Skoda Enyaq vRS review

The Skoda Enyaq vRS is the sportiest, range-topping version of the Czech brand's electric SUV – and that's a promising starting point for a car.

You see, we're big fans of the Skoda Enyaq because it's comfortable, practical and well-priced. In short, it's a sensible choice that's ideally suited to family buyers. So, in theory, a more performance-focused vRS version that aims to give the model a dose of fun without compromising its strengths should be right on the money.

It's a tried and tested formula that Skoda has been using to create hot hatch, estate and SUV models for many years (sometimes very successfully, at other times less so), but this is the first electric car to wear the vRS badge. For a small premium, you can have your vRS based on the sportier body style of the Skoda Enyaq Coupé.

The Enyaq vRS has two electric motors, and feeds a hefty 295bhp to all four wheels. Unsurprisingly, it's quicker than other versions of the model. The looks have been glammed up, with bigger wheels, brighter paint colours and a standard Crystal Face front grille. Plus, all versions have a sizeable 77kWh battery that, according to official figures, can keep the vRS going for well over 300 miles.

So, is it worth the premium over cheaper versions of the Enyaq? And how does it square up against rivals, which include quicker versions of the Kia EV6, the Tesla Model Y and the Volvo C40? That's what we'll tell you over the next few pages of this review.

Read on to find out how good the Skoda Enyaq vRS is to drive, how roomy it is inside and how much equipment you get as standard.

When you’ve decided which car is right for you, you can find it for the lowest price by searching our free What Car? New Car Deals pages. It's a good place to find the cheapest new electric SUV deals.

As you'd expect with almost 300bhp on tap, the Skoda Enyaq vRS feels pretty lively whether you’re putting your foot down on the move or accelerating away from a standstill (0-60mph takes 6.1sec). It's the fastest version of the Skoda Enyaq by a reasonable margin.

That said, it's still slower than some rivals, including four-wheel-drive versions of the Kia EV6 (0-62mph in 5.2sec), the Tesla Model Y Long Range (0-60mph in 4.8sec) and the Volvo C40 Twin Motor (0-60mph in 4.7sec). Whether that really bothers you is a valid question, but then you might ask yourself: why am I paying a big premium for a sporty version of an electric SUV that, in the grand scheme of things, isn't that fast?

The vRS has lowered suspension (by 15mm at the front and 10mm at the rear compared with the regular Enyaq), and it's adaptive, so you can stiffen it up by switching to Sport mode.

In that mode, the vRS goes round corners in a tidy manner, keeping body lean well controlled. It doesn't feel particularly sporty, though, and you're aware of the car's considerable weight as it shifts on to the outside wheels. The steering response isn’t the sharpest, but it is meatier than on the C40, with enough weight build-up for it to feel reassuring and precise.

If you want an electric SUV that's sharper and more fun to drive, check out the EV6. Or, if you can live without the SUV stance, take a look at the BMW i4 and Tesla Model 3 – both of which are far more agile on a twisting road.

On other roads, you’re better off switching the suspension to Normal mode. You'll still feel and hear the odd thump from the suspension (blame the big 20in alloys), but it never develops into any jarring movements. In Normal, the vRS just edges ahead of the already-comfortable C40 when it comes to maintaining comfort on rougher road surfaces.

Refinement is impressive whichever mode you select. There's not much wind noise and there’s only a faint rumble from the big tyres at motorway speeds. Overall, it's a far more peaceful cruiser than the rowdy Model Y. The only fly in the ointment is that the Enyaq’s brake pedal doesn’t make it easy to slow your progress smoothly. It’s too light and doesn’t have much bite until you’ve pressed the pedal quite far down.

At least the adaptive regenerative braking system, which harvests energy when you lift off the accelerator, is quite subtle. The system varies the braking strength depending on your distance from the car in front or an upcoming junction and feels natural as it gradually slows you down.

How far can the vRS go on a full battery charge? Well, the official range is 321 miles for the SUV version and 323 for the coupé version, beating the EV6 (314 miles) but falling short of the Model Y Long Range (331 miles). At the time of writing, our long-term Coupé vRS has been averaging 265 miles on a charge.

If you like an elevated driving position, you’ll love the Skoda Enyaq vRS, because its front seats are perched nice and high up. Okay, they're not Range Rover lofty, but you'll look down on anyone in a Kia EV6 or Tesla Model Y.

To help you get comfortable, the seats feature electric adjustment, including for lumbar support, and allow you to save your preferred settings so you can quickly restore them after someone else has driven the car. The headrests on the front sports seats are fixed but worked fine for all our testers, and the seats offer plenty of side support.

