TIPPING THE SCALA

Can Skoda’s new hatchback give the competition a scare? Paul Acres finds out

although it follows the current trend of adopting a tablet-like appearance, it feels much better integrated into the fascia.

The seats are comfortable and supportive and there’s enough adjustment in both seat and steering column that you should have little trouble finding a decent driving position.

The Scala will comfortably accommodate two six-foot passengers riding in tandem. Rear headroom is also, at 982mm, the best in the segment. It isn’t all sunshine and roses, however, because the back and base of the middle seat protrude uncomfortably, rendering it only really suitable for smaller passengers and, by smaller passengers, I mean children. Equipment levels are generous – even in the SE and even without the full LED lights – and include 16in alloy wheels, basic LED headlights with LED daytime running lights, Bluetooth audio streaming and handsfree calling, Apple CarPlay and Android

Auto, DAB radio, leather on the gear stick, handbrake lever and steering wheel, automatic lights and wipers, parking sensors and cruise control with speed limiter, two USB ports and, as part of the firm’s Simply Clever philosophy, there’s an umbrella, a cap that doubles as a funnel on the screen-wash reservoir and an ice scraper that doubles as a tyre tread gauge beneath the fuel filler cap.

The driving experience is unassuming, straightforward even. The controls are light in weight and short of feel, but anything else would feel alien in a car that is unashamedly focused on conveying you and your passengers to your destination with as little fuss as possible.

The ride is very, very supple.

It’s hard to think of another car this side of a Roller that’s so unerringly compliant over bumps, lumps, cracks, holes and any other imperfections that our roads can throw at it. If anything, it’s a little too soft for my tastes and, at times, was prone to wallow a little before settling down on its springs again.

On dual carriageways the Scala is calm, quiet and efficient. The 1.0-litre three-cylinder petrol engine is prone to emitting a busy little thrum under acceleration – nothing unusual about that – but once you’re up to speed it becomes inaudible. The cabin is, in fact, very well insulated from external noises. Away from the main roads and, if you’re so inclined, it doesn’t take long to discover the Scala’s dynamic limitations. The car’s balance is reasonably good and, for a car that rides on such seemingly soft suspension, the body control is respectable, but there’s some inertia in the steering around the dead-ahead that sucks all the confidence out of the driver and, of course, that lack of feedback that I mentioned earlier is the final nail in the

enthusiastic driver’s coffin. Not literally, of course.

The Scala is undoubtedly another significant step forward for Skoda. The exterior might be just the natural evolution of the firm’s current design direction but the cabin, in both material quality and style, is a step or two ahead of anything else the company has produced so far. There are also the usual thoughtful touches such as the included umbrella and ice scraper that can make ownership such a pleasure. Dynamically the Scala doesn’t offer much incentive to explore its limits. It is, instead, unashamedly aimed at drivers who value comfort and capacity ahead of performance and on that front it delivers with very real success.