Skoda Kodiaq Review 2025: Price, specs & boot space

Anyone who needs a functional, no-nonsense family SUV should place the Skoda Kodiaq high on their shortlist. Yes, the new Kodiaq might be slightly posher (and more expensive) than before, but it's no less practical, while there's a wide range of engines available to suit practically every buyer. Our only caveat is that if you really need seven seats on a regular basis, you might find a more traditional people carrier to be a more practical option.

The best engine will depend on your requirements. The diesels are great if you cover a lot of motorway miles or are planning to tow a caravan. The plug-in hybrid will suit those with the ability to charge a car at home, while the petrols are strong all-rounders.

In terms of trim level, we reckon the entry-level Skoda Kodiaq SE will be more than sufficient for most buyers, although the Kodiaq SE L adds some desirable features (such as leather seats, keyless entry and an electric boot opening).

The Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace has traditionally been an alternative for the Skoda Kodiaq, although that's just been replaced by the new Volkswagen Tayron. Competition also comes from the Kia Sorento and Hyundai Santa Fe, as well as the Peugeot 5008, Mazda CX-60, Nissan X-Trail and Toyota RAV4. Buyers looking for something a little more upmarket should take a look at the Land Rover Discovery Sport and Audi Q5.

Skoda's judged the quality and finish of the Kodiaq perfectly. Sure, it doesn't feel as plush as an Audi Q5 inside, but it's really not far behind, and it feels like it'll deflect the rigours of family life well. There are hard finishes where you need them (where little feet might kick them, for example), but also plenty of soft-touch materials. Some of the switchgear could feel a bit weightier to use for a more premium vibe: the Smart Dials we mentioned above, for example.

All Skoda Kodiaq models come with a 13.0-inch touchscreen navigation display perched on top of the dashboard. Its location makes it easy to glance at on the move, although we would like a separate rotary controller (like you get in many BMW or Mazda models) for easier operation without having to lean forward. Having said that, those clever Smart Dials do mean you can circumnavigate the touchscreen entirely when operating some functions, which is good.

It's generally an intuitive media system to operate, too, while responses are fast and the graphics are sharp. It's much like a high-quality tablet, responding to typical swiping and pinching gestures. You get wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, while there's also voice-activated personal assistant called Laura. Wireless phone charging is standard (for two phones), with cooling functionality to prevent your devices overheating.

Behind the steering wheel is a 10.25-inch Virtual Cockpit display. This doesn't offer much in the way of customisation, but it's clear and easy to read.

The Skoda Kodiaq has always excelled at being a versatile family car. This new model improves on that even further. It's even bigger than before, measuring 4758mm long, 1864mm wide and 1659mm high. It's available with either five- or seven seats.

Space for front seat passengers is as impressive as you'd expect. The seating position is fairly high, while there's plenty of space between the driver and front-seat passenger (so there'll be no awkward elbow-bashing). The centre console offers a multitude of storage options, including a number of cup holders and the space for the wireless phone charging mentioned above. The door bins aren't particularly big and neither is the glove box, but we like the additional extra storage area in the dashboard.

There's loads of room in the back, with plenty of headroom for even the tallest passengers, plus a huge amount of legroom when the sliding rear seats are set to their rearmost position. Those sliding seats have bags of travel, and kneeroom only becomes tight if you slide them to the forwardmost position on their runners, but you shouldn't often have to. The middle seat is narrower than the outer rear seats, while there is a significant lump in the floor, which'll make things awkward if you're planning to carry three adults in the back. On the plus side, there's a plastic storage unit in the middle of the floor that can easily be removed to prevent it from getting in the way.

Opt for a Skoda Kodiaq with seven seats, and you get an extra pair of seats that pop up from the boot floor. Skoda says there's 15mm more headroom in the third row compared to the old Kodiaq, and you'll just about fit a six-foot adult in there, provided those in the middle row donate some of their legroom to those behind by utilising the sliding function of their seats. Even so, adults won't want to be back there for long, and so the rearmost seats should only be used occasionally unless for smaller children. Getting there in the first place is pretty challenging, too: the outer middle seats slide and tip forward to give access to the third row, but nevertheless, there's only a small gap to squeeze through.

The boot is pretty cavernous, but the precise amount of space you get depends on the seating configuration you choose. Five-seater models have a boot capacity of 910 litres with the rear seats upright and 2,105 litres with them folded. Buy a seven-seat Skoda Kodiaq and you can enjoy a boot capacity of 340 litres with all seats upright and 2,035 litres with all of them dropped, while with five of the seven seats in place (the format in which the car will likely spend most of its time), you get 845 litres of loadspace. Plug-in hybrid Kodiaq iV models come with a seats-up boot capacity of 745 litres: these versions aren't available in seven-seat form.

Mainstream Skoda Kodiaqs come with a choice of two petrol and two diesel engines, plus one plug-in hybrid. All come with a DSG automatic gearbox as standard: you can no longer have the Kodiaq with a manual gearbox.

The petrols come in the form of a 1.5-litre turbo with mild hybrid assistance that delivers 150PS to the front wheels, and there also a 204PS 2.0-litre turbo that comes exclusively with four-wheel drive. The former does 0-62mph in just under ten seconds, while the latter cuts this figure to around 7.5 seconds, but we've tried neither, so we can't yet tell you what all that feels like.

