Skoda Peaq name confirmed for all-new 7-seater SUV

Skoda’s new seven-seat electric SUV will get a completely new name, Auto Express can confirm, reflecting its innovation and position at the top of the maker’s range. The Skoda Peaq brings “the ideas of the Vision 7S concept into series production”, and will be revealed in full this summer.

Although the car was previously thought to be called Eviatiq, Skoda has now confirmed the Peaq name for its future flagship. It marks a new generation of electric vehicles for Skoda, ditching the E-led names so far seen on the Enyaq and Elroq – both of which you can buy right now through the Auto Express Buy A Car service – as well as the forthcoming Epiq crossover.

Skoda says the Peaq has “been designed with a strong focus on the well known and trusted brand values: space, practicality, and comfort”. Martin Jahn, Skoda’s board member for sales and marketing said: “As of today, our bold vision for Skoda’s electric future has a name: Peaq – a clear statement of where this model belongs in our portfolio.”

We saw Skoda’s new electric SUV nearly four years ago in the form of the Vision 7S concept. Since then, we’ve been issued a handful of teaser images, as well as a few pictures of the car undergoing testing – including around the gruelling Nurburgring race track in Germany.

From these, we can see the car will use Skoda’s new ‘Modern Solid’ design language, as seen on the facelifted Enyaq and new Elroq – including the ‘Tech Deck’ face found on those cars. This replaces a typical Skoda grille with a thin arrangement of sensors and cameras that form part of the car’s active safety hardware. 

However, compared to the first two EVs mentioned, the new seven-seater SUV is expected to take Skoda’s bold new design language to the next level with an even more minimal look. This includes the application of a clamshell-style bonnet and much thinner new LED headlights that are integrated into that Tech Deck Face. 

There are also plenty of details that appear to have been carried straight over from the Vision 7S concept, including a twin-fin roof spoiler and super-slim tail-lights that extend onto the bootlid. The overall shape is close to the concept’s too, with a very square front end and almost van-like proportions that capitalise on interior space thanks to a short bonnet and a minimal rear overhang. 

Unsurprisingly, the coach doors on the Vision 7S haven't made it to production, given that we can see the pop-out rear door handles in the usual position. The concept’s unconventional ‘six-plus-one’ seating arrangement has almost certainly been replaced by a more traditional choice of five or seven-seat options, although we have yet to get a look inside the production car.

Rivals and predicted release date

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The zero-emissions alternative to the award-winning Skoda Kodiaq isn’t due to be unveiled until the summer of 2026, but it’s likely to feature a similar set-up inside to the Enyaq and Elroq. That should include a large central touchscreen, a five-inch driver’s display, various sustainable materials and plenty of ‘simply clever’ touches.

So far, the only detail Skoda has confirmed about its seven-seat EV is that it'll be around 4.9 metres long. That’ll make it the biggest model in Skoda’s line-up by far, and bigger than the Peugeot E-5008 it’ll be going up against. However, it’s not quite as colossal as the Hyundai Ioniq 9 or Kia EV9 – two other contenders in the steadily expanding seven-seat EV segment.

Underneath the Skoda’s camouflage is almost certainly the same MEB bespoke electric-car platform that’s used by the Enyaq and Elroq, as well as around a dozen other EVs including the Ford Capri. Another is the nearly five-metre-long Volkswagen ID. Buzz LWB minibus, so we know the architecture can accommodate a vehicle this large. 

The seven-seat Skoda will probably get the same 86kWh battery as the ID. Buzz LWB, which we’d expect to provide a range of nearly 400 miles. That’s on par with the Ioniq 9, but still some way off the up to 415 miles of range offered by the E-5008, in some guises. 

A choice of single-motor, rear-drive and dual-motor, all-wheel-drive powertrains is likely to be offered, and we wouldn’t be surprised if there was a hot vRS version too, considering that both generations of the Skoda Kodiaq have been given the same treatment, as well as the Enyaq and Elroq.  

What do you think of Skoda's new seven-seat electric car? Let us know in the comments below...