Skoda Superb Estate review

“Despite what you might read in the
press, you can still buy a diesel-
powered car. And if it’s a big estate
that you need, there really is no
better powerplant...”

TOPPING YOUR LIST for a big wagon should be Skoda's Superb. And for one unbeatable reason — even when passengers are stretched out in its limo-like rear cabin, the estate's boot will swallow a cavernous 660 litres; if you think that's big, wait until you fold down the back seats: the resulting cargo bay accommodates a house-moving 1,950 litres.

Not only has Skoda's latest Superb estate got the practicality nailed down but it's more than just uber-practical; it also happens to be a great looker. Our Sportline Plus was finished in glistening Black Magic pearl effect paintwork that beautifully highlighted its clean lines and upscale nose treatment featuring lean LED matrix headlights and LED daytime running lights, along with those cool scrolling indicators found on all prestige-branded cars.

The refreshingly unfussy styling imbues the Superb estate with considerable kerb appeal. Just standing looking at it makes you realise that full-size, family-friendly estate cars show the error in thinking that the omnipresent SUV is the answer to every motorist's prayer. As useful as SUVs undeniably are, a properly fettled estate car provides a genuine alternative — and is often the better drive.

“The 2.0-litre TDI under
the Superb’s bonnet is
a well behaved but
nonetheless willing
performer.
With 265lb ft of torque on
tap you never feel short
of oomph, even hauling
a full load or towing
something substantial
behind.
And a very well-
mannered unit it is too:
most of the time all
that can be heard is a
distant hum, with
motorways cruised
in pretty much
near-silence...”

Broadening the Superb's appeal is a comprehensive range of powerplants; from petrol and diesel to a cutting edge plug-in petrol-electric PHEV with 218bhp. Petrol engines start at 148bhp and top out with a 155mph 4x4 276bhp unit.

Serious wagon masters, though, will always plump for diesel because nothing trumps a diesel's low-down grunt when it comes to towing or hauling loads — plus it doesn't need to be worked as hard as a petrol engine to deliver its tireless pulling power.

Turbodiesel units for the Superb estate come with up to 200PS 197bhp but the best pick for most drivers would be the 148bhp 2.0-litre. A solid choice because this unit has all the torque you're ever likely to need (265lb ft) and it ekes out the fuel: officially, 52.9mpg (to 61.3mpg touring), a figure that we easily confirmed in real-world testing when we recorded a very impressive hard-driven week's average of 52.7mpg and regularly saw 57mpg on long runs.

The 2.0-litre TDI under the Superb's bonnet is a well behaved but nonetheless willing performer. With 265lb ft of torque on tap you never feel short of oomph, even hauling a full load or towing something substantial behind.

And a very well-mannered unit it is too: most of the time all that can be heard is a distant hum; motorways are cruised in pretty much near-silence. Boosting drivetrain refinement is a slick-acting seven-speed DSG autobox along with Skoda's Drive Mode Selection that lets you choose between three driving modes: Normal, Eco, and Sport (that always feels eager for you to bring it on). You also get an Individual mode for mixing and matching the dynamic attributes that best suit your driving style.

Big car; big cabin. The doors shut with a reassuring thump. Settle in either sports-style front seat (upholstered, like those in the back, in black Alcantara with silver diamond stitching) and you immediately know that the Superb is equally big on comfort. For the one doing the steering that means a height-adjustable driver's chair, four-way power-adjustable lumbar support, and powered multi-way seat adjustment with memory recall.

Both front seats feature height-adjustable belts and, for some extra cosseting, three-stage heating. Plus there's plenty of room in all directions — enough to embarrass some far more expensive premium estates, most importantly above your head, where you'll find room for an informal hat; legroom, even for six-footers, is not an issue either and, thanks to the Superb's wide cabin, elbow clashes are also extremely unlikely.

With all of that, the driving position is spot-on and offers first-rate views to all points of the compass. The slim windscreen pillars, large door mirrors, and greenhouse-like tail treatment — which is far easier to see out of than most other estates — ensure there are no blind-spot surprises when you're driving or parking up (parking sensors front and rear are standard-fit items). The satisfying-to-use steering-wheel with a perforated leather-wrapped rim is a sporty-looking, flat-bottomed and multifunction number with paddle-shifters.

