Skoda Kodiaq RS review: Running a quick Czech

Kuantan

PERHAPS more than any other car brand, Czechia’s Skoda does more with less, and here comes the Kodiaq RS to both exemplify and challenge that idea. It combines Skoda’s most powerful engine with its biggest car to produce a practical 7-seater whose clothing and character are more along wolf lines than sheep, so to value hunters, the Kodiaq RS must look like big game.

Yet, at S$285,900 with Certificate Of Entitlement, the price is liable to make anyone gulp, especially anyone more used to seeing such high numbers on a BMW or Mercedes. But value is about what you get for your shekels, and the Kodiaq RS does offer plenty. 

The Kodiaq itself has had a mild facelift, so it has new lamps and bumpers and a restyled front grille, along with some minor cabin changes. I’m not sure I could tell what exactly is new if you put a gun to my temple, but that only suggests that the Kodiaq was executed properly the first time around.

The exciting bit is that, being something of a favourite child of its corporate parent, Skoda gets to raid the VW parts bin ad libitum, so this particular Kodiaq has the 245 horsepower heart of the Volkswagen Golf GTI, with the athletic looks to match. The gloss black grille and body trim, sporty front seats, scarlet upholstery stitches and dark badges on the tailgate are all there to make sure that your friends can immediately identify your hulking Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV) as the fast one in the range.

Truth be told, by today’s standards the Kodiaq RS is brisk rather than quick. It gallops to 100 km/h in a creditable 6.6 seconds, but you have to wring the engine to feel like you’re getting anywhere in a hurry. Not having taken it through any real corners during a short stint behind the wheel at a media drive, I have little idea how it handles, but other cars built on the same VW underpinnings tend to handle predictably and securely. The RS does ride surprisingly well over bumps, so in the suspension department, it’s not an overtly sporty car.

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But even in RS trim, the Kodiaq’s true strengths lie in how much it offers to buyers who prioritise utility over prestige. For a start, it’s a well-packaged car that slips 7 usable seats into a body that isn’t as large as it looks. The Toyota Harrier is longer, yet is more cramped inside. Naturally, folding the Kodiaq’s seats leaves you with enormous room for cargo.

The list of equipment is as long as India’s phone book, so it’s easier to point out the standout features: a lovely panoramic glass roof, ventilated front seats, adaptive cruise control and active lane-keep assist. It has clever pop-out door protectors so you don’t leave parking dings on other cars, too.

One caveat: the third row seats are best used by children or the petite, and even then, for fairly short distances, because there are no air-con vents back there. That’s worth noting because this is the sort of car precisely for the family man who might want all that juicy RS horsepower for long drives with the brood into Malaysia.

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Equally, the Kodiaq RS might be for someone who wants 7 seats, but refuses to accept that he has become the kind of ancient flatulence whose sports car driving days are long behind him. To an extent, the same is true of the Kodiaq 1.5 Sportline, which is less well-equipped and less powerful, but has similarly sporty looks for S$70,000 less. As much as Skoda is able to do more with less, the brand’s expanding lineup means it is increasingly able to offer something for everyone, too.

Skoda Kodiaq RS

Engine 1,984 cc in-line 4, turbocharged

Power 245 hp from 5,250 to 6,500 rpm

Torque 370 Nm from 1,600 rpm to 4,300 rpm

Gearbox 7-speed dual-clutch 

0-100km/h 6.6 seconds 

Top speed 250 km/h

Fuel efficiency 7.5 L/100 km

Agent Skoda Singapore

Price S$285,900 with Certificate of Entitlement

Available Now