Skoda Enyaq Driving, Engines & Performance

Top Gear

4 days ago

Driving
What is it like to drive?
Don't worry about the Start button. Just hop in, put your foot on the brake pedal, pop it into D (or B) and you're away. And it takes precisely no getting used to: steering feel is AWOL but still nicely judged as far as weight and precision goes, while the pedals are both well calibrated for smooth driving.
Despite the Enyaq being rear-wheel drive as standard, it's not a car you'll relish driving along a B-road. But for a family SUV, that's fine. All the Enyaq needs to do is get your brood from A to B without making them throw up, and it's stable and settled enough that car sickness shouldn't be a problem*.
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The four-wheel-drive 85x doesn't offer any extra dynamic prowess, but you do get the smug sense of sure-footedness that comes with sturdy traction. Especially helpful with a torquey electric drivetrain, you're much less likely to go spearing off into the bushes. How refined is it?
The Enyaq rides fine, though if you're coming from a petrol or diesel it's more jiggly than you might expect, especially over broken tarmac and potholes. An issue that many EVs suffer from, courtesy of their hefty batteries.
As such smaller wheels are probably the way to go here (base spec models get 19s and upper specs 20s as standard) to soften the ride slightly. Dynamic Chassis Control is a fairly expensive option that's probably not worth bothering with here.
Wind and road noise are well suppressed though, and the Enyaq feels planted at higher speeds on the motorway. It'll cruise at 70mph quite happily; you less so when you notice how quickly the range is plummeting.
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Is it quick?
Well, 0-62mph takes 6.7 seconds in the 282bhp 77kWh car (that's the 85 remember – confusing naming strategy, we know) whether you go two- or four-wheel drive, while the 201bhp 59kWh car (the 60) will do it in 8.1s. So both more than adequate. 0-30mph will feel pretty punchy if you've never driven an EV before.
The vRS is a different kettle of fish. The raw numbers are 336bhp, 402lb ft, 0-62mph in 5.4s and a top speed of 112mph. All of which are up on the pre-facelift model. We haven't had a go in this latest one yet, but the old car's extra grunt quickly got boring and did little for us. Anything else I should know?
Higher spec Enyaqs get paddles on the steering wheel to adjust the amount of brake regeneration, or you can stick the transmission in 'B' mode to lock it in its strongest setting. It's not the strongest regen we've ever experienced though, and not EV you can practically drive on the accelerator pedal alone.
The Enyaq range is officially rated at up to 4.0 mi/kWh for the entry car, 4.1 mi/kWh for the sportier 85, and 3.9 mi/kWh for the dual motor 85x and vRS. New to this EV lingo? You're looking at mpg for electric cars – the higher the number, the more efficient it is.
In the updated 85x we didn't see lower than 3.8 mi/kWh on our test run, though worth noting that was on a warm day in slow-moving traffic. So in the summer you're looking at 300+ miles of range easily, and even in the winter we can't imagine it falling much below 250.
Away from the motorway we even bettered Skoda's claim of 3.9 mi/kWh on a couple of journeys. Though that took a hit when we, er, made full use of the accelerator pedal. As you'd expect.
*TG accepts no responsibility if your child chunders in the back of an Enyaq. Sorry.
Highlights from the range the fastest 210kW 85x Sportline 82kWh 4x4 5dr Auto [Maxx] 0-62 6.7s
CO2 0
BHP 281.6
MPG
Price
£50,395 the cheapest 210kW 85 Sportline 82kWh 5dr Auto [Maxx] 0-62
CO2
BHP
MPG
Price
£N/A the greenest 210kW 85x Sportline 82kWh 4x4 5dr Auto [Maxx] 0-62 6.7s
CO2 0
BHP 281.6
MPG
Price
£50,395
Variants We Have Tested
6
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