Skoda Enyaq News

How confidently can you drive on hardened snow, or in icy conditions? And what about electric vehicles (EVs)? Are they better or worse? The answers very much depend on the model of vehicle in question, as well as the level of advanced driver assistance technologies (ADAS) fitted. That’s because modern vehicles are immeasurably better at steering and braking control on very low grip surfaces, and are able to react far quicker than a human ever can. A high-grip or sticky road (usually dry and warm) has a high mu (denoted by the Greek letter m), while low mu represents a low-grip, low-friction surface like ice, snow or on a wet steel plate. Before the advent of safety aids like traction control, electronic stability control (ESC), anti-lock brakes, ADAS and all-wheel drive (AWD), vehicles in low mu situations required exceptional driving skills just to keep it from veering off uncontrollably into the scenery. Basically, the driver would often become the passenger. Now, in concert with advances in tyres and chassis engineering tuning, an electronic driving mode can be chosen according to the prevailing environment and conditions, for far-safer travel. It’s all the difference between progress and ploughing into something. Just as importantly, there are degrees of electronic intervention to allow for a variety of different ways to travel over low-mu surfaces, according to the level of driver skill. Here’s where Skoda steps into the picture. To demonstrate just how far modern vehicles have come, the Volkswagen Group brand organised a demonstration for a small number of Australian motoring media on a special closed circuit on an ice field in New Zealand. To keep it interesting, both vehicle types were performance-orientated grades of popular family-sized AWD SUVs that people might reasonably be expected to drive up to snowy regions during a ski season. Or navigate an ice-storm in on a freezing night on the other side of the globe. You never know. In this case, they were the 2026 Skoda Kodiaq RS 4x4 from $70,590 (all prices are before on-road costs) and a 2026 Skoda Enyaq RS 4x4 from $76,590 – with the latter being the go-faster EV version that is also known as the vRS in other markets. They wore winter tyres, a common addition in Europe, North America and other cold-climate regions, but not so in Australia due to our temperate climate. Several revealing demonstrations were prepared, and all on ice that looked like soft snow due to flurries but, in reality, revealed a mu surface as slippery as you’ll ever likely to experience out in the real world. Here we were shown the most basic level of ice-driving car control: attempting a low-speed cornering manoeuvre, without spearing off into a snowbank, and with limited ESC intervention. This introduced us to the three basic rules we would always have to adhere to: easing in intricate steering inputs, precise throttle control and very gentle tapping of the brake pedal, to allow momentum and the laws of physics to take the vehicle through the turn. Super difficult to achieve at first, and barely at walking pace initially, the speed was increased slowly over repeated exercises, until the balance and behaviour of driver and vehicle were in unison with the road and environmental conditions being negotiated. During these, we learned to importance of understanding and controlling ice-driving understeer (where the vehicle’s front wheels lose grip and then ploughs ahead whilst cornering regardless of steering angle) and ice-driving oversteer (where the rear wheels lose grip and the vehicle’s tail slides out to eventually spin out of control). After that, there was more of the same, but this time with a series of road twists and sharp turns combined with long straight pathways, with the goal of inducing controllable oversteer where possible in order to achieve the smoothest and cleanest route through a particular driving course. Note that understeer in such conditions is never desirable as it impedes progress. Sounds fun, is cool, but not as easy as the professionals on hand make it look. Especially at higher speeds Here’s the exception to the general rule of gently-gently car control. Sat in the Enyaq RS with nothing but icy snow behind, we were instructed to straighten the wheel, select reverse and floor the throttle, before tugging the wheel left or right once reaching 60km/h, then tapping the brake as the vehicle spins around 180 degrees backwards and slows to a momentary halt, before selecting drive and powering forward. The aim here is for a seamless transition turning the car from reverse to forward in a rapid getaway situation, as per every action movie involving a heist of some sort ever made. This was the highlight of the day. After countless exercises learning to control a vehicle better on ice than we ever thought possible thanks to the advances in electronic technologies like ADAS, we were driven to another location with two Skodas with all electronic systems switched off and instructed to temporarily forget about everything we had learned that day about smart, safe yet speedy ice driving. No ESC. No traction. No ADAS. And no safety net. Instead, we were told to drive around a point in the centre of a large field, but in a constant oversteer motion where the rear was sliding out to help pivot the vehicle around. In other words, we were told to drift our hearts out! With a cool and collected professional our only safety net in the seat next to us, the only instruction was full throttle and eyes fixed on the centre point. Doing that, with foot planted firmly down on the accelerator, resulted in a long, continuous circular drifting, yet within a chosen path and without losing control. This was the culmination of very particular steering and throttle inputs, designed to create spectacular drifting manoeuvres. Since these instructions require to do the very opposite of the extremely precise steering and throttle inputs that are the core of safe modern-vehicle ice-driving techniques, we do not recommend you try this on public roads. But, in the off-chance you have a private circuit away from danger for you or any other road user, it might be the most fun you’ll ever have on ice. And the Skodas behaved exactly as instructed, without missing a beat.

