New Skoda Superb: an edge over Volkswagen Passat

Highlights Skoda Superb

• Just as a Hatchback and as a Combi again
• More spacious than it has ever been
• More choice, more electric
• Spring 2024 in the Netherlands

A wind of innovation is blowing in Skoda’s head office in Mladá Boleslav that would certainly cause code orange in the Netherlands. The Czechs recently released a new Kodiaq and there are updated versions of the Kamiq and Karoq in the development rooms. The electric Enyaq iV and Enyaq iV Coupé will be given a facelift, there will be an electric SUV with seven seats, an electric equivalent of the Octavia Combi, an electric alternative to the Karoq and a compact electric crossover. When it comes to introducing new models, is the focus purely on introducing new electric models? Certainly not. After the new Skoda Kodiaq, here is the brand new Skoda Superb.

The Skoda Superb Combi and the Volkswagen Passat Variant look very similar.

Design

The Skoda Superb has always been a technical brother of the Volkswagen Passat, but the new model, while moving closer to the Passat, also takes more distance from it. What do we mean by that? Well now. As before, the Skoda Superb is available again as a Hatchback and as a Combi. The Skoda Superb Combi is particularly similar in profile to the new Passat Variant, much more than the previous Superb Combi resembled the previous Passat Variant. That’s not surprising. They share most of their bodywork, so things like the windows, the roof, the doors and the front and rear screens are completely identical. Why are the Skoda Superb Combi and Passat Variant so similar? They share their platform and carriage with each other and will soon roll off the production line in Bratislava next to each other. Yet there are also major differences, although you will find them at the front and rear.

Skoda Superb

The new Skoda Superb has a typical Skoda nose, complete with LED matrix headlights that stare sharply into the world and an upright octagonal grille with vertical slats. Where the Passat Variant is peppered with rounded shapes on all sides, we see more square shapes and sleek lines in the Superb. Just look at the bumper work and the lines that run lengthwise across the hood. The buttocks of the Superb Combi and Volkswagen Passat Variant are also not exactly the same. In fact, the complete tailgate of the Superb Combi is different in shape. Although the Superb Combi also has a canopy under which the license plate is housed, it does not consist of a horizontal line. The rear lights of the Superb Combi are also completely different. They are not visually tied together and the part of them that is placed in the taillights tapers directly towards the center. In the center of the bottom we read the brand name Skoda in cow letters. It should be seen that you drive a Skoda. The design of the rear reminds us somewhat of that of the last Opel Insignia Sports Tourer. That’s not criticism. Thanks to active slats in the grille, the Cd value of the Superb Combi is 0.23 and that of the Hatchback is 0.25.

Skoda Superb Hatchback

Why the Superb also distances itself from the Passat? The new Volkswagen Passat is only available as a Variant, but the new Superb is available again in a second appearance. Just like the previous third generation, it is a liftback with an enormous fifth door: the Superb Hatchback. While we clearly see Skoda’s latest design language as introduced on the new Kodiaq in the rear of the new Superb Combi, the Superb Hatchback looks more like its predecessor. Just look at the windows and the design of the rear. The taillights are flatter and the chrome strip that previously connected the taillights will no longer return. Skoda also places its brand name large on the back of the Superb. Leave no doubt about what you’re driving behind.

Dimensions

The Skoda Superb is known as a moving castle in the air and when it comes to interior space, the Czechs have a title to defend. The new Skoda Superb has grown another size and that means that the interior space has also increased. First the size. The new Skoda Superb Hatchback extends over a distance of 4.91 meters, making it 4 centimeters longer than the previous model. The Skoda Superb Combi gains 4.3 centimeters in length and is now 4.9 meters long. Striking: the Superb is 1.5 centimeters narrower than the outgoing generation. The wheelbase is unchanged at 2.84 meters. It is not surprising that the wheelbase remains the same. Just like the new Kodiaq, the new Superb is also based on a refreshed version of the base that you also find under its predecessor.

