2019-10-01_CAR_UK

OCTOBER 2019 | CARMAGAZINE.CO.UK 53

First DrivesFirst drives

Thinking inside the box

In the 23 years since I last wrote for CAR, a lot has
changed, and not just the greying of my beard.
Back then we had just tested our first crossover,
the Toyota RAV4. We didn’t know that a couple
of decades later this class of car would virtually
dominate the market. It seems like there’s a new
one launched every week.
Sure enough, here’s another. It’s the Skoda
Kamiq, the latest addition to VW’s Czech
maker’s line-up of Krossovers starting from
the top with the Kodiaq through Karoq to this
new city SUV, as its maker describes it. You and
I would call it a compact crossover. Or would
we? The Kamiq doesn’t look like a crossover;
it’s more like a hatchback on stilts, or more spe-
cifically the recently launched Skoda Scala but
with more ground clearance. The Kamiq is the
same width as the Scala but is 120mm shorter
bumper to bumper. It’s built on VW’s MQB AO
platform, as is practically everything apart from
your kitchen.
We have the usual hardware from the
Volkswagen Group warehouse. There’s a choice
of three 1.0 TSI three-cylinder petrol engines in
94, 113 and 148bhp guises. The latter is not arriv-
ing until the end of this year so we only drove the
first two at the launch. The 94bhp motor comes
with a five-speed manual gearbox only. And
there’s no four-wheel-drive Kamiq.
The Kamiq is a surprisingly spacious car, with
plenty of legroom for adults in the rear seats,
even with a tall driver. The boot is typically
Skoda-generous, too. Make use of all this space
and this engine is going to struggle. The 115bhp
with its six-speed ’box or DSG option is the best
choice. As for the latecomer 148bhp motor, I can’t
really see the point of spending the extra money.
There’s a 1.6 diesel option for those sensible
enough to still consider compression ignition.
No prices yet for the Kamiq but you can bet it’ll
be good value when you stack up the equipment
offered versus its rivals, like the VW T-Cross.
You’ll find some of Skoda’s usual details such as
a rubbish container complete with liner in the
driver’s door bin. I’d have preferred a soft liner

in the bin itself so that items don’t rattle about.

Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are

available – a first for this class (and most others).

There’s an option of a sports chassis which

features variable damping (not VW’s more so-

phisticated Dynamic Chassis Control) but I can’t

see the point of it on an SUV aimed at the urban

user. Selecting Sport makes a small difference to

the ride, stiffens the steering in an artificial way

and does little to throttle response.

The Kamiq is easy to drive and comfortable.

There’s rather a lot of wind noise from the

A-pillars at speed but otherwise there’s little

about the driving experience to criticise.

That goes for the whole car. The young

adventurous types who are the dream cus-

tomers for compact SUVs in the minds of car

companies’ marketing sages will find the Kamiq

a bit dull, missing the flashes of colour and detail

that make a crossover stand out.

Me, I’m still mourning the death of the Yeti.

It’s a shame that Skoda has seemingly aban-

doned outside-the-box thinking.

COLIN GOODWIN

Smallest Skoda crossover goes big on space, not so big on originality

THE FIRST HOUR

5mins

No cables draped

around. I like wireless

phone mirroring

10 mins

Go for the 113bhp

engine – we’re having

to stir the gears in this

94bhp one

20 mins

Sport mode is

particularly pointless

in a car like this

45 minutes

There’s a surprising

amount of wind noise

1 hour

I’ll remember the

Alsace scenery at the

launch long after I’ve

forgotten about the

Kamiq

▲

PLUS

Roomy and well

equipped for its size

and (likely) price

MINUS

▼

Uninspired and

uninspiring

First verdict

The Kamiq is hard to criticise but harder still to like.

It’ll be good value but won’t be a standout bargain

like the Superb is in its class

★★★★★

PRICE

£19,750 (est,

1.0 TSI 115)

POWERTRAIN

999cc 12v turbo

three-cylinder,

6-speed manual,

front-wheel drive

PERFORMANCE

113bhp @ 5000rpm,

148lb ft @ 2000rpm,

9.9sec 0-62mph,

121mph

WEIGHT

1156kg

ON SALE

Late

September

Data

EFFICIENCY

42.8-55.0mpg,

112g/km CO2

Subdued, neat, well equipped, like the whole car

SKODA KAMIQ