Car UK May 2019

MAY 2019 | CARMAGAZINE.CO.UK 129

Our cars

Skoda Kodiaq

Month 5

The story so far

Now into its third year of life,

Skoda’s first SUV faces its

biggest test: three McNamara

children under six years old

+ Space-efficient seven-seat

cabin; excellent infotainment;

fairly comfy and quiet

• Almost £40k for a mid-level
  Skoda; lacks dynamism; only
  two Isofix brackets among five
  rear seats

Price £37,629 (£39,235 as

tested) Performance 1998cc

turbodiesel 4-cyl, 187bhp, 8.8sec

0-62mph, 129mph Efficiency

49.6mpg (official), 36.7mpg

(tested), 151g/km CO2 Energy

cost 16p per mile Miles this

month 1806 Total miles 11,204

Logbook

Engaging Sport avoids the

sub-2000rpm bog that can

afflict Normal mode

Voy a g e o f

discovery

Phil and the giant Skoda:

inspiring young minds

It’s Kodiaq versus a cross-country family drive to the Roald Dahl centre. By Phil McNamara

1 AND THEY’RE OFF

The kids need an airing and the Kodiaq

to stretch its legs, so it’s time for a 24-

mile trip to the Roald Dahl Story Centre

on a rich mix of roads. Highway cruising,

fast twisties, scarred B-roads – it’ll put

the lumbering Skoda to the test.

2 THE CRUISING BIT

Brief stints on the M25 and the A41 past

Hemel show the Kodiaq in its typical habitat.

In normal mode, the light steering feels a bit

sloppy and gentle throttle struggles to rouse

the turbodiesel. Wind noise is noticeable

but there’s minimal tyre roar.

6 THE BFG ARRIVES

We draw up outside the home where

Roald Dahl wrote his children’s

masterpieces, and the Kodiaq’s

connection to the Big Friendly Giant is

clear. Its sizeable frame includes plenty

of crowd-pleasing space for the kids.

3 AT L AST! CORNERS

At Bovingdon, the road narrows and

climbs through a tube of entangled trees:

time for Sport mode. After a couple of

quick corners, there’s a long downhill

sweeper, and the weightier Sport steering

allows me to better select my line, then

keep accelerating through the curve. You

really drive the Kodiaq on the front end,

which grips maniacally.

NEW

1

1

6

2

3

3

(^42)
5
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5 THE HOME
NOT-SO-STRAIGHT
Sport mode makes the Kodiaq feel
much more responsive: holding higher
revs avoids the sub-2000rpm bog that
can afflict Normal mode, and the more
eager kickdown enables me to surge
past a dawdling Mini. In corners, the
4 ATTACK OF THE POTHOLES slow in/fast out axiom rigidly applies.
These craggy country roads ask a lot of
the 1720kg Kodiaq. It’s quite firmly
sprung, keeping bodyroll progressive
and everything composed in corners.
But the ride is lumpy – maybe 18s would
be more forgiving, but they’d look even
sorrier in the huge arches than these 19s.
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