You get a great forward view, and rear visibility isn’t too compromised even in the coupé version (the rear window isn't split in two as it is on the Audi Q4 e-tron Sportback). The coupé has a larger rear windscreen than the Volvo C40 and doesn’t suffer from chunky rear headrests obstructing the view out.

Better still, when it comes to parking, front and rear parking sensors and a rear-view camera all come as standard. Plus, there's a Skoda system called Trained Park Assistant that allows you to save parking manoeuvres for places you visit regularly. Once you've stored a parking space, the car will autonomously repeat the process needed to get into it next time you're there.

The vRS’s 5.3in digital instrument panel is small and shows only limited information. It seems a bit mean for a car costing more than £50,000, but then the Model Y doesn’t have a panel at all, and puts all the information on the centre screen.

The in-car functions are mostly controlled through a 13in touchscreen in the middle of the dashboard. It's packed with features, including Android Auto and Apple CarPlay smartphone mirroring (which are not available in Teslas), and most icons are big and easy to hit. The software could be more responsive, though.

Overall – as with the regular Skoda Enyaq – the interior is a pleasant place to spend time. It feels well screwed together and the vRS makeover includes lots of great-looking suede trim (this can be swapped to suede-like material for no extra charge). The C40 comes with more robust switchgear and classier plastics on the doors and lower dash.

There's loads of head room in the front of the Skoda Enyaq vRS, along with generous leg room, and the width of the interior means you won’t find yourself rubbing shoulders with your front-seat passenger.

As a bonus, there's a good amount of storage within easy reach, including an area at the base of the dashboard, which is wide enough to stow two phones and has a wireless charger, two cupholders and a vast cubby under the central armrest.

There's also lots of head room in the back – even if you go for the swoopy-roofed coupé version. All but the tallest adult passengers will fit in absolutely fine, and generous rear knee room means there's plenty of space for long legs.

Even so, middle-seat passengers are a little shortchanged. They get the same amount of head room as those in the outer seats, but have to straddle a cubby that's been placed where their feet would naturally go. Thankfully, it’s only a small step and much less obstructive than the taller equivalent in the Volvo C40.

The coupé version has a slightly smaller boot than the SUV, but it can still swallow an impressive eight carry-on suitcases below its parcel shelf. Both versions have more luggage space than the Kia EV6 and the C40, but not the Tesla Model Y (which has a front boot and a huge well under the floor of the main boot).

You can stump up £320 for the Transport Package, which brings a height-adjustable boot floor and levers on the walls of the boot for remotely dropping the 60/40 split rear seatbacks. All versions get a ski hatch in the rear backrest. The Model Y seats split in a more versatile 40/20/40 arrangement.

It’s safe to say that the Skoda Enyaq vRS is hardly cheap, but the price is roughly in line with the equivalent Kia EV6 or Tesla Model Y Long Range. You’d have to pay more to get a similar level of kit in a Volvo C40.

You get lots of kit for your money, including keyless entry, heated front seats, privacy glass, wireless phone-charging, adaptive cruise control, three-zone climate control and a panoramic glass roof. The ‘Crystal Face’ effect (170 LEDs on the front grille) that’s an option on the regular Skoda Enyaq comes as standard on the vRS. Mind you, Skoda charges extra for a heat pump for more efficient warming of the interior in chilly weather, while Volvo includes one as standard.

PCP finance deals are usually competitive, although the Model Y is likely to cost you slightly less per month in repayments. You can check the latest prices using our New Car Deals pages.

Like all electric cars and electric SUVs the Enyaq vRS is very cheap to run as a company car because it's in a low benefit-in-kind tax band.

When it comes to charging up, you can potentially top up the battery from 10-80% in around 35 minutes if you use a quick enough charger. That's not bad, but both the EV6 and Model Y Long Range can charge quicker. A full (0-100%) charge at home using a regular 7kW wallbox will take around 13 hours.

We didn't have enough data on the Enyaq to include it in the 2022 What Car? Reliability Survey but Skoda finished a respectable 13th out of 32 brands (behind Kia but ahead of Volvo, Tesla and Audi) in the manufacturer league table. Most components are covered by a three-year/60,000-mile warranty on most parts, but the battery is covered for up to eight years with a 100,000-mile cap. 

The Enyaq was awarded five stars out of five when it was tested for safety by Euro NCAP. The vRS version comes with e-Call emergency assistance, automatic emergency braking (AEB), lane-keeping assistance and blind-spot monitoring.

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