Skoda Kodiaq long-term test
Skoda's biggest combustion-engined SUV seats seven and looks like good value, but what's it like to live with? We're finding out...
The car Skoda Kodiaq 1.5 TSI 150 e-Tec DSG SE L Run by John Bradshaw, chief photographer
Why it’s here To see if Skoda's seven-seater can provide a winning blend of comfort, practicality and economy
Needs to Tackle long trips with ease, carry bulky loads and be frugal at the pumps
Mileage 4731 List price £42,205 Target Price £37,839 Price as tested £43,005 Official fuel economy 44.5mpg Test fuel economy 42.1mpg
10 April 2025 – The more, the merrier
Last-minute packing for a holiday is never much fun. You have a good idea of what you want to take with you, but actually fitting it in your suitcase is another matter. Happily, life with my Skoda Kodiaq is like packing an infinitely extendable suitcase. And the fact that I can just chuck everything in without thinking about it is particularly handy when I'm rushing to pack away in the rain.
When embarking upon a photoshoot in my previous Skoda Kamiq, I had to be a little selective in terms of the gear I took with me. It easily took all the things that I was guaranteed to use, but I had to leave some of the bits that “might come in handy” behind. The Kodiaq, though, not only enables me to take the latter, but almost goads me on to take equipment that I’ll never use in a month of Sundays. When this seven-seat SUV is in its five-seat mode, the luggage compartment is simply immense. So much so that I can load all my gear in such a way that it’s all accessible without having to dig things out from underneath other things.
In fact, it almost seems as if Skoda’s designers had me in mind from the outset; if the reclining rear seats are set fairly upright, they create a handy gap behind the load cover – a gap exactly the right size to take my stepladder. If I wanted to carry that in the Kamiq, it had to go across the back seat.
Of course, that meant I couldn’t carry passengers in the back, and sometimes folk need ferrying to help me on shoots. In the Kodiaq, though, I could carry six helpers and still have room for the core tools of my trade. Whereas some seven-seaters surrender virtually all their bootspace when every seat is occupied, the Kodiaq still has a fair amount left; you could take an extended family on a picnic, and the volume of food you could pack would result in stuffed bellies all round.
And there’s more. There’s an extra compartment below the boot floor that can swallow a stout pair of all-weather boots, and snow-socks to help the tyres grip in Alpine snow. Not that I need these every day, of course, but I’d look ridiculous if I didn’t have them when I needed them.
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