The Škoda Kodiaq is a

mid-size crossover SUV Mid-size crossover SUV is an automobile classification used mainly in North America to describe a segment of crossover SUV, a type of sport utility vehicle, between compact crossover SUV and full-size crossover SUV. A mid-size crossover SU ...

manufactured by the Czech

automaker The automotive industry comprises a wide range of companies and organizations involved in the design, development, manufacturing, marketing, and selling of motor vehicles. It is one of the world's largest industries by revenue (from 16 % such a ...

Škoda Auto Škoda Auto a.s. (), often shortened to Škoda, is a Czech automobile manufacturer established in 1925 as the successor to Laurin & Klement and headquartered in Mladá Boleslav, Czech Republic. Škoda Works became state owned in 1948. After 199 ...

since 2016. The vehicle sits in Škoda's D-SUV, above the

Škoda Kamiq The Škoda Kamiq is a subcompact crossover SUV (B-segment), launched by the Czech car manufacturer Škoda Auto in the end of June 2019, nearly two years after the larger Škoda Karoq was launched in Europe in September 2017. It is smallest of the ...

and

Škoda Karoq The Škoda Karoq is a compact crossover SUV (C-segment) designed and built by the Czech car manufacturer Škoda Auto. Introduced in 2017, the vehicle is based on the Volkswagen Group MQB platform, and replaced the Škoda Yeti. The car slots between ...

. The vehicle is based on the

Volkswagen Group MQB platform The Volkswagen Group MQB platform is the company's strategy for shared modular design construction of its transverse, front-engine, front-wheel-drive layout (optional front-engine, four-wheel-drive layout) automobiles. It was first introduced in t ...

, shared with a new generation of

Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace The Volkswagen Tiguan () is a car produced by German manufacturer Volkswagen since 2007, sitting between the smaller Volkswagen T-Roc, T-Roc and the larger Volkswagen Touareg, Touareg in the company's crossover SUV range. The first generation is ...

and the

SEAT Tarraco The SEAT Tarraco is a mid-size crossover SUV manufactured by Spanish automaker SEAT. It is the flagship SUV of the Spanish car maker above the SEAT Arona and the SEAT Ateca, optionally available with seven seats. It is based on the Volkswagen Grou ...

. It offers the seven-seat configuration, unlike the smaller Škoda Karoq that only has two-row seating.

Overview

The car was previously previewed as concept car named Škoda Vision S in Geneva Motor Show 2016. Prior to its release, it was assumed that the new SUV would be called "Snowman" or "Polar", but this was dismissed by the former head of Škoda,

Winfried Vahland Winfried Vahland (born 1 April 1957 in Beckum, Germany) was the chairman of the board and CEO at Škoda Auto, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group. Biography Vahland graduated from Darmstadt Technical University, majoring in mec ...

as a media speculation. On 23 December 2015, Škoda registered the name "Kodiaq". The name refers to the largest brown bear, the

Kodiak bear The Kodiak bear (''Ursus arctos middendorffi''), also known as the Kodiak brown bear, sometimes the Alaskan brown bear, inhabits the islands of the Kodiak Archipelago in southwest Alaska. It is the largest recognized subspecies or population o ...

, living on the island of the same name off the south coast of

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...

. As part of its marketing campaign, the

Kodiak Kodiak may refer to: Places *Kodiak, Alaska, a city located on Kodiak island * Kodiak, Missouri, an unincorporated community *Kodiak Archipelago, in southern Alaska *Kodiak Island, the largest island of the Kodiak archipelago ** Kodiak Launch Com ...

town in

Kodiak Island Kodiak Island (Alutiiq: ''Qikertaq''), is a large island on the south coast of the U.S. state of Alaska, separated from the Alaska mainland by the Shelikof Strait. The largest island in the Kodiak Archipelago, Kodiak Island is the second larges ...

was renamed Kodiaq for one day. In February 2016, images of the ''Vision S'' concept were released, and the concept model appeared in March 2016 at the

Geneva Motor Show The Geneva International Motor Show is an annual auto show held in March in the Swiss city of Geneva. The show is hosted at the Palexpo, a convention centre located next to the Geneva Cointrin International Airport. The Salon is organised by th ...

. The final SUV was introduced at the

Paris Motor Show The Paris Motor Show (french: Mondial de l'Automobile) is a biennial auto show in Paris. Held during October, it is one of the most important auto shows, often with many new production automobile and concept car debuts. The show presently take ...

on 29 September 2016. The first cars were officially delivered to customers in February 2017. The Kodiaq is the first vehicle in the Škoda lineup to have Area View, Tow Assist, Manoeuvre Assist and Predictive Pedestrian Protection. It is also the first vehicle in the

lineup to feature capacitive shortcut buttons instead of physical buttons for the 8" infotainment systems. File:2018 Skoda Kodiaq Scout TDi SCR 4X4 2.0 Rear.jpg, Škoda Kodiaq Scout (rear) File:Skoda Kodiaq 2.0 TDI 4x4 Clever – h 30012021.jpg, Škoda Kodiaq (2020 refresh) File:Skoda Kodiaq GT 007.jpg, Škoda Kodiaq GT (rear) File:2021 SKODA Kodiaq 1.4 Ambition silver interior view in Brunei.jpg, Interior

