2025 Skoda Enyaq review: Australian first drive

09/19/2024 02:00 AM

2025 Skoda Enyaq

It’s Czech, mate.

That’s what Skoda wants Australians to start saying to their friends, as they finally introduce the fully-electric Skoda Enyaq.

Skoda is also looking to move an important piece on the chessboard that is the electric car market in Australia with this 2025 Skoda Enyaq. While Skoda wasn’t drawn on outlining specific goals in terms of sales volume and market share, the Enyaq will be lining up against proficient and popular options like the Kia EV6, BYD Atto 3, and (especially popular) Tesla Model Y.

While we are only just now getting the Enyaq in Australia, it has been plugging away already for four years in Europe. But now with the onset of the New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES) emissions regulations in Australia, our relatively small market has been pushed up the priorities list.

There are some important and crucial upgrades for 2024 as well. The Enyaq is more powerful, faster to charge and can drive further, along with having a lot more technology and features than when the model first debuted overseas.

How much is a Skoda Enyaq?

Importantly, Skoda has priced the Enyaq in the right region to make it competitive for the Australian market. And in its entry-level form, the unoptioned Enyaq Sportline feels like the smart choice in the range.

Priced from $69,990 plus on-road costs, the Enyaq Sportline carries a reasonably high level of standard kit. This includes a 13-inch infotainment display, matrix LED headlights, electric driver’s seat adjustment with memory and front seat heating, an electric tailgate, and both home and ‘Type 2 to Type 2’ AC charging cables included.

The Enyaq Sportline is powered by a single electric motor at the rear, which has 210kW and 545Nm and is fed by an 82kWh nickel cobalt manganese (NCM) battery. Driving range is a claimed 561km on the WLTP combined cycle.

Sportline specification can be augmented with a sizeable $6000 options pack, which goes hard inside and out on inclusions. There’s adaptive damping, exterior ambient lighting with a trick illuminating grille, along with an augmented-reality head-up display, surround-view camera, advanced parking assistance, premium audio system, driver’s seat massage, and an upgraded interior.

For the full rundown of specifications and details, be sure to check out our 2025 Skoda Enyaq pricing and specification story.

Top of the range is the Enyaq RS, which gets all of the optional kit as standard, but also throws in an extra electric motor at the front for increased outputs and all-wheel drive, along with lowered suspension and RS exterior styling.

And you can’t miss that Mamba Green colour either, which is exclusive to the RS.

How big is a Skoda Enyaq?

At 4.6m long and just over 1.6m wide, the Skoda Enyaq is around the same size – give or take a little – as what you see with the competitive set: Tesla’s Model Y, Kia’s EV6, Hyundai’s Ioniq 5, the Subaru Solterra/Toyota bZ4X twins, and Ford’s Mustang Mach-E.

While a more squared-off wagon-shaped Enyaq is available overseas, what we are getting in Australia is the swoopier coupe-style SUV. This gives it a profile closer to the likes of a Model Y, but would come at the expense of boot space and second-row head room.

Skoda argues that the amount of boot space isn’t hugely diminished on paper, because boot litreage is measured up to the top of the seats. There’s no doubt, however, that the wagon – which is quite squared-off at the rear – will offer more space overall, for those who value such things.

The silver lining here is that the drag coefficient of the Enyaq is improved in coupe form, from 0.257 to 0.253. Not as slippery as something like a Hyundai Ioniq 6 or Mercedes-Benz EQE, but an improvement nonetheless, and every little bit counts when you’re trying to maximise your driving range.

But as it stands, the amount of boot space in the Enyaq isn’t too bad overall. Space is good in terms of length and width, but the trimmed-down roof will be restrictive for stacking bags and fitting bulkier items like kids’ bicycles and scooters into the back.

Second-row head room would be trimmed a little in the Enyaq coupe, but not so much to be problematic. I could get into and out of the car without banging my head, for example, and I have a sliver of leftover head room available when seated in the back. For taller folks (I’m about 180cm tall), your mileage may vary.

The removable rear-seat central storage space is a nice touch when you want to seat three in the back and utilise the flat floor. Width is pretty good, but I didn’t have my complement of three car seats for the ultimate test this time around. Seating for adults is comfy, however, with that flat floor and plenty of leg room (headroom notwithstanding) and ample length in the seat cushion.