The model poised to be Skoda’s best-seller in Australia next year has improved, with better safety, more practicality and an expanded range topped by the return of the higher-performance RS flagship. On sale now from $51,990 (all prices are before on-road costs), as before, the Czechian mid-sized SUV EV kicks off with the Select 60 rear-wheel drive (RWD) in SUV Wagon-only guise, leaving the swoopier Enyaq Coupe SUV models reserved only for higher grades from Sportline 85 (from $60,990-Wagon/$66,990-Coupe) and up for now. That’s a $1000 jump compared to when it arrived in Australia late last year, though the changes do run deeper than usual for a model-year refresh. They include upgraded autonomous emergency braking (AEB) functionality, as part of upgraded advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) technologies, with new cross-road assist bringing lateral on-coming vehicle detection and braking, broader single-pedal driving with full-stopping capability, and traffic sign recognition. On the practicality front, the Enyaq now scores a 21-litre storage enclosure underneath the bonnet (also known as a frunk in Tesla-speak), a revised Android multimedia set-up offering short cuts among other advances, and a 25-watt Mag Safe wireless smartphone charger. As outlined earlier this year, the Enyaq RS returns, in new SUV Wagon form from $76,590, as well as returning SUV Coupe shape for $1000 extra. Dubbed the most powerful production Skoda ever offered in Australia, power and torque are rated at 250kW and 545Nm respectively. A motor on each axle brings all-wheel drive, allowing for a 0-100km/h sprint-time of 5.4 seconds on the way to a 180km/h top speed. On the efficiency front, RS’ combined WLTP range is 546km for the Wagon and 11km more in the more-slippery Coupe. It also features a 2kWh-larger battery pack compared to the mid-range 85 Sportline’s 82kWh alternative, while the base 60 Select sticks with a 61kWh item. Further upgrades include the addition of the Volkswagen Group’s Dynamic Chassis Control tech, offering adaptive dampers, dedicated drive modes with an individualisation setting and 21-inch wheels. You’ll be able to spot the RS from lowlier Enyaqs by their unique alloys, body kit, reshaped bumpers, glossier trim and additional colour options on the outside, and racier trim, leather sports seats with heating and ventilation up front, upgraded audio, fatter steering wheel rim and augmented reality head-up display inside. It’s worth noting that the Enyaq SUV Coupe’s 570-litre cargo capacity is just 15L shy of the SUV Wagon’s, though with rear-seats down, that gap is 100L at 1610L versus 1710L.

