Skoda Kodiaq 132TSI 2017 Review

Almost 10 years since it reappeared in Australia under Volkswagen’s wing, Skoda has reached a new starting point, venturing into the booming seven-seat SUV market with the Kodiaq.

The VW-owned Czech brand has been hamstrung here until now by a lack of suitable vehicles to sell SUV-mad Australians, but with Kodiaq it is now hunting for a small slice of a pie worth more than 100,000 sales per year.

An ultra-competitive $42,990 price before on-roads makes it a tempting if niche alternative to Hyundai Santa Fe, Kia Sorento, Mazda CX-9 and maybe even Toyota’s popular Kluger.

With supply constrained, Skoda expects to sell less than 1000 examples of Kodiaq in 2017.That’s not many vehicles, but considering the entire brand managed 4670 sales in Australia in 2016, it’s still a huge boost.

And with another three SUVs due to join the line-up before the end of the decade, it’s only the beginning.

The nitty-gritty
Available for test drives from Skoda dealers from this Saturday (June 3), the Kodiaq is a classic piece of Volkswagen platform sharing allied with Skoda’s keen sense of value, functional style and likeable vehicle tuning.

The basis of Skoda’s first-ever seven-seat SUV is the same MQB transverse-engine front/all-wheel drive architecture as many other Volkswagen group models, including the legendary Golf small car and – more significantly in this case – the VW Tiguan medium SUV.

The flexibility of MQB is shown by the longer overall length and wheelbase of the Kodiaq compared to the five-seat Tiguan (4697mm and 2791mm versus 4486mm and 2681mm).

But that imbalance will be evened up when the seven-seat Tiguan Allspace arrives early next year, with virtually identical key measurements to the Skoda.

Of course, the Kodiaq and the Tiguan share more than the architecture. There’s also the 132kW/320Nm 132TSI four-cylinder petrol engine, seven-speed dual-clutch auto and electro-hydraulically managed on-demand 4x4 system.

Before the end of the year a 140kW/400Nm turbo-diesel Kodiaq will be added to the range, but for now what you see is what you get. In that it deviates from the multi-pronged Tiguan attack; one model, no front-wheel drive and no step-up in equipment grades apart from a couple of packs and options.

We’ve detailed all that model equipment stuff right here and also driven the car at the international launch.

Proof of the pudding
But what we haven’t done until now is sampled the Kodiaq on local roads, something that can be a deal breaker for imports that don’t get a local tuning program.

Or a deal maker … and it’s easy to imagine test drives of the Kodiaq turning into sales, because it behaves on the road very well. In fact, unsurprisingly, it drives very much like a Tiguan.

That means Kodiaq behaves neatly and nicely around town thanks to lightly weighted steering with plenty of assistance. The turning circle seems quite large, but Skoda didn’t supply figure. It’s large then…

Most of our driving was in a Kodiaq equipped with the $2500 Tech Pack and therefore, adaptive dampers. Comfort mode works very well for slow-speed ride, Normal keeps things tied down as speeds rises and Sport delivers the best body control and stiffest, least compliant, ride. All this works with standard 235/50 19-inch rubber that doesn’t seem overly aggressive.

A brief chance to sample the passive dampers showed they delivered a ride somewhere between Normal and Sport, tending to be a bit stiff-legged over patchwork surfaces.

The drivetrain is neat and tidy without feeling overwhelmingly strong. The Kodiaq’s 1677kg tare mass is relatively lithe for a large-ish SUV, yet it still seemed to be an impediment for the engine, which responded without enthusiasm to full throttle acceleration with two adults and little luggage onboard. It felt better on part-throttle inputs, especially when set to Sport mode, no doubt assisted by the always sharp DCT.

Skoda claims a 0-100km/h time of 8.2 seconds and a fuel economy average of just 7.6L/100km, with the assistance of idle-stop, for this drivetrain. Both numbers seemed a little optimistic. We’ll get a chance to test them properly soon.

Skoda had enough confidence to send us off the beaten track, including a downhill gravel track interrupted by some rain ruts and rocky outcrops. With optional off-road mode engaged – again part of the Tech Pack – which adjusts engine, chassis and brake management for rough terrain and enables Hill Descent Assist, the Kodiaq had no drama making it down in one piece.

But it’s hard to see any avid off-roaders buying a Kodiaq. This is a family transporter first and foremost.

For a start, there’s a heap of safety features. Nine airbags, five-star ANCAP safety, autonomous emergency braking, front and rear parking sensors and a reversing camera are highlights.

Skoda told us “safety is not an option” at the Kodiaq’s presentation but then proceeded to reel off a whole heap of safety tech that is optional … like lane assist, blind spot detection, surround view, rear traffic alert and more.

There’s another way the Kodiaq reassures and that’s resale. Valuation expert Red Book expects the latest Skoda to continue the brand’s climb into respectability, right up alongside Volkswagen.

The price and equipment equation, a five-year warranty, approved service pricing that’s better value than VW -- if not as good as the likes of Hyundai, Ford and Holden -- and guaranteed buyback have all played their part in this gradual improvement.

Families will appreciate the Alcantara-clad cabin, which is strong on perceived quality, has plenty of storage opportunities and offers lots of flexibility via second-row seats that can slide and fold.

In fact, the Kodiaq is a convincing five-seater, offering plenty of room for four adults plus their luggage in the 630-litre cargo area (a big 2005 litres with rows two and three folded flat).

But use the Kodiaq as a seven-seater and things get cramped. Row three is only for kids, has no visible air-conditioning vents, little stowage and when in use reduces boot space to just 270 litres.

Getting in and out of row three isn’t all that easy either, as the seats slide and fold but don’t flip forward out of the way. Skoda hasn’t converted the single seat opening for right-hand drive, which means exiting kerb-side involves folding and then sliding most of the second-row bench forward.

It’s a disappointingly clumsy outcome, especially as Skoda made a big deal at the launch of stressing Australia is a “priority market” for this car and kept repeating its “simply clever” catchphrase.

That slogan does get backed up with some neat interior ideas such as spring-loaded door-edge protection rubbers and digital voice enhancement so you can scold the kids via a microphone without shouting – both have been done before admittedly – and electric child safety locks.

There are also two umbrellas in the front doors, two smartphone/tablet holders in the rear and and an LED torch in the boot. More conventional gear includes adaptive cruise, keyless entry and start, LED headlights, dual-zone climate-control, an electric park brake, sat-nav, Bluetooth and Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility. And yes, there is a (space saver) spare tyre.

However, the Kodiaq could use more USB plug-in points, especially one that charges smartphones. Clever head restraints with airliner-like fold-out wings are still in the works.

Up front the driver is faced with a modern cockpit, including flat-bottom, multi-function steering wheel, stylish instrumentation with centre trip computer and a glass 8.0-inch touch-screen in the centre stack.

It all works efficiently, conveniently and with a dash of design and execution quality that elevates it from the pack.

The same could be said of the Kodiaq as a whole. Skoda’s taken a quality set of building blocks and put an appealing package over the top. There’s no doubt that after 10 years of trying this will be a breakthrough vehicle for the brand in Australia.

2017 Skoda Kodiaq pricing and specifications:
Price: $42,990 (plus on-road costs)
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol
Outputs: 132kW/320Nm
Transmission: Seven-speed dual-clutch auto
Fuel: 7.6L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 176g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety rating: Five-star (ANCAP)