, rather than chemicals, in the tanning process. A head-up display is now available, and there’s the option of a big glass sunroof to bring a bright ambience to the cavernous cabin. Despite its size, it doesn’t sound boomy or creaky, thanks to a combination of effective sound-deadening and sturdy construction.
How does it drive?
We’ve sampled four versions so far: two diesels, the mild hybrid and the plug-in hybrid, with all but the PHEV sampled in UK spec. Starting with the mild hybrid, which we drove on a demanding route involving many hairpin bends and some fast A-road miles, and it’s pretty much as you’d expect.
This large-bodied motor returned an impressive real-world 35mpg. But as you might expect from a 148bhp engine in such a big car, it doesn’t offer scorching performance. On those hills, it wasn’t exactly struggling but you needed to make liberal use of the throttle pedal’s long travel to make it happen. In more typical family driving, it’s smooth, lively enough and easygoing.
Before you buy
The sweet spot in the range is the lesser of the two diesels. In five-seat SE guise, it costs £40,430 and combines a 9.6sec 0-62mph time with economy around 50mpg. Its torquey nature makes it feel faster than that, and it’s untroubled by hills or heavy loads. The more powerful diesel is faster off the line, with a 7.8sec sprint time, but it’s thirstier, has a higher CO2 output, and currently only comes as a seven-seat 4×4 in SE L trim, which pushes the price to £50,620.
The plug-in hybrid is much perkier, reflected in a 0-62mph time that, at 8.4 seconds, is 1.3 seconds quicker. And if it replicates the official figures, it will top 60 miles of electric-only running, using its 25.7kWh battery, and recharge quickly. But a much longer drive will be needed to check that out.
Ride quality is good, although its predecessor was better in this respect. Body control is improved, too, although the body gets wobbly if you hammer it hard through the bends. And the steering is always a little vague and remote. Want more? Check out our review of the recently released vRS version.
All this talk of performance is pretty much beside the point. The Kodiaq is not designed to by dynamically outstanding and is at its best when it’s used for its core tasks of family holidays, the school run, shopping and taking vast quantities of garden waste to the tip.
Verdict: Skoda Kodiaq
The Kodiaq is an appealing, roomy and easy to live with large family car. The details are fantastic, the refinement is good, it drives well, and it gives off a general feelgood vibe rather than any eruptions of excitement. For most families, this will be more than enough – especially with its welcoming and comfortable interior making it an excellent long-distance companion.
There are plenty of choices for buyers wanting family-friendly SUVs, and this remains among the best, certainly when you factor in the cost. Its pricing undercuts the seven-seat Hyundai Santa Fe and Kia Sorento. The Mercedes-Benz GLB and Land Rover Discovery Sport are classy seven-seat alternatives, but not as roomy, while the quirky Peugeot 5008 is about to be replaced, and no doubt more expensive.
And if you don’t want seven seats, you have a huge variety of alternatives. Don’t overlook Skoda’s own similarly priced Superb Estate, which has the same clever design, technology and detailing as the Kodiaq, but a little more to engage the driver too. That said, the Kodiaq is an excellent all-round package, with the prospect of better versions still to come.