Cleverly packaged size will be a key part of the Kodiaq’s appeal.
This is a five/seven-seat SUV measuring less than 4.7 metres at the kerb – and therefore only 40mm longer than an Skoda Octavia hatchback and shorter than a Skoda Superb saloon.
It’s very marginally longer than a Mitsubishi Outlander and a Nissan X-Trail – the cars whose market position the Kodiaq most closely threatens – but considerably shorter and smaller than the decidedly less European-feeling Kia Sorento.
To those who want an SUV that delivers large on interior space without looking so large outwardly, that may be a strong selling point.
As a result of being comparatively compact and using the advanced MQB platform as its basis, the Kodiaq is relatively light.
Entry-level models, powered by a 123bhp 1.4-litre turbo petrol engine and driven exclusively by their front wheels, weigh less than 1.5 tonnes, says Skoda. Although the claimed kerb weight of our diesel, four-wheel-drive, fully loaded test car tops 1750kg, that’s still a good 150kg less than many equivalent seven-seat 4x4s.
In all, there are three turbocharged petrol engines and two diesels to choose from, with the petrol range made up of two tunes of the 1.4 TSI engine and topped by a 178bhp 2.0-litre TSI. The oilburner range consists of a 2.0 TDI available in two guises - 148bhp and 187bhp respectively.
