ŠKODA KODIAQ 7-SEATER SUV IS THE FIRST BIG CAR LAUNCH OF 2022

Škoda Kodiaq was first launched in India 4 years ago and now the SUV has made a comeback in the BS6 era. According to brand, the SUV has changed when it comes to engine, chassis, driving dynamics, safety, in-cabin entertainment, connectivity, comfort and luxury features. The car is now available in showrooms across the country, at a starting price of ₹ 34.99 lacs (ex-showroom, pan India). It is available only as a 7-seater in Style, SportLine and Laurin & Klement variants.

Škoda Kodiaq interior.

LOOKS

With its redesigned front and rear and a hexagonal grille, the new Kodiaq looks a little more rugged than before. It features a new bonnet, the front and rear bumpers are now body-coloured, and the head and taillight clusters have new cosmetic and functional additions to them. The headlights have the ŠKODA Crystalline LEDs with illuminated eyelashes and dynamic turn indicators at the rear. There’s also a new rear spoiler design and all variants get 18 alloy wheels.

INTERIORS

The Style and Laurin & Klement variants focus on the rear seat luxury with stone beige leather perforated upholstery for the L&K, with more chrome inside and outside. The SportLine has a more driver-oriented appeal with all black suedia interiors, a 3-spoke flat-bottom sport steering wheel, more side bolstering, integrated headrests, and expanded shoulder support sport seats for better cornering. There are 12-way adjustable electric seats with in-built cooling and heating in the L&K. The car is equipped in options of a three or two-spoke steering wheel, ambient lighting along with a Canton 625 W 12-speaker audio system with a subwoofer. Besides, you can remotely open and shut windows, door mirrors and the all-new panoramic sunroof.

The new Kodiaq is equipped with a 20.32 cm infotainment touchscreen equipped with inbuilt navigation and full connectivity via the MyŠKODA CONNECT App. You also get USB C ports, 12V socket as well as wireless charging, and support for wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. The Style variant comes with 4 analogue dials and digital readouts displaying essential information to the driver. The SportLine and L&K trims come with a Virtual Cockpit with digital dials and a digital console that complements the 26.03 cm media interface with five themes to suit the driver’s needs.

The Kodiaq also offers a power nap package with a blanket, allowing passengers to have a relaxed and comfortable experience. You also get a ticket-holder in the A-pillar, illuminated and cooled glovebox, dashboard storage, and the easy grip mat for the front bottle holder. The car gets 270 litres of boot space with seven seats up and with the last row seats folded down, 630 litres of storage is on offer. This becomes 2005 litres with all five seats in the rear folded down. A virtual pedal with the electric tailgate allows users to open and close the rear boot with just a swing of the leg.

ENGINE

At the heart of the all new Kodiaq is the 2.0 TSI engine that does duty on many cars in the VW family. It makes 190 PS and 320Nm, which allows the car to accelerate to 100kph in 7.8 seconds. Skoda says a progressive steering enhances the driving dynamics of the SUV a sit flexes its forces depending on driving conditions and vehicle speed, making the car easy to manoeuvre at slow speeds and offering the driver better control at higher speeds.

In addition, the first-in-segment Dynamic Chassis Control (DCC) offered in the L&K, allows the driver to select between Eco, Comfort, Normal, Sports, Snow and Individual driving modes. At the heart of the DCC are dual-shell, gas-liquid shock absorbers mated to an Electronic Control Unit that constantly monitors terrain and provides optimum damping characteristics to each shock absorber lending smooth and consistent ride and handling characteristics allowing this full-size SUV pack in agile, car-like dynamics.

SAFETY

Apart from a total of 9 airbags standard, the Kodiaq also gets adaptive front headlights, automatic dimming exterior mirror (on driver side) and defogging across all transparent surfaces, electronic, mechanical and hydraulic brake assist, stability control, multi-collision braking and park assist with hands free parking among others. In addition, the flagship L&K packs in hill descent control and a 360-degree camera as standard.

The Kodiaq is first of many cars that the Czech automaker plans to launch in India this year. Next in line is the hugely anticipated Slavia sedan that will launch in the March. The brand says it has a firm strategy in place to make 2022 its biggest year in India, since its entry into the country.

The writer is Senior Editor at carandbike.com