We've driven both the diesels, each a 2.0-litre unit, with 150PS or 193PS. The lower-powered one is more than adequate, with enough punch for motorway driving. It'll accelerate to 62mph in 9.6 seconds: hardly fast, but it feels brisk enough.

If you're planning to drive the Kodiaq fully loaded or you're looking for a tow vehicle, the 193PS diesel might be a better option. Not only is it more powerful (0-62mph acceleration takes 7.8 seconds), but it also comes with 4x4 as standard. That doesn't turn the new Skoda Kodiaq into a serious off roader, but it'd be ideal for those living in rural areas or planning to tow a caravan.

Then there's the plug-in hybrid model, badged the Skoda Kodiaq iV, which teams a 1.5-litre petrol engine with an electric motor and a big (by hybrid standards) 25.7kWh battery to provide a total of 204PS and an electric-only range of up to 75 miles. It's also one of the few PHEV models that supports DC fast-charging at 50kW, which will make top-ups quicker. We've not tried it yet, but a 0-62mph time of 8.4 seconds suggest reasonable performance.

Outside of the mainstream, the sporty Skoda Kodiaq vRS lies at the top of the range. This uses a 265PS version of the 2.0-litre petrol engine to power all four wheels, and the 0-62mph time is given at a sprightly 6.4 seconds. That's pretty quick given the size of the car, but sensation of acceleration you feel is brisk and effortless, rather than ballistically fast. If you're looking for a genuine sports SUV that feels like it's rearranging your organs every time you put your foot down, this isn't it. This shortage of accelerative drama also has another side effect: it's very easy for your speed to rise without you noticing, which could get you into unintentional bother with the gendarmes.

Generally, the Skoda Kodiaq is very refined. Despite its bluff shape, there isn't a great deal of wind noise at motorway speeds, and nor will you notice a huge amount of road noise in most versions, although the 20-inch wheels and wide tyres of the vRS do kick up a little bit more. The diesels have a noticeable rumble - particularly when you're first setting off - but no more so than in competitors. For maximum refinement, go for the plug-in hybrid Skoda Kodiaq iV and keep the battery topped up.

The latest Skoda Kodiaq uses radar sensors to power a wide range of advanced safety systems, effectively acting as a second pair of eyes and reducing your chances of being involved in a collision. Highlights include the new Turn Assist, which monitors other traffic when turning at junctions, and Intelligent Park Assist with Remote Park Assist, which allows you to park the Kodiaq using an app on your phone.

The Skoda Kodiaq was given a maximum five-star score when tested by independent safety organisation Euro NCAP in 2024.

The new Skoda Kodiaq has all the ingredients for a very reliable car: a proven engine line-up and a manufacturer with an excellent reliability record, the latter point being ably demonstrated by Skoda's impressive fifth-place finish (out of 33 carmakers) in the reliability standings of the latest 2025 edition of the HonestJohn.co.uk Satisfaction Index. Only time will tell how reliable the new Skoda Kodiaq is, but we'd be surprised if it was anything less than very dependable.

Depending on the trim level you choose and how many seats you have, insurance groupings for the entry-level 150PS petrol version of the new Skoda Kodiaq range between 18 and 20. The 150PS 2.0 TDI sits in groups 20 to 21. The 2.0-litre petrol sits in groups 27 or 28, while the more powerful diesel commands a group 26 premium. Choose the PHEV, and your car will have a group 24 or 25 classification. Predictably, buyers of the sporty vRS model will face the biggest insurance bills, with a grouping of 31.

As of April 2025, all cars registered after 2017 pay an identical flat rate of road tax, regardless of whether they're powered by petrol, diesel, hybrid tech or electricity. That flat rate currently stands at £195 per year.

Watch out, though, as cars with a list price of more than £40,000 when brand new are stung by an extra premium car tax supplement. This applies for five years, from the second time the car's taxed (so between years two and six of the car's life), and if your car is affected, you pay an extra £425 on top of the flat rate during that period.

So, will your Kodiaq be affected? Well, yes, more than likely. Only a couple of low-spec versions of the car sneak underneath the price threshold, lumbering all other versions with liability. And, even those underneath the threshold are priced quite close to it, so adding a few optional extras could well tip you over.

Standard equipment on the Skoda Kodiaq SE includes 18-inch Mazeno alloy wheels, LED front and rear lights, heated front seats and KESSY (keyless start/stop system). SE models come with Loft design selection (cloth upholstery) as standard, along with a 13.0-inch satellite navigation touchscreen display, 10.25-inch Virtual Cockpit, tri-zone climate control, heated front seats, cruise control and front- and rear parking sensors. The SE model also comes with a range of safety systems as standard, including Front Assist with braking reaction to vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists, Blind Spot Detection with door exit warning and Front Cross Traffic Assist. SE models can be specified in both five- or seven seat layouts, with the latter adding a variable boot floor to the standard specification.

The Skoda Kodiaq SE L adds 19-inch Rapeto alloy wheels, LED Matrix headlights with AFS (adaptive front light system), AWL (all weather lighting system) and all-weather light with cornering function. SE L models also feature ecoSuite black design selection with perforated black artificial leather and real leather, electrically adjustable driver’s seat with memory function, and an electrically operated bootlid.

SportLine trim adds mainly aesthetic upgrades inside and out, but you do also get adaptive cruise control and the adaptive suspension system on top. Range-topping vRS models are sportier still in their look and feel, and they also get an upgraded Canton sound system, as well as the considerable extra slug of power.