“The estate has a fluent
ride that suits its
intended purpose of
XXL family wagon
exceedingly well,
and noticeably better
than some lifestyle
shooting brakes that are
set up to drive like
a sports car and consequently can ride
jarringly harder.
Even rolling on 19-inch
alloy wheels, the
Sportline Plus — which
sits on a firmer Sport
chassis — still rode
exceedingly well.
The suspension is not
afraid of large bumps
or pitted blacktop and
soaks them up without
disturbing your
passengers, while at
higher speeds it wafts
along motorways
with a relaxing, well-
planted gait.
And, despite the
suspension’s well-
managed fluency,
it doesn’t go all 'floaty’
on you should you
decide to press on along
country roads...”

Alongside the comfort there's plenty of quality, with excellent fit and finish and smart carbon optic elements plus soft-touch trim materials, LED interior light pack and well-damped, logically placed switchgear. Add to that a well laid-out fascia with a large built-in central touchscreen with easy-peasy trad-style controls for the efficient 2Zone climate system and you have a very agreeable cabin that you'll be happy to travel hundreds of miles in.

You can trust Skoda to think of your convenience in other ways too — such as in-cabin storage. And clearly they have, providing a large air-conditioned bin between the front seats topped by a padded armrest wide enough to share, a chillable glovebox, triple cupholders built into the centre console with a sliding lid for when they're being used for storage, long and deep bottle-holding front doors pockets, a large multi-use hinged cubby in the lower driver's side fascia, plus a drop-down overhead case for your shades. Other thoughtful touches include an umbrella holster both front doors with a compact brolly to start you off, an ice-scraper stored behind the fuel filler flap for easy access on those chilly winter mornings.

Today's cars are, more than anything, judged by their comms. The Superb scores highly in this department with its Columbus infotainment unit fronted by a 9.2-inch touchscreen display. 3D mapping with enhanced connectivity (including Google Maps) is standard, as too is Internet access plus there's a WiFi-enabled in-cabin hotspot, Infotainment Online, SmartLink+ (including Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, and MirrorLink connectivity), Bluetooth, DAB radio, voice control, a pair of USB ports, and CareConnect (that includes an SOS feature).

Most importantly, screen definition is sharp, the menus are straightforward, there are direct jump buttons around the screen for fast menu-switching, and some of the features (Phone, Nav, Media, and Radio) can be operated using the foolproof steering wheel controls or the voice control.

Skoda's Virtual Cockpit system is also standard. This fills the instrument cluster with a 10.3-inch fully customisable digital display with multiple layout options, including showing the active mapping over its full width. However much, or little, information you like to see when driving, this super-clear set-up is a real joy to use.

Kit levels are generous with, in addition to the comms items and Virtual Cockpit digital instrument display already detailed, keyless entry and starting, dual-zone climate control with humidity sensor, Drive Mode Select, powerfolding and heated door mirrors, privacy glass, one-shot power windows, electric parking brake with auto-hold, auto-dimming frameless rearview mirror, power-operated boot, Adaptive cruise control.

Safety-wise the Superb Estate has a five-star EuroNCAP rating along with all the 'assists' you'll need including the all-important Front Assist with pedestrian detection and automatic emergency braking, blind spot detection, a host of traction and stability controls including post-collision braking, driver fatigue sensor, plus seven airbags (front, front side, curtain, and driver's knee).

Other standard safety kit includes Skoda's impressive night-into-day Matrix LED headlights with the adaptive front light system that enables main beam to be used effectively permanently as they automatically dip if there's a chance of other road users being dazzled, LED daytime running lights, cornering front fog lights, LED rear lights, dynamic indicators, auto lights and wipes, automatic drive-away door locking, Isofix child seat mounting points in the outer rear seats, and tyre pressure monitoring.

Getting into the rear cabin is as easy as it gets courtesy of wide-opening doors (and particularly helpful, too, when loading or unloading the forward section of the fill loadbay). Measuring 4.9-metres from nose to tail, the Superb estate has all the wheelbase it needs to provide acres of personal space in the back: as up front, elbow, shoulder, leg, and head room is limo-like; rear seats also benefit from relaxing backrest angles with the well-shaped seats providing both support and comfort however long the journey — even six-footers can stretch right out and zone out for the duration of the 'flight'.

