2024 Skoda Enyaq RS review
This performance car lights the way for a new breed of performance vehicles at a growing brand.
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Skoda’s greenest car is also its meanest.
The new Skoda Enyaq RS is the quickest and most powerful car in the brand’s range.
It’s also the first electric car offered by Skoda, lending environmental credentials that go well beyond lurid “mamba green” paint.
It takes the brand into new territory, both under the bonnet and with price tags normally found in prestige showrooms.
The model shown here will cost about $90,000 drive-away, and justify its price with a generous specifications list and impressive driving manners.
Let’s examine the latter.
The Enyaq feels like a natural evolution of the brand’s sportier cars, such as the turbocharged Skoda Octavia RS.
Like that car, it feels brisk but not shockingly quick – after all, the 250kW found here is well down on rapid EVs such as the Kia EV6 GT or Hyundai Ioniq 5 N.
Let along the heavy-hitting weaponry from Porsche, Mercedes-AMG, or Audi Sport.
Skoda argues that a 5.4 second dash to 100km/h is plenty for the real world, and they’re right.
It’s enough to win the traffic light grand prix, but not so much that you’ll make yourself sick.
The car’s multi-mode suspension adds another layer to its appeal, able to roll with the punches of bumpy roads or bounce on its tiptoes looking for the right moment to strike.
Yes, it feels heavier than petrol cousins.
It’s not the sort of car you would pick to get the blood pumping on a Sunday morning thrash.
But it’s also quieter, with superior ride comfort to most six-figure sedans.
And there's no doubt it makes a strong impression, both inside and out. For starters, Skoda Australia elected to skip a practical wagon option in favour of coupe-like curves.
The illuminated crystal grille of the Enyaq RS won’t be missed at night, and its crisply creased bodywork looks sharp in the day.
The interior is arguably more impressive. Triple digital displays are easier to get on with than cars that miss out on conventional speedos.
High-backed front pews offer plenty of support, and a flat-bottomed steering wheel with shift paddles feels at home in your hands.
Those paddles can be used to adjust battery brake regeneration on the fly, something that isn’t possible in the Skoda’s key rival – Tesla’s Model Y.
Skoda pitches the cheapest Enyaq in line with the mid-grade Tesla Model Y Long Range.
But that’s an odd choice given the Tesla has all-wheel-drive, and the equivalent two-wheel-drive Tesla costs about $15,000 less than the Enyaq.
The standard Enyaq costs $69,990 plus on-road costs, which is about $75,000 drive-away, or $198 per week financed through Skoda.
It has a 82kWh battery that offers a claimed 561km of range, and sends 210kW of power to the rear wheels.
Though the Enyaq has been on sale in Europe since 2020, Skoda Australia waited until now to introduce the model so that it benefited from running changes including a more powerful motor, longer range battery and faster charging times.
The promise is that 175kW of charging power will deliver a 10-80 per cent charge in 28 minutes, eight minutes faster than before.
Skoda pitches the cheapest Enyaq in line with the mid-grade Tesla Model Y Long Range.
But that Tesla has all-wheel-drive, and the equivalent two-wheel-drive Tesla costs about $15,000 less than the Enyaq.
Skoda didn’t try to make this the cheapest car in its class.
Instead, the Enyaq is loaded with standard equipment such as matrix LED headlights, a panoramic sunroof, heated seats, three-zone climate control and more.
Customers who want more can spend a further $6000 on an “ultimate pack” that adds an illuminated grille, 360 degree camera, premium stereo, heated rear seats and a head-up display with augmented reality navigation that projects directions into the driver’s field of view, showing you where to turn.
The range topping Enyaq RS has all of the above, plus an extra dose of attitude.
After all, it is mean and green.
Originally published as 2024 Skoda Enyaq RS review
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