Skoda Karoq

The Skoda Karoq is a 5 seat compact SUV, built on the same platform and sharing engines with the VW Tiguan and Seat Ateca, also the larger (up to 7 seat) Skoda Kodiaq. The name Karoq comes, just like the name Kodiaq from Aleuts, the native inhabitants of the Alaskan island Kodiak. The name Karoq was created by a combination of aleutian words Kaa’Raq and Ruq, a car and an arrow, which is the motive of the Skoda logo. The Karoq offers an excellent driving and passenger position with lot’s of glass and due to the suspension being setup ‘softer’ than the Seat Ateca it can cope with the worst of the British roads in relative comfort. All models have height adjustment for the driver’s seat and both front seats have lumbar adjustment, in the rear the middle seat’s backrest is a little firm and the car’s relatively narrow body means shoulder room is tight. There’s also a hump in the floor but the big footwells mean there’s space for everyone’s feet. The boot has a wide opening and 521 litres of space, if you choose the SE-L trim you can slide the rear seats to increase this to 588 litres.

The Skoda Karoq’s interior is logically laid out and solidly built, even the entry level SE has an 8 inch touchscreen with Apple Carplay / Android auto that can run the Sat nav from your phone onto the screen. The SE trim is well equipped with 17-inch alloy wheels, automatic emergency braking, rear parking sensors, DAB radio and dual zone climate control, the SE-L adds 18-inch alloy wheels, suede-like Alcantara upholstery, built in satellite navigation, heated front seats and a rear parking camera. Perhaps the biggest bonus is the VarioFlex rear seats that give you a variety of seating options and can also be removed completely.

Two petrol and two diesel engines are available, the three cylinder 1.0 litre petrol with 113 bhp (suitable for under 25’s) does a better job than you would imagine and is perfect for town driving, the 0-62 time is 10.6 seconds and claimed economy is 53.3 as a six speed manual. The 1.5 litre petrol is a more powerful option it has 148 bhp that can propel the Karoq to 62 mph in 8.4 seconds and thanks to the ingenious cylinder shut off system economy is an impressive 52.4 as a six speed manual and 51.2 as a 7 speed DSG Auto.

The two diesel engines are 1.6 and 2.0 litres in size and offer the same 113 bhp and 148 as the petrol cars. The advantage is they offer more torque, mid and low range power so you can speed up without having to change down a gear. The 1.6 has 250nm of torque at 1500-3200 rpm and the 2.0 litre 340nm at 1750 – 3000 rpm. The 1.6 can reach 62 mph in 10.7 seconds and return 61.4 mpg as a six speed manual and 64.2 as a seven speed DSG Auto, we would always pick the extra torque of the 2.0 litre. The Seat Ateca and VW Tiguan offer a similar car and better value with some engines and trim specifications, particularly automatic cars..