An unexpected carmaker is poised to achieve a historic first in Australia and it may happen as soon as next year. In a first for a legacy – or long-established – carmaker of volume, Skoda is set to have its best seller switch from an internal combustion engine (ICE) model to an electric vehicle (EV). This will beat out other much larger manufacturers to the punch in this country like Toyota, Nissan and Hyundai. Speaking to the Australian press at a snow/ice-driving event near Queenstown in New Zealand, Skoda Australia Brand Director, Lucie Kuhn, revealed that the Enyaq mid-sized SUV is closing in fast on the venerable Kodiaq seven-seater large SUV for the firm's number one slot. “The Kodiaq still remains our best-selling (vehicle),” she said. “But I’m quite sure Enyaq will join it on stage in this electric era, and we will most likely have two heroes… (Skoda is currently) selling 700 units together year-to-date.” Pitch-perfect timing has played a big role in the rise of the European EV, not just in Australia, but also in many other parts of the world, with Skoda essentially relaunching the Enyaq at facelift time to appeal to a wider audience than before. For Australia, that happened when the extensively upgraded Series II models arrived near the end of last year, brandishing a broader model range as well as a long list of improvements. Among these has been the addition of a more conventional SUV Wagon shape to the earlier, higher-spec-only SUV Coupe series. Along with providing a more practical and some say prettier alternative, that also included the arrival of a new entry-level grade with a smaller battery known as the 60 Select, which started from around $55,000 drive-away. Aided by the closely related Elroq EV, which is essentially an Enyaq but with a shorter rear overhang for a more-compact SUV-style appearance, the order influx that Skoda has experienced since the beginning of the Middle Eastern war in March caught it short on stock. In fact, that record could have been broken this year had production supply kept up with demand for the company’s EVs. “(Our sales in Australia) would have been more if we had a better supply of EVs during the little surprises dating from March to June, let’s say,” Kuhn revealed. “It would definitely have been better than last year overall and better than (today’s) numbers.” Kuhn added that, in the second quarter of this year when oil prices spiked to record-highs, the order banks for its two EVs ran as high as 80 per cent, though that has since settled to around 45 per cent. However, the continuing geo-political uncertainty means that demand for electric Skodas may skyrocket soon. “I think every brand that has a mixed portfolio (of ICE and EVs) faced this customer behaviour changes,” Kuhn explained. “The same of course, applies for us, particularly during the period of March to June, let's say, when our EV share boomed up to 80 percent almost, which, of course, caused empty stocks and longer waiting times for fresh production (of EVs). “Now it's stabilising across the industry, and it's stabilising also for Skoda. “So currently we are around 40 to 45 per cent.” Skoda will double the number of EVs it sells in Australia from next year. Already confirmed is the Epiq, which will be its cheapest ever EV in this country (and likely a brand best-seller contender), as well as the Peaq seven-seater SUV, earmarked by 2028.  

After a long wait the Skoda Enyaq RS SUV and Coupe have been confirmed to arrive in Australia in the third quarter of 2026. The brand previously offered the Enyaq RS Coupe in limited volume from December 2024, but this updated model will expand the range with the addition of the SUV bodystyle. “The Enyaq RS and Enyaq Coupé RS distil the best of Skoda: effortless electric performance, long‑range confidence and generous technology, all wrapped in a distinctly RS design,” explained Lucie Kuhn, Brand Director for Skoda Australia. “They’re engineered for Australian life: quick to charge, easy to live with and exceptionally well equipped.” The Enyaq RS SUV will be priced from $75,490 and $76,490 (both prices exclude on-road costs), but Skoda Australia has confirmed that a national drive-away deal will be offered, but announced closer to launch. Full details for this new flagship, high-performance variants have just been confirmed by the Australian arm of the Czech brand, with a 250kW/545Nm, all-wheel drive powertrain headlining its credentials. But despite being capable of sprinting 0-100km/h in 5.4 seconds, Skoda also claims the Enyaq RS will be able to drive up to 523km on a single charge, thanks to its 9kWh battery. Maximum DC charging is 185kW, which Skoda claims is enough to recharge the battery from 10 to 80 per cent in 26 minutes. Befitting its role as the performance hero of the range, the Enyaq RS will also come equipped with Volkswagen Group’s Dynamic Chassis Control. Unique elements for the RS include 21-inch alloy wheels, glossy black exterior highlights and RS design black leather and leatherette seat trim. There’s also the exclusive Mamba Green hero colour to further set it apart. Further equipment includes a 13‑inch infotainment system with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a 5.3‑inch digital instrument display, heated and ventilated front seats, tri-zone climate control, wireless smartphone charging and a Canton premium sound system. Plus there’s Skoda’s trademark ‘simply clever’ touches, including an umbrella stowed in the front door, hands-free power tailgate and cargo nets and other storage devices in the boot.

