Smoking Kodiaq

IF you think Skoda is the staid arm of the Volkswagen Group then think again with the arrival of a hot Kodiaq SUV.

Come the New Year a Kodiaq vRS will be hitting the road and it features Skoda’s most powerful diesel so far, a 2.0-litre 237bhp twin turbo.

It’s not cheap though, coming in at £42,870 which puts it up against current rivals like the BMW X3 and the Land Rover Discovery Sport while Skoda’s own Kodiaq in SportLine trim has 50bhp less on tap, still some of the sports engineering and trim on board but works out around £5,000 cheaper.

It’s horses for courses but anyone opting for the Kodiaq vRS won’t be disappointed with the performance – acceleration from 0 to 62mph in seven seconds and a top speed of 136mph.

With 500Nm of torque and an excellent seven-speed VW Group DSG box on board it’s really punchy and has plenty of that all so crucial mid-range acceleration.

It looks the part too with sharp styling, aggressive bumpers, black trim grille and twin exhaust pipes, all sitting on 20-inch alloy wheels with low profile tyres, red brake callipers and of course the indomitable Skoda vRS badges.

Fuel economy is rated at 44.1mpg and that equates to CO2 emissions of 167g/km.

Inside, this seven-seater matches up to the vRS theme with Alcantara sports styled bucket seats giving excellent lumbar support and both front seats are electrically adjustable to suit individual preference.

There’s also plenty of red stitching on the seats, the flat-bottomed steering wheel, armrests and elsewhere.