The Scotsman

GOING BACK TO BASICS

Czech brand still does no-frills motoring, just choose your spec wisely, writes Steven Chisholm

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Skoda used to be known for making small, no-frills cars, until the brand was rehabilita­ted under the stewardshi­p of Volkswagen.

From that point it became renowned for great value, surprising­ly good cars. Gradually, we dropped the word ‘surprising­ly’ too.

But if you’re of a mind, you can still pick up a Skoda that fits the no-frills bill – and this, the Citigo Colour Edition, is one of those examples.

Powered by a 60 horsepower petrol engine, mated to a fivespeed manual gearbox, it’s not going to get you anywhere in a hurry. It will take you 14.4 seconds to reach 62mph and make a racket in the process.

The noise is less down to the engine (which is fairly refined in itself, if a tad underpower­ed) and more down to the poorly insulated cabin which feels cheap compared with more mature offerings in the Skoda line-up and well behind similarly priced competitor­s from the likes of Kia, Renault and even Ford’s unapologet­ically budget offering the Ka +.

Plastics could be softer and the steering wheel in particular is unyielding and slippy hard plastic, but the cabin has a solid feel.

It’s not all low-spec though. It’s actually fairly comfortabl­e and will accommodat­e two adults and two children easily. The boot is also a good size for the class at 251 litres. That’s usable space as well, with a nice deep drop.

And in terms of its drive the handling is a real highlight. Well-weighted steering, plenty of grip and a controlled body make for one of the best handling cars in the segment.

The only options on our test car were contrast colour door mirrors and roof (£260), air conditioni­ng (£280), DAB radio (£160) and a space saver spare wheel (£55).

Standard equipment included 15-inch black alloy wheels – which contrasted nicely with the test car’s kiwi green paintwork-–halogenlig­htsandfron­t fogs,privacygla­ssandtyrep­ressure monitoring system.

There’s no touchscree­n infotainme­nt system, instead you get a cradle for your phone and Bluetooth connectivi­ty. Specific to the Colour Edition are an additional four speakers.

You can get the Skoda Citigo from a shade over £8,000 and you can forgive a cheap, funto-drive runaround for not being the last word in refinement or packed with luxuries – particular­ly when it’s ideally suited to its chosen environmen­t and good fun to drive.

But this Citigo starts at £11,000. Strip out the stuff you really ought to expect as a minimum nowadays from the list of key features (airbag, electric front windows, Isofix, parcel shelf, height adjustment for the driver’s seat, rear folding seats, rear head rests and remote central locking are all listed) and it’s difficult to see how much more basic they could have made this car.

I’m a huge fan of the current Skoda range. The cars look great and generally drive as well as the equivalent Volkswagen­s but without the premium.

It’s difficult to recommend this trim level though. Unless you’re heart’s desire is one of the trim-specific colours, then you’re going to get better value elsewhere in the line-up.

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