Facelift

In April 2021, Škoda launched a lightly facelifted version of the Kodiaq. Subtle cosmetic changes were introduced, including a redesigned hood and a more upright front grille, with slimmer front headlights that employ matrix LED technology as optional equipment. The changes made serve a functional purpose in making the Kodiaq more aerodynamic than before, by tweaking the bumpers and installing a new roof-mounted spoiler. The facelifted Kodiaq can be had with a choice of 17- to 20-inch wheels and some variants have been updated for the sake of reducing drag, while the high-performance Kodiaq RS rides on a new set of 20-inch polished wheels finished in metallic black and equipped with aero plastic shields. The biTDI version was discontinued on the RS and replaced by the 2.0 TSI engine that was also found in Tiguan. File:Skoda Kodiaq Facelift IMG 5978.jpg, Škoda Kodiaq (facelift) File:Skoda Kodiaq Facelift Auto Zuerich 2021 IMG 0188.jpg, Škoda Kodiaq (facelift) File:Skoda Kodiaq RS Facelift Auto Zuerich 2021 IMG 0187.jpg, Škoda Kodiaq RS (facelift) File:Skoda Kodiaq RS Facelift Auto Zuerich 2021 IMG 0191.jpg, Škoda Kodiaq RS (facelift)

Scout, Sportline, RS and GT

The new Kodiaq Scout and Kodiaq Sportline were introduced at the

in March 2017. Kodiaq Scout ground clearance has gone up from 187 mm to 194 mm, with several design changes. These changes include front and rear underbody protection with bumper trim, silver mirror caps, and badging on the front wing and the glove compartment. The Scout comes in all-wheel drive with one turbo petrol TSI engines and two turbo diesel TDI engines. Kodiaq Sportline brings new styling tweaks, some parts are made in black, sports seats, steering wheel in leather, big alloy wheels and pedals made from aluminium. The Kodiaq RS (vRS in the United Kingdom) was introduced at the

in October 2018. It is at the top of the range, the fastest Kodiaq and the most expensive Škoda available. It includes the Škoda's most powerful diesel engine, the 2.0-litre bi-turbo diesel engine, which produces a maximum output of and a maximum torque of . The Kodiaq RS has got a more aggressive design, from leather and carbon leather are made the sports upholstered seats, steering wheel, the door threshold and the entrance rails of the doors. It comes with Virtual Cockpit, a gloss black grille, 20" alloy wheels Xtreme, 17-inch red painted brake calipers, different front and rear bumper designs, heated front sports seats and full LED headlights. It holds the track record at the

Nürburgring The is a 150,000 person capacity motorsports complex located in the town of Nürburg, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It features a Formula One, Grand Prix race track built in 1984, and a long "North loop" track, built in the 1920s, around t ...

for any seven seat SUV. Since 2019, the British Police use Škoda Kodiaq vRS as police cars. The Kodiaq GT is the

coupé A coupe or coupé (, ) is a passenger car with a sloping or truncated rear roofline and two doors. The term ''coupé'' was first applied to horse-drawn carriages for two passengers without rear-facing seats. It comes from the French past parti ...

version of the Kodiaq for the Chinese market. It was introduced at the Guangzhou Motor Show on 16 November 2018. It is sold only in

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

, and is available with two 2.0-litre petrol engines (137 kW and 162 kW). File:2018 Skoda Kodiaq Scout TDi SCR 4X4 2.0 Front.jpg, Škoda Kodiaq ''Scout'' File:Škoda Kodiaq SportLine at Legendy 2018 in Prague.jpg, Škoda Kodiaq ''Sportline'' File:Skoda Kodiaq RS at IAA 2019 IMG 0788.jpg, Škoda Kodiaq RS File:Skoda Kodiaq GT 005 (cropped).jpg, Škoda Kodiaq GT (China)

Engines

The Škoda Kodiaq is available with a range of turbocharged petrol and diesel engines, ranging from 1.4 to 2.0 litres, and a choice of front or all wheel drive.

Awards

In November 2016, the Škoda Kodiaq was named the "Best Family Car in the World" by ''

Top Gear Magazine ''Top Gear'' is a British automobile magazine, owned by BBC Worldwide, and published under contract by Immediate Media Company. It is named after the BBC's ''Top Gear'' television show. It was first published in October 1993 and is published m ...

''. Kodiaq won the title of the "Car of the Year" 2017 in the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

and

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...

, the SUV of the Year in

and

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, and the all wheel drive car in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. The Kodiaq also won in German magazine competition ''Auto Test'' for 2017, and is the winner of competitions in British magazines ''

Auto Express ''Auto Express'' is a weekly motoring magazine sold in the United Kingdom published by Autovia Limited. The editor-in-chief is Steve Fowler. History and profile Launched in September 1988, its 1,000th issue was published on 20 February 2008. ...

'' and ''

What Car? ''What Car?'' is a British monthly automobile magazine and website, currently edited by Steve Huntingford and published by Haymarket Consumer Media. Other team members include deputy editor Darren Moss and test editors Will Nightingale, Neil ...

'' for 2017. The Kodiaq also received the

Red Dot The Red Dot Design Award is a German international design prize awarded by Red Dot GmbH & Co. KG. There are prize categories for product design, brands and communication design, and design concept. Since 1955, designers and producers can apply ...

Design Award for 2017.

Sales

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Skoda Kodiaq 2010s cars All-wheel-drive vehicles Cars introduced in 2016 Crossover sport utility vehicles Front-wheel-drive vehicles Mid-size sport utility vehicles Kodiaq