With 140kW on tap, too.
Czech carmaker Skoda is bringing quite the lineup to Paris for the upcoming motor show in October it seems, with the Karoq Scout we covered last week set to be joined by this, the hotter and more road-focused Karoq Sportline. More than just a dress-up pack, the Karoq Sportline targets potential Karoq buyers who (sensibly) know that they’ll be spending more time on bitumen, and prefer a compact SUV that does best there.
Perhaps to underline its serious on-road capability, the Karoq Sportline will offer a unique 2.0-litre TSI mill with some 140kW of power on tap. This is unique to the Karoq Sportline, though the car can be had with the 110kW or 140kW 2.0TDI powerplants, or the 110kW 1.5TSI mill. There’s also the choice between 6-speed self-shifter or the 7-speed DSG, and while front-wheel drive is standard, 4Motion all-wheel drive can be had as an option.
As expected with a high-performance variant, a lot of aesthetic changes have been made to ensure there’s no mistaking the Karoq Sportline for a cooking variant. You’ll find that the revised bumpers on either end, the standard 18-inch alloys (with 19-inch optional), and the contrasting gloss-black elements represent the necessary dose of aggro that comes with any performance-ish model.
It doesn’t stop there though, as the cabin also received a raft of changes. There’s a new ‘Thermoflux’ fabric for the seats (which permits air permeation through them for greater comfort & support), a perforated leather steering wheel & gear shifter with contrasting silver stitching, ambient LED lighting, stainless steel pedals, and black fabric headlining & roof pillars. Perhaps most importantly, there’s also a unique display mode for the Karoq Sportline’s digital instrument cluster, modelled after what you’d find from an Audi S car, with a central rev counter and a digital speedo nestled in the middle of that.
While the Skoda Karoq Sportline hasn’t yet been locked in for Australia, comments made by Skoda’s local corporate communications manager to our friends at CarAdvice suggest that the local office is quite keen on getting it to our shores, though it will depend on Skoda’s production capacity as we’ve little doubt that this model will be very, very popular.
For more information on Skoda, check out our Showroom.
