Used Skoda Kodiaq long-term test
Skoda's seven-seat SUV is a former What Car? Award winner, but does it now make more sense as a used buy? We're finding out...
The car 2021 Skoda Kodiaq 2.0 TSI Sportline Run by Max Adams, reviewer
Why it’s here To show if a used petrol Skoda Kodiaq Sportline is a better bet than the similar-looking vRS
Needs to Prove that it can be a practical seven-seater with reasonable running costs, while providing more interest than a regular Kodiaq
Mileage 14,806 List price when new (2021) £42,665 Price new with options £43,905 Dealer price now £35,690 Private price now £31,724 Test economy 34.1mpg Official economy 33.6mpg
15 November 2022 – Multiple personalities
You might think a seven-seater SUV is rather lost on a single person like me, but I chose my Skoda Kodiaq because I thought it would easily fulfil all the demands I place on a car. Allow me to divide myself into multiple personalities to sum up my time with it...
My initial report said this Race Blue metallic Sportline Kodiaq is the spitting image of a pricier Skoda Kodiaq vRS and that feeling hasn’t diminished. Other than a slightly different wheel design (the Sportline's look better anyway, in my opinion), there’s not a lot to differentiate them.
Aside from the looks, the heated front sports seats have been a particular highlight for me because not only do they get really hot on cold mornings, but they’re also very supportive. The standard electric seat adjustment makes it a doddle to get comfortable too.
The road tester in me would note my 187bhp 2.0 TSI Kodiaq comes up short against the 242bhp vRS in the engine department. However, I’ve never wanted for more in the real world, because both get off the line equally smartly due to the traction benefits of four-wheel drive.
That side of me would also say that neither version of the Kodiaq is the sharpest tool in the sports SUV world, though. That’s made more palatable by the fact that the Sportline trim is more than £3000 cheaper than a vRS as a new purchase. True, the vRS has adaptive suspension to help soften that financial blow, but I don’t miss that. You see, my Sportline car is just on the right side of firm at low speeds over potholes and speeds bumps, and is wonderfully controlled at motorway speeds.
My Kodiaq is a used example, which not only saved me a handsome amount off its new price (making the penny-pinching side of my personality very happy), but also netted me some additional options as a welcome bonus. They include a 10.25in configurable digital dashboard, a virtual pedal for the electric tailgate that I never found all that helpful, plus a family pack with built-in sunblinds for the rear windows. A colleague used the blinds for a road trip to southern France, and they kept the glare off the removable screens he fitted to keep his daughters occupied during the long drive.
The car also has an upgraded Canton sound system, which is reserved for the Laurin & Klement trim now due to the semiconductor chip shortage. That’s a shame because the 575-watt system appeals to the hoodied teenager in me who’d rather not listen to uncool parents. It provides a punchy sound quality that stands up well against the sound systems available in much more expensive luxury SUVs.
My Kodiaq (or 'Skodiaq' as I like to call it) also appealed to my practical side. It's easy to fold the third-row seats into the floor to provide a huge, flat load area. One benefit of its SUV stature is that the load height is roughly where your hips are, so there’s no need to bend to load and unload the boot. That last point came in very handy for my colleagues at Classic & Sports Car who needed to borrow it for an afternoon to collect a run of magazines from a reader.
Admittedly, the better fuel economy of the 2.0 TDI diesel version would make more sense. Still, we got a test average of 34.1mpg in this petrol version, which actually beats the official figure. That was no doubt helped by all the miles we covered on motorways, where it's most efficient. It was the versatility of the Skoda Kodiaq that I valued most, because while you might not need a seven-seater all the time, you’ll always find occasions where a surfeit of space comes in handy. And now it has gone, I’m left with a big hole in my life.
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