The mainstream mid-size SUV segment is one of the most hotly contested in the Australian market, as the prevailing family car of choice for so many. We’re truly spoilt for choice, with options available at many price points, and with the choice of hybrid, plug-in hybrid and fully electric, as well as from both old favourite brands and new challengers. While this has generally been a boon for buyers, it has also made this congested segment more difficult to shop in than ever before, so as part of our ongoing 2026 CarsGuide Car of the Year awards, we’ve distilled a top-10 shortlist of our highest-rated Medium SUVs starting under $60K. Our top three and winner will be announced on February 6, but you can see the alphabetically ordered shortlist below. The Cupra Terramar serves as the Spanish brand’s take on the Volkswagen Tiguan formula - a true mid-size SUV, although it offers a truly sporty take over the Tiguan’s more wide appeal. Priced from $53,990, it’s a surprising value player considering its sporty look and feel, although if you want the full performance on offer, you’ll have to spend north of the $70K mark to get the spicy VZ version. Still Cupra continues to impress us with its edgy designs and impressive driving dynamics compared to its other Volkswagen Group relations. Perhaps a candidate for the most improved model on sale in Australia, the new GWM Haval H6 moves up in the world from simply a value player to a more impressive mainstream offering. Packed with standard kit and tweaked across the board when it comes to drivability and tuning, this Chinese rival takes more direct aim at the segment-leading Toyota RAV4 than ever before. Available as a 2.0-litre turbo as well as a 1.5-litre hybrid in plugless or plug-in form, it also covers the gamut of powertrain options Aussie buyers are looking for. While the sharply-priced Lux is impressive value, the plugless hybrids are the pick of the range with their trim fuel efficiency and smooth electrified transmission. One of the original nameplates which kicked-off the mid-size SUV segment altogether, the CR-V continues to this day to be a stellar offering in the segment, with Honda as always doing an impressive job of moving with the times. The CR-V is also one of the better value options in Honda’s current range, priced much closer to its rivals than the HR-V or ZR-V which sit below it. Again, the pick of the range is the e:HEV hybrid, although you’ll have to fork out for the pleasure with the hybrid powertrain still only sitting atop the mid-sizer’s range, priced at $59,900 drive-away. While it exudes quality like other Honda models, it also isn’t as efficient as some of its rivals, and doesn’t offer a plug-in or all-wheel drive in its hybrid form. Another impressive car from Honda, the ZR-V is a right-sized SUV to fill the increasingly large gap between the ever-growing CR-V and the still diminutive HR-V below. Again sporting the same Honda characteristics of great build quality, sharp driving dynamics and a practical interior space, with a smaller overall footprint than some of its rivals the ZR-V should be on any buyers shortlist. However, while it is marginally more affordable than its CR-V sibling, the ZR-V suffers from the same problem of only offering the sleek and efficient hybrid system on only its top-spec LX variant, eliminating savings from its fuel sipping powertrain via a much higher starting price ($54,900 before on-roads). Hyundai’s current-generation Tucson now has a few years behind it, but continues to be a strong seller thanks to gradual updates and price tweaks which keeps it high on the consideration list alongside its Kia Sportage sister vehicle and the segment-leading Toyota RAV4. Now strongest-selling as a fuel-sipping hybrid, the Tucson continues to be offered in a range of variants at many different price-points, with both front- and all-wheel drive options. The latest major updates synced the mid-sizer up with the rest of Hyundai’s range in offering a new interior design approach with fresh software, and even an array of buttons and dials for climate and volume controls we always like to see. Nissan has been embattled by rivals in recent years, but its ever-improving X-Trail continues to deserve a look-in as possibly the brand’s most competitive current offering. Spacious, modern, offered with up to seven seats, and with an innovative electric-first e-Power hybrid option, the X-Trail has a lot to offer buyers as a rival specifically to the RAV4 or Honda CR-V. Plus, it gets ergonomic fundamentals right, as well as a good level of refinement and a solid array of well-calibrated safety kit to keep newcomers at bay. Czech brand Skoda, as always, flies under the radar, and the Elroq is certainly worth your consideration thanks to a myriad of factors, not least of which is its surprisingly sharp starting price of (now) $49,990 drive-away. Did we mention it’s fully electric? On top of that, the Elroq is right-sized, with a modest but well-utilised footprint, which is laden with the brand’s clever touches like plenty of storage areas, an umbrella hidden in the door, and plenty of storage organisation options in the boot. The Elroq rides on Volkswagen Group’s MEB platform and is offered with either a long-range 85kWh battery, and now a standard-range 60kWh option. All versions are rear-wheel drive, keeping them efficient, with the longer-range one said to travel up to 529km on the WLTP cycle. The Enyaq is the Elroq’s larger sibling in Skoda’s two-pronged mid-size electric SUV range, offering a sportier look and feel. Recently updated to wear the brand’s latest and more futuristic design language, the Enyaq also inherits a lot of the same brilliant packaging as its smaller sibling. It also offers the same battery variants, which are still relatively long range considering their capacities, with the smaller version travelling 410km on the WLTP cycle, and the larger one travelling up to 548km. Not as affordable as the Elroq, but still good value in the segment, the Enyaq has a lot of the right ingredients to tempt buyers away from other popular offerings in this electric space like the Tesla Model Y or Kia EV5. To be clear here, the RAV4 being considered for our Car of the Year is the current generation, as the next-gen model hadn’t arrived in time for consideration. As dated as this top-seller may be though, it’s remained a top-seller for a reason, namely that it’s well laid out, comfortable, versatile and backed by Toyota’s ever-sturdy reputation. Its quality finish and ever smooth hybrid drive are still some of the best on the market, emulated by many to varying degrees of success. The RAV4 still bests them all in the sales charts though, and some may even argue the styling of this outgoing car is more appealing than the new one, which will also bring with it a long-awaited plug-in hybrid. Zeekr’s long-awaited third model has proven to be its most hyped. The Zeekr 7X is a fully electric premium SUV at the price of a high-end mainstream combustion or hybrid one. Despite its keen price-tag, this is still an impressively specified vehicle, with plenty of high-end features, a big battery with long driving range, and dynamics on par with much more expensive rivals. It also impresses on the design front, with Zeekr’s studio in Sweden next door to those of Polestar and Volvo making the Chinese newcomer feel like much more than a first attempt.