Up front, and overall for that matter, the interior of the Enyaq is quite different to the starkly designed nature of something like a Tesla, Kia or Hyundai. The Enyaq is more conventional and comfortably familiar for some buyers. The steering wheel, infotainment and general dashboard design all feel regular.

But it’s perhaps not as inspired or special-feeling as others out there. I’m thinking of Tesla’s hardcore minimalist vibes, and the sci-fi edge of an EV6 that makes the Enyaq feel a little too demure overall. It feels good in terms of build quality, and there’s ample storage available through the centre console area.

There’s room for a big handbag in the underslung storage space, while the wireless charging pad is generously sized (for big smartphones), and you’re able to fit some other bits and bobs here as well.

In front of the two adjustable cupholders is a gear shifter that’s hilariously small, but this frees up space for an additional storage nook alongside. Plus, you have a regular-sized central storage bin.

And don’t forget, there’s an umbrella stowed in the driver’s door. It’s a handy feature you’ll no doubt appreciate, and would it really be a Skoda without it?

Does the Skoda Enyaq have Apple CarPlay and Android Auto?

Infotainment for the Enyaq comes in the form of a central 13-inch display, which is home to Skoda’s latest-generation operating system. Our initial drive only gave us an introductory taste of this set-up, but first impressions are good. While there are only a few physical buttons positioned lower down, there is a strip of shortcut buttons high up on the screen to help move between functions.

Features will include all of the usual suspects: wired and wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity, digital radio and voice controls, but no native navigation.

Is the Skoda Enyaq a safe car?

While you will have to wait for a formal ANCAP safety rating for the 2025 Skoda Enyaq, we can garner some information on the Enyaq’s safety credentials via Euro NCAP. This is a sister organisation of ANCAP, which is technically aligned in terms of testing protocols.

In Euro NCAP testing from 2021, the European-market Enyaq scored five stars with a 94 per cent rating for adult occupant protection and 89 per cent for child occupants. Vulnerable road users (pedestrians) get a 71 per cent score, while the onboard safety technology of the Enyaq garnered an 82 per cent score.

We shouldn’t count our chickens before they hatch, though, and should wait for ANCAP to give a score for an Australian-market example of the Enyaq.

What safety technology does the Skoda Enyaq have?

As one would expect, safety is well accounted for in this new Enyaq across the range. Sportline is well equipped in its standard form, with only elements like a 360-degree camera, head-up display and parking assistance being held on by the $6000 Ultimate Pack or RS specification.

On our initial test drive, the onboard safety systems like lane-keep assistance and blind-spot monitoring seemed to work well without interfering too much in the act of everyday driving. We only had a few short highway runs, however, and spent most of our time on twisting country back roads that had little to no lane markings.

How much does the Skoda Enyaq cost to run?

Typical of electric vehicles these days, service costs are kept low with the Enyaq and are covered by eight-year and 10-year service plans through Skoda dealerships.

At $1650 over eight years costs only $206 per year, while 10 years of coverage for $1950 is even better at $195 per year.

Skoda is also spruiking guaranteed future values with the Enyaq, and aiming to provide novated leasing options to small and medium businesses in Australia (instead of just big companies), and keeping the Enyaq competitive from a weekly repayment point of view. Your accountant would be best placed to advise if any of these options are best for you.

One interesting element of the Enyaq, however, is the design of the battery, which is a modular pouch-style battery that Volkswagen Group currently sourced from CATL and LG Chem.

The European automotive giant will be making its own batteries soon enough, but the design of these batteries allows for the possibility of replacing or repairing separate cells (there are 12 in the Enyaq’s 82kWh battery, about the size of a shoebox each) instead of replacing the whole battery in case of a dead cell.

What is the range of a Skoda Enyaq?

In Sportline trim, Skoda claims that the Enyaq is good for 561km of range between recharges, which is something we haven’t been able to fully scrutinise yet. But with indicated consumption not too far off the claim, there’s a decent chance that the real-world figure will be close.

If you opt for the RS, that improved performance and all-wheel drive trim the range back slightly to 530km, and also bumps up the turning circle quite slightly.

Skoda was also keen to note that if the Enyaq is doing mostly urban and city driving, that driving range does improve. The claimed range bumps up quite noticeably to 696km for Sportline and 657km for RS.

