Prices start at a competitive $35k.
‘Clever’ Czech carmaker Skoda is taking the world by storm with its new SUV, the mid-sized Karoq. Built on the same bones and in about the same size as the Volkswagen Tiguan, the Karoq offers buyers in this segment the luxury of choice, with the Karoq aiming to appeal more to the head and leaving others to appeal to the heart.
That statement might not be entirely fair though, as the Karoq has plenty of features and quirks that you will grow to love about it. The styling is one: Distinctive but inoffensive, the Karoq’s design inside and out teeters the line between ‘elegant’ and ‘tasteless’ deftly, with the same degree of calculated restraint employed in the powertrain offerings.
In the UK, the Karoq will get no less than five engines, with two petrols and three diesels, two transmissions (six speed manual or seven-speed DSG automatic), and all-wheel drive for the top-flight diesel. The engine options, in essence:
- 1.0TSI — 85kW/175Nm, front-wheel drive, 5.2L/100km
- 1.5TSI — 110kW/250Nm, front-wheel drive, 5.1L/100km
- 1.6TDI — 85kW/250Nm, front-wheel drive, 4.5L/100km
- 2.0TDI — 110kW/340Nm, front-wheel drive, 4.4L/100km
- 2.0TDI — 140kW/400Nm, all-wheel drive, 5.3L/100km
Sitting beneath the larger Kodiaq in the lineup, the Karoq bears much resemblance to its bigger sibling, while offering the sort of great value and clever features we’ve come to love from Skoda, too. With the measuring tapes recording a length of 4382mm, a width of 1841mm and a height of 1605mm, the Karoq fits in nicely within the segment it’s competing in, measuring up slightly smaller than the Volkswagen Tiguan it’s related to under the skin. Despite the dimensions, the Karoq offers up 521L of cargo space behind the rear seats, with up to 1630L available with the second-row of seats folded flat.
The exterior features a lot of inspiration from the bigger Kodiaq, with a four-eyed face and cascading Skoda grille dominating the fascia. A full-width lower air intake helps to emphasise the width of the Karoq, giving it a planted, visually-stable stance on the road. The profile of the Karoq shows off its smart wheels (ranging from 16” to 19” in diameter), along with the typically-clean side-along view that Skodas offer up, while the rear looks both unique, but still recognisable as a Skoda. The lights on either end are LED on higher-end cars, with the typical “Czech crystal” references in both.
The cabin of the Karoq is a lot more significant, featuring a brand-first fully-digital instrument display (like Audi’s Virtual Cockpit), featuring four different display designs with unique information readouts and dial-sizes for each. A heated steering wheel sits ahead of that (optional), as well as keys that maintain set driver profiles and allow the Karoq to accommodate each driver individually. There’s front and rear seat heating, LED interior ambient lighting (with 10 selectable colours), four infotainment systems (screen sizes ranging from 6.5-inches to 9.2-inches), satellite navigation, WiFi hotspot availability, access to internet-based services (like driving data transfer, and real-time traffic info), as well as Skoda Connect app connectivity, which allows one to access important vehicle information, and even set the air-conditioning remotely.
Autonomous emergency braking, active cruise control, blind-spot monitoring, emergency assistance, forward-collision warning (with pedestrian detection), hill-start assist, lane-keep assist, driver-fatigue monitor and traffic sign recognition also feature in the Karoq, ensuring that driver assistance is on offer for the various markets that require them.
The Karoq is expected to make Oz landfall in the second quarter of next year, and has been confirmed to be offered as a 110TSI at launch (in front-wheel and all-wheel drive), while the 110TDI is likely but unconfirmed. The same status has been accorded to the range-topping 140TDI, which will likely be offered in the future. Australian Karoq SUVs will be fitted with generous levels of kit, like full-LED lights on either end, wheels up to 19-inches in size, adjustable driving dynamics, VarioFlex rear seats, and the fully-digital instrumentation. AEB will also come standard, along with smartphone mirroring for the infotainment systems.
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