The head of a long-lived car brand has questioned the actual level of threat from Chinese brands like BYD, saying they have more bark than bite currently in Australia.

Chinese auto giant Chery may have kick-started the Chinese push into the Aussie new-car market, but in recent years a slew of other challengers from China have joined it. How’s this for a laundry list of newcomers within the last few years? BYD, Deepal, Foton, Geely, a ramped up GWM Haval, JAC, Jaecoo, LDV, Leapmotor, MG, Omoda, Smart, XPeng and Zeekr, with Aion, Avatr, GAC, Jetour, Lepas, Lynk & Co, Skywell and others waiting in the wings. Phew! Talk about an onslaught… and that’s not even taking into account other arrivals like Cupra from Spain, a reinvigorated Mahindra from India and a reborn Smart from Germany (via China). So, as an established competitor in this market do you adopt a siege mentality, pull the doona over your head and hope it all goes away or embrace the fluidity and look for opportunity in chaos? Clearly Skoda Australia Director Lucie Kuhn is an opportunity seeker because when recently asked about the dynamics of the current market, she told CarsGuide, “The Chinese will be with us. We can’t avoid it. “I think it is obvious that for every OEM in the Australian market right now the situation will be quite challenging.  “But it will be for everyone, it’s not only for Skoda. It will also be for the big players a challenge to face mainly an influx from China. “It’s a matter of how you take this topic. Do you perceive it as a threat or an opportunity?” she said. And Kuhn sees Skoda’s relatively small scale as a potential advantage. “When you operate in rather niche volumes the threat of getting somehow harmed is smaller than maybe for the brands that have really significant market share. “The Chinese will grow pretty strong and get their market share; this is obvious. The next three years will be intensive for everyone.”  And when asked if the brand’s ‘clever’ positioning still does enough to stand the Czech brand apart with so many new players coming in, her position is clear. “We believe so. I think in (the next three years) we have something to offer, to empower the brand, to increase the awareness, to offer this European value, consistency in products, safety, servicing, the customer experience that is around it.  “I am quite sure that we will keep going and growing our sales, as well,” she said. And with a recent product refresh up and down the local Skoda range her confidence appears to be well placed. New products coming into the local Skoda portfolio include the recently launched MY26 Kodiaq (now with a flagship RS version), updated Octavia RS, fourth-gen Superb and the just-arrived Elroq compact EV SUV arriving in tandem with the updated Enyaq medium EV SUV. And soon enough they will be joined by the city-sized Epiq EV SUV and a production version of the large three-row Vision 7S, both confirmed for Australian sale by 2027.

Look out, BYD Sealion 7, Kia EV5, Tesla Model Y and other EVs sourced from China, because Skoda from Europe is gate-crashing the value end of the family SUV segment in Australia.

Skoda Australia Head of Marketing & Product Kieran Merrigan has confirmed a raft of new pure-electric and hybrid models for local sale over the next three years, including high-performance RS EVs, two plug-in hybrids and production versions of recently unveiled high-profile concept SUVs.

Skoda has unveiled the new Enyaq RS overseas ahead of its expected Australian launch in the first quarter of 2026.