Skoda Superb Combi

What are the consequences of those extra centimeters? More space. The Skoda Superb has always been spacious, but the new model considerably exceeds the outgoing one. The Skoda Superb Hatchback guzzles 20 liters more than before and increases to 645 liters. In the Skoda Superb Combi, with 690 liters, you can carry no less than 30 liters more than before. Even the new Mercedes-Benz E-class Estate with its 640 liters cannot match that. If you fold the back seat of the Combi flat, a 1,920 liter sea of ​​space is created. Not only is there more luggage space, but headroom should also have increased in both body variants. In the Octavia Hatchback you have 1.1 centimeters more headroom at the front and 0.6 centimeters at the rear. In the Combi, headroom has increased by 0.7 centimeters at the front and by 0.8 centimeters at the rear.

Interior

Everything is different in the new Skoda Superb. The understated dashboard of the previous model makes way for a more daringly designed cockpit. The outflow openings of the ventilation system have been beautifully concealed on two floors. For example, the ventilation grilles in the center console visually form part of a wall-to-wall strip disguised as a cooling slot. The outer ventilation grilles for the driver and co-driver are located one floor higher and are housed in a decorative part consisting of numerous vertical stripes. The infotainment screen is no longer integrated into the center console, but is now more or less separate from the rest of the cockpit. It is – depending on the version – 10 to 13 inches in size. A 10-inch version of the Virtual Cockpit is standard behind the steering wheel. Just like in the new Kodiaq, you will no longer find a traditional automatic lever in the new Superb. From now on you select the gear via a small lever on the steering column. The space freed up in the center tunnel is used by storage compartments and a large induction charger.

We find physical buttons both on the steering wheel and on the left side of it, and Skoda is not banning them in the center console either. Here you will find a button island with which you control the climate control. Skoda also fits in the so-called Superb three Smart Dials Add physical dials with a small color screen to which you can assign a function yourself. Of course, Skoda is also proud to say that the upholstery fabrics in the Superb are made entirely from recycled materials.

Skoda Superb

Up to 100 kilometers electrically

The previous Skoda Superb was available as a Combi and also as a plug-in hybrid. Skoda does not change this recipe. The new Skoda Superb Combi will also soon be available as a Plug-in Hybrid. The new plug-in hybrid exchanges the 1.4 TSI of the previous plug-in version for a 1.5 and has 204 hp. The battery pack grows from about 13 kWh to 25.7 kWh. The Czech plug-in squeezes out 100 electric kilometers there. For comparison: the previous Superb Combi iV (plug-in) achieved an electric range of 55 kilometers. Fast charging is possible up to 50 kW. The plug-in Superb has a six-speed DSG automatic transmission. It does not yet appear that the Superb Hatchback will also have a plug-in hybrid powertrain. The Passat Variant is also available as a 272 hp plug-in. We haven’t read anything about that version yet.

The other powertrains of the Superb are also electrified. In any case, there will be a 150 hp mild-hybrid Superb 1.5 e-Tec with cylinder deactivation. Like every other Skoda Superb, this engine version always has a DSG automatic transmission, although the plug-free Superb has a seven-speed DSG gearbox. On the international engine list we also come across 2.0 TSIs with 150 hp, 204 hp and 265 hp (AWD). We do not expect these – just like the TDI diesels – in the Netherlands.

Skoda Superb

Simply Clever

No new Skoda without a bunch of smart tricks. For example, the Superb Combi has an electrically operated roller cover to cover the luggage compartment. You will also find what Skoda de Jumbo Box mentions: a container with a capacity of 5.5 liters in which you will find, among other things, two 12V connections and a removable glasses compartment. In the back of the front seats you will find holders for smartphones, the rear center armrest is extendable and contains cup holders and a storage compartment for tablets.

Skoda Superb in the Netherlands

The new Skoda Superb will be available in the Netherlands in the spring of 2024. Prices and more detailed technical specifications will follow in the run-up to the market introduction. There will be versions called Essence, Selection and Laurin & Klement. Since the Dutch introduction of the first generation Superb in 2002, more than 25,000 units have been sold in our country across three generations. This makes the Superb the most registered Skoda in our country after the Octavia and Fabia. The Superb had its top year in 2016. Then almost 3,100 copies found a Dutch address in the Netherlands. This year the sales counter currently stands at more than 1,000 copies.