Skoda Enyaq iV review - Engines, performance and drive
The Enyaq iV prioritises comfort over performance, although the top-spec 80X model is pretty rapid for a family SUV
It’s important that a family SUV is easy to drive and, while a decent turn of speed is appealing, the ability to make smooth progress in town and on faster motorways shouldn’t be underestimated. The last thing you want when ferrying the kids around is a bone-jarring ride or jerky acceleration making life that bit more awkward and uncomfortable.
Skoda clearly had this in mind when designing the Enyaq iV, as it’s a relaxing car to drive and able to take on the worst of UK roads without too much complaint. Both the iV 60 and iV 80 models feature the same 310Nm of torque, which helps build speed briskly and makes overtaking manoeuvres pretty effortless. Flex your right foot and you’ll notice a strong, but progressive surge of acceleration, rather than the typical instant shove of other all-electric cars. This helps keep everything feeling refined and manageable.
With a two-tonne kerbweight, the Enyaq is a heavy car, but doesn’t suffer dynamically as much as you might think. Its batteries are stored low down in the floor which gives the advantage of a lower centre of gravity compared to a combustion-engined model. Body roll isn’t an issue, either, even when pushing on through twistier roads, and during our test we found the Enyaq to handle better than its Karoq and Kodiaq SUV siblings.
You can choose to pay an extra £500 to £1,000 (depending on your model) for Skoda’s Dynamic Chassis Control system which includes adaptive dampers, but we wouldn’t advise it. The gains in comfort are negligible over the standard set-up and, while you might notice improvements during quicker, back-road driving, it’s really at odds with what the Enyaq is designed to do best.
Engines, 0-60 acceleration and top speed
While the 201bhp Enyaq iV 80 model offers useful extra range compared to the 177bhp iV 60 version (331 miles vs 256 miles), things are a lot closer in terms of performance. The former manages 0-60mph in 8.2s, while the latter is just a fraction slower at 8.4s. Top speed is limited to 99mph. Moving up to the 261bhp all-wheel-drive iV 80X sees the same sprint dispatched in a lively 6.7 seconds.
