Skoda Karoq long-term test review

• The car Skoda Karoq 1.5 TSI 150 DSG SE L
• Run by Will Williams, photographer
• Why it’s here This is our favourite trim of one of our favourite family SUVs, so we want to see how it stacks up in the real world
• Needs to Be comfortable, smooth-riding and economical on a colossal commute, with plenty of space for photography equipment

Price £25,820 Price as tested £27,650 Miles covered 13,391 Official fuel economy 50.4mpg Test economy 36.8mpg CO2 emissions 127g/km Options Three-spoke leather heated multi-function steering wheel (£150), upgraded Canton sound system (£550), Family Pack (£120), heated windscreen and washer nozzles (£250), Isofix front passenger seat (£35), metallic paint (£575), steel space-saving spare wheel (£150)

30 August 2018 – A close shave

“Surely he’s seen me,” I uttered, eyes widening, staring at the coach that was gently swerving right into my path on the motorway without indicating.

Unfortunately for me and my Karoq, the kamikaze coach driver hadn’t spotted us and, with traffic surrounding me, I was stuck. So all I could do was lean on the horn and hope for the best.

We collided, but luckily we were only going at around 20mph on the M3. The bang wasn’t bad enough to force us to stop, but I was incensed, so I used some choice gestures to suggest he pull over.

Unfortunately, being on a 'smart' motorway meant there was no hard shoulder, and the driver clearly had no intention of stopping, so I took down his registration number and gave a call to the coach company once I’d stopped safely.

Luckily for everyone involved, the damage was purely cosmetic. The coach hit the passenger door handle and the door mirror, but the front of the car escaped unharmed. There’s a few hard scrapes in the panels here and there, but the indicator on the mirror still works.

Being a big coach against a family SUV, it was a bit like Tyson Fury stepping into the ring with Danny de Vito, but the Karoq took the hit extremely well.

Thankfully, this scrap didn’t even scratch the surface of its safety capabilities. However, I was still comforted to know that the Karoq has an outstanding safety suite, including seven airbags and automatic emergency braking as standard, allowing the car to gain the full five-star Euro NCAP safety rating.

The coach company was apologetic and offered to pay for the damage. I’m currently waiting on a quote for the fix from a Skoda garage near me, so more on that next time…

If it’s down for a quick spell in the garage, I’m going to get them to also take a look at the boot clip that broke off – something I mentioned in a previous report. I’ll get them to look at the infotainment system, too, which continues to play up every now and then.

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