A Family Suv? My Skoda Kodiaq Vrs Is Actually A Secret Gt Gem

I've been covering some big miles in our Kodiaq vRS long-term test car recently, and by gum it's good at it.

Skoda talks about how important the Octavia and Superb are as its staple cars for high-mileage users, and I think it likes its positioning as something of a hero for traditional saloon/hatchback/estate drivers – the kind of people we would have dubbed as sales reps before the introduction of email and video calls spelled the demise of printers.

But the aspects that make those trad D-segment cars so attractive to drive over distance remain present and correct in the taller Kodiaq, even in a version with racier seats and a supposedly sportier intent.

Its steering is stable and relaxed, directionally it feels very stable, visibility is even better than in a saloon (to the detriment of anyone following it, of course, as is the crossover/SUV norm), the ride is largely compliant bar the odd shimmy provided by its large wheel-and-tyre combo (more on which in a moment), while its VW Golf GTI-derived engine has plentiful urge yet settles easily on a motorway.

And if you find its note a bit on the gruff side, guess what? Some of that engine noise is fake and you can turn it off for considerably less thrummy vibes.

I also think that a mixed-mile return of circa 35mpg is good for a car of this size and performance. Clearly it would be better if it were a diesel, while if it were electric some of its propulsion would come from fuel burned elsewhere. But if combustion at source is what suits you (and for huge mileages, maybe it does), this is where we are. A full tank will get me around 450 miles.

Drawbacks? I find the DSG dual-clutch automatic gearbox's ratio choices and responses can be a bit dull in D, so it's better to ping it into S, although on a motorway I would like it back in D again, where it's calmer.

You can flick though the seven ratios via steering-wheel paddles too, and the DSG will hold them as manual choices if you started in S or assume control again after a few seconds if you were in D. And making your own choices can be entertaining too on the right road.

I wouldn't like to call this a drawback, because all it takes is willpower (and I've had a clean licence for 20 years), but like a lot of cars the Kodiaq has a cruising speed at which it feels happiest. This one is quite brisk – slightly above the motorway limit. So I'm hoping for an excuse to take it to Germany.

Then there's the size of those electrically adjustable front seats, which are terrific for those sitting in them. Less good, apparently, for people behind them. I had my now grown-up babies in the back the other day and, even though they're in their 20s and one is over 6ft tall, he was complaining that he couldn't see too well, which made him feel a bit claustrophobic. If you have children who like a decent view forwards to stave off travel sickness, that is worth bearing in mind.

And finally there are the wheels, which, as reported in my column a couple of weeks ago, are prone to kerbing if you're an imbecile like me, or very tired on, say, an early morning jaunt to Goodwood.

A dry spell, a couple of days in the dusty car parks there and a bit of brake dust besides mean that the scrape isn't quite so obvious as it was, but I'll have to get it sorted, and it will become obvious again when I next clean the car.

Fortunately the Bronx Gold metallic paint doesn't show up the dirt very much and I'm not allowed to use a hosepipe anyway, so there's no pressing compulsion to do that and my mistake can go unnoticed.