“The Superb estate’s
boot is nothing
if not ‘bootiful’.
At 660 litres, it looks vast
and if you had to, you
could easily pack in ten
or more carry-on cases.
It also comes with a
powered tailgate (like a
heated steering wheel,
until you’ve tried it you
don't appreciate just
how sensible it is)
so hands-free opening
and closing using the
key fob is not only
a time-saver but keeps
your hands clean in
wet weather...”

Seating three adults side-by-side is also an easy ask. Further boosting the easy-going cabin ambiance are dedicated rear-cab air vents, a fold-down centre armrest (with pop-out cupholders), large bottle-holding door bins, and front seatback pouches, each incorporating a separate pocket for a smartphone (with charging options nearby).

Not surprisingly, the Superb estate has a fluent ride that suits its intended purpose of XXL family wagon exceedingly well, and noticeably better than some lifestyle shooting brakes that are set up to drive like a sports car and consequently can ride jarringly harder. Even rolling on 19-inch alloy wheels, the Sportline Plus — which runs on a firmer Sport chassis — still rode exceedingly well.

The suspension is not afraid of large bumps or pitted blacktop and soaks them up without disturbing your passengers, while at higher speeds it wafts along motorways with a relaxing, well-planted gait. And, despite the suspension's well-managed fluency, it doesn't go all 'floaty' on you should you decide to press on along country roads.

And although this Superb estate is clearly intended more for comfort and effortless mile-eating than lapping the N�rburgring, it's still up for being hustled. The Sportline Plus model gains Progressive Dynamic Steering which, as its name clearly implies, varies the weighting depending on the degree of lock you're using = and as your speed ramps up, so does the heft at the rim. And when you find yourself parking or threading through cityscapes and edgy traffic, it's light lower-speed assistance is welcome.

Break free from the 40- and 50-limits and you'll find that, helped by the steering and the Sportline Plus's stiffer underpinnings, and more than enough grip to go round, you can trust the Superb to hold your line whenever you need to get a move on along the twisties. Although the front-wheel driven estates feel reassuringly connected to the road, if you'd feel happier with more Audi-quattro-style back-up, then four-wheel drive is an option; although only on the more potent 197bhp diesel model, and on the very quick 276bhp petrol version on which, not unexpectedly, it's standard-fit.

For those who favour a belt-and-braces approach there's another handling dynamics choice on the options list — Skoda's adaptive suspension: aka Dynamic Chassis Control. Tick the box for this and you get a superior range of ride settings from comfort to sporting.

The boot in the estate is nothing if not 'bootiful'. At 660 litres, the boot looks truly vast and if you had to, you could easily pack in ten or more carry-on cases. It also comes with a powered tailgate (like a heated steering wheel, until you've tried it you can't really appreciate just how sensible it is) so hands-free opening and closing using the key fob is not only a time-saver but keeps your hands clean in wet weather. Another appreciated touch is a roller blind load cover that automatically retracts halfway for quicker access as the tailgate rises.

Pull the levers in the rear of the boot and down will go the 40:60-split rear backrests. The boot also features a variable-height floor which levels out the floor seamlessly when the rear seats are folded in loadbay configuration (creating a 1,950-litre cargo bay) and ensures easy loading/unloading of larger items — a brace of mountain bikes perhaps or, if you're a doggy person, a couple of Saint Bernards!

Other convenient features include a large ski-hatch for accommodating longer loads between two rear passengers, open corner bins at the rear of the boot, a 12V socket, a self-charging removable LED torch, sturdy bag hooks, and some amazingly useful Velcroed 'place-holders' that can be sited anywhere on the boot floor to keep individual items exactly where you put them. And, for those times when hauling is the only way to go, the Superb estate will pull a braked 2,000kg.

As estate cars go the Skoda Superb makes Big Beautiful. But it's far more than just its stand-out load carrying and lugging abilities; it's also a fine-looking family-holdall-cum-limo that's nice to drive, big on comfort, and refined to travel in — and, amazingly, one that's commendably light on the fuel. ~ MotorBar

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