Brand-new Skoda Kodiaq vRS revealed

Driver Guides  New Launches 

If you’ve been waiting for the right SUV to come along so you can sort out your next lease, your wait could be over. A new option has arrived offering that desirable blend of contemporary styling, powerful performance, high-end equipment levels, and 7-seat practicality befitting a flagship model. Available to order from January, this new option comes in the shape of the recently revealed Skoda Kodiaq vRS.

The sporting flagship is the latest addition to the all-new Kodiaq range, with the second generation Skoda Kodiaq vRS boasting a feature-packed specification, improved design and comfort, and more power and performance than the outgoing model.

The largest SUV in Skoda’s impressive arsenal, the Kodiaq is a serious contender in any specification. In a segment largely dominated by high-end models with matching price tags, the Skoda Kodiaq vRS stands out as an impressive lease alternative that shouldn’t stretch the finances quite so far.

Don’t expect to have to sacrifice anything in the process either.

Kodiaq gets the distinctive vRS look

The new Skoda Kodiaq vRS certainly looks the part sporting its model-specific vRS design package. It can easily be distinguished from the rest of the range with its redesigned front bumper featuring touches of black and a horizontal light strip in the grille. The grille frame is also highlighted – or lowlighted, if you prefer – with a gloss black finish to match the D-pillar and window frames.

In line with the aesthetic of current vRS models, the rear gets a few extra touches too. The black details continue in the lettering of the Skoda name that sits above the full-width reflector strip, as well as the polished black 20-inch alloy wheels. There are also a few brighter hints in the chrome of the polished stainless steel exhaust tips protruding from the body-coloured bumper.

The bespoke design package is obviously carried over to the interior of the new Skoda Kodiaq vRS as well.

Sports design inside - and seven seats

The sporting nature is clear as soon as you lay eyes on the sports seats, sports steering wheel, and stainless-steel pedal covers. The electrically operated seats with integrated headrests are finished in a suitably refined black microsuede/artificial leather combination with red contrast stitching and vRS logo. The same microsuede also appears on the dashboard panels, door inserts, and centre console, and the steering wheel shares the same red contrast stitching as the seats.

The updated interior is further complemented by extra layers of comfort and refinement from the new acoustic glass that reduces interior noise, a 10.25-inch virtual cockpit display, and free-standing 13-inch infotainment system mounted centrally on the dashboard. And don’t forget, there are also the seven seats to ensure there’s no shortage of space or practicality in there too.

In terms of specification, the new vRS also boasts other standard features including LED matrix headlights, keyless operation, an upgraded Canton sound system, and the unbelievably useful just-wave-your-foot-under-the-bumper-for-hands-free boot opening.

The vRS version of the Kodiaq also boasts the engineering bits required to make sure it can back up the looks. There’s not much point in a sporty SUV that doesn’t do the sporty bit so Skoda has blessed the new Kodiaq vRS with a chassis setup designed to be driven.

You’ll get progressive steering as standard, alongside Skoda’s DCC Plus chassis control system that continually monitors and adjusts the dampers for optimum grip, and a seven-speed DSG transmission with drive mode selection giving you the choice of Eco, Comfort, Normal, Sport, Individual, and Snow depending on your mood and the prevailing weather. The Kodiaq vRS also comes with an off-road mode should you decide to make full use of its 4x4 capability.

The brakes have also been upgraded with ventilated disks on all four corners and larger two-piston front callipers. The brake callipers are also painted gloss red for an extra touch of sportiness, although that’s probably more of a happy coincidence. The addition of extra stopping power is more likely a result of the extra “going power” Skoda has squeezed from the engine rather than merely a design choice.

An increase of 20bhp over the old model means the new Skoda Kodiaq vRS now produces around 260bhp from its 2-litre petrol engine. Sending that power to all four wheels via the seven-speed gearbox translates to a 0-62mph time of just 6.4 seconds and a top speed of 143mph. It may not be the fastest full-size SUV out there but it’s more than capable of leaving most other traffic staring at its rear as it pulls away, and it can still return a perfectly reasonable 33mpg in the process.

That’s not a bad combination of features for anyone who’s been waiting for the right moment to lease themselves a properly sporty SUV.

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