Why the Skoda Superb Estate is the best estate car you can buy

A very comfortable ride

Space means nothing if you arrive at your destination feeling tired and tense. Thankfully, the Superb Estate has long been regarded as one of the finest long-distance cruisers in its class, and the latest generation builds convincingly on that reputation. What Car?’s judges were particularly struck by how well it handles the kind of journey it’s most likely to be asked to do. “The Superb is anything but uncouth, particularly on the long motorway trips that are its stock in trade,” they concluded, “and it’s a tidy handler. In fact, you’ll be taking bends with confidence, such are its poise and reserves of grip.”

On the motorway, where the Superb Estate is most at home, it settles into a relaxed, unflustered rhythm that makes big distances feel smaller. Wind noise is well contained, and the suspension absorbs the worst of Britain’s varied road surfaces with admirable composure. The standard DSG automatic gearbox – fitted across the entire range – keeps everything smooth and unhurried, changing up through the gears with barely a ripple. The steering, meanwhile, is light and easy in town, making the Superb a pleasingly simple car to manoeuvre in tighter spaces, before building weight naturally at speed to provide the confidence and precision that faster roads and sweeping motorway curves demand.

Optional DCC adaptive suspension – available from SE L trim upwards – allows you to soften or firm the ride at the touch of a button, and it’s a worthwhile addition for buyers who regularly carry a full complement of passengers and luggage over longer distances. That said, even without it, the standard suspension is very well judged. Will Nightingale, What Car?’s Reviews Editor, was unambiguous after putting extensive real-world miles on the entry-level car: “It’s a tidy, reassuring handler, and none of the engines feel short on power. I covered a lot of miles in the entry-level 1.5-litre petrol-powered car, and I reckon it’s all most people will ever want or need.”

A range of engines to suit all needs

One of the Superb Estate’s considerable strengths is the breadth of its engine lineup. Whether you’re a high-mileage private buyer, a company car driver looking to minimise BIK tax, or a regular caravan tower in need of low-down grunt, there’s a powertrain in the range that makes sense for you – and every version comes with a DSG automatic gearbox as standard.

What Car?’s recommended choice for most private buyers is the 1.5 TSI e-TEC 150: a 148bhp mild-hybrid petrol that strikes a genuinely well-rounded balance between performance, refinement and efficiency. It’s far from sluggish – What Car?’s judges confirmed that 0-62mph takes 9.2 seconds, which is more than adequate for confident motorway merging or swift A-road progress – and its mild-hybrid assistance makes a meaningful difference at the pumps, with creditable official fuel economy of 52.2mpg possible. The engine is smooth and reasonably quiet in everyday use, and because of the electrical assistance it rarely feels stretched even when the car is fully loaded with passengers and luggage. It’s easy to understand why What Car? calls it the pick of the range.

For buyers who regularly cover higher mileages or tow, the diesel options make an equally compelling case. The 148bhp 2.0 TDI 150 pulls strongly and consistently from low revs, making it better suited than the petrol for overtaking on dual carriageways and managing heavy loads without working hard. The more muscular 190bhp 2.0 TDI 193 adds standard four-wheel drive and is the natural choice for anyone who regularly hitches a loaded trailer or caravan. Notably, the previous-generation Superb Estate was, by What Car?’s own assessment, the most fuel-efficient load-lugger it had ever put through its real-world efficiency test – and the new model’s improved aerodynamics can only help push those numbers further.

Then there’s the PHEV. The Superb Estate iV delivers an impressive pure-electric range of up to 84 miles – a figure that puts many rivals firmly in the shade and makes short commutes and city driving genuinely emissions-free – and its 6% benefit-in-kind tax rate makes it a highly attractive proposition for company car drivers. The battery does reduce the boot to 510 litres compared to the mild hybrid’s 690, but as noted above, that’s still a genuinely large space by the standards of any class, let alone this one.

Well-equipped and priced to impress

Perhaps the single most compelling part of the Superb Estate’s story is how much car you get for your money. It significantly undercuts the BMW 5 Series Touring and Mercedes E-Class Estate on price, yet rarely leaves you with the sense that you’ve compromised in any meaningful way to get there. As What Car? put it in their awards write-up: “the Superb Estate undercuts the equivalent Passat on price, and it’s an awful lot cheaper than the 3 Series Touring. That leaves you with more money in the bank for, you know, family stuff.”