But on the flip side, and like most other EVs out there, your efficiency will languish on longer stints on the highway, where chances of regenerative braking are few and far between.

What is the Skoda Enyaq like to drive?

Australians have a love affair with high specification levels and performance variants, whether it be R, RS, N, M or any other of the many performance divisions out there.

But in this case, there is an appeal to the driving experience of the Sportline that the RS doesn’t really outdo.

Both are well balanced, competent and comfortable at the same time without feeling too terse or loose over rougher surfaces. The steering is well weighted, and there is a comforting sense of poise available when you load up the Enyaq through some tighter corners.

There comes a time when the weight of the vehicle becomes apparent, however, and you feel the tyres begin to submit against the demands of lateral grip. You slip into a little bit of understeer, with a little squeal from the tyres, which is the car’s way of telling you to back off a little. But up to that point, the Enyaq feels quite enjoyable.

And credit where credit is due, the driving loop we experienced on this test had no shortage of bad surfaces, potholes and mid-corner bumps to contend with. Many other vehicles would become more unsettled than this Enyaq through similar tests, and plenty of other manufacturers would avoid such conditions as a consequence.

Where the RS has a small amount of appeal, aside from giving more potent straight-line performance, is the ability to accelerate out of a corner a little more competently, with the front wheels being able to straighten things up.

But from the seat of your pants, there isn’t a chasm between the two, and the rear-wheel-drive model is punchy enough for everyday driving in any scenario. And there’s always a nice feeling I think to having rear-driven wheels, a balanced steering feel, and a bit of response through the pedal.

Furthermore, the omission of adaptive damping in the base model doesn’t leave the Enyaq feeling underprepared. There’s enough scope there in the static tune to handle long highways, pock-marked roads, and country bends well.

Adaptive damping, which has 15 selectable settings through the infotainment display, doesn’t go wild in its implementation. The stiffest setting doesn’t rattle your fillings, and the softest setting only starts to wallow about on larger depressions at speed. In other words, it’s nice to have but not crucial.

But otherwise, the driving experience of the Enyaq is typically quiet, refined and responsive – all hallmarks of a well-engineered electric vehicle.

Can a Skoda Enyaq tow?

I don’t think people looking at an electric SUV are thinking about doing a lot of towing. And if you are, you should probably reconsider. The driving range will be penalised quite heavily, but towing is still possible with this Enyaq.

Both Sportline and RS have a regulation 750kg unbraked towing capacity for box trailers and the like, while the extra electric motor in an RS allows the braked towing capacity to grow from 1000kg to 1200kg.

Should I buy a Skoda Enyaq?

If you’re thinking about an Enyaq, you’ve got until December or so to really make a decision on the first examples that are landing in the country. Against the most popular model in this segment – Model Y – Tesla’s offering still has the wood over the Skoda in terms of outright value and bang-for-buck.

But if you start to add in some standard kit like charge cables and metallic paint in the Enyaq, that gap shortens somewhat. In terms of shape and packaging, it’s surprisingly close to the Tesla, but less raucous-looking than the futuristic Ioniq 5 or EV6. That goes for the interior as well, which is practical and effective, but less special-feeling than others out there.

If you like the shape and interior presentation of the Skoda in this coupe SUV form, you might be won over by the better warranty offering in this case and extra inclusions that the Tesla cannot match (without optioning up).

Whereas the RS doesn’t feel like it adds enough spice to justify the extra spend, we think Sportline is the model to zero in on.

How do I buy a Skoda Enyaq? The next steps.

Like we said, Sportline is the pick of the range in our opinion, saving a significant sum of money over the top-spec RS model.

These current vehicles we test-drove on the launch event are the only vehicles currently in the country, and will be on a roadshow around the country to dealerships for public test drives. So if you’re interested in getting to see one in person before the bulk of stock arrives by the end of the year, you should contact your local dealership and see if it is going to take delivery of a demonstrator soon.

Don’t forget, you can also find other Skodas for sale at Drive Marketplace.

We strongly recommend taking a test drive at a dealership before committing because personal needs and tastes can differ. Find your nearest Skoda dealer via this link. We'd also recommend test-driving the Tesla Model Y RWD, because it is the most popular mid-sized electric SUV in Australia and recently had significant price reductions.

If you want to stay updated with everything that’s happened to this car since our review, you’ll find all the latest news here.

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