Price as tested: €36,645
+ Comfort, practicality, space, solidity, quality, refinement
– A touch pricey for a Skoda?
= Lovely car, but lesser Superbs are just as good
It’s doubtful that Vaclav Laurin and Vaclav Klement established their eponymous motorcycle and bicycle company in 1895, that either of them ever imagined having their names on a car that competes with contemporary BMWs. Very doubtful in fact, because in 1895, BMW didn’t exist. Nor did The Czech Republic, modern federated Germany or much else that we today consider so familiar. What did exist was the Skoda Engineering Works, founded in 1859 by the aristocratic Count Wallenstein-Vartenberk. Skoda would buy out Laurin and Klement in 1925 and the two were joined at the hip until the creation in 1945 of Czechoslovakia and the nationalisation under Communism.
A little bit of history there, and apologies if it dragged, but it’s a necessary bit of background to understand why modern-day Skoda is launching a pricey limited edition (just 40 units coming to Ireland) of its Superb saloon, complete with calligraphic Laurin & Klement script on the wings.
€36k may seem a lot to be shelling out for a Skoda, any Skoda, but the fact is that these days, the brand seems able to bear such an expensive car with ease. We’ve all waffled on so much about how far Skoda has come since its eighties nadir, but the simple fact is that the cars now turned out by the Mladá Boleslav factory in what is now the Czech Republic are among the very best that you can buy, and stand easy comparison with rivals even from premium brands such as BMW and Mercedes.
Certainly when you crank open the Superb’s hefty door and lower yourself onto a buttery-soft dark brown leather seat, you’d be hard pressed to call the Superb L&K anything short of properly luxurious. The surfaces of the cabin are all finely graded, the seats terrifically comfortable and, as has been the Superb’s calling card since its introduction, the rear seat space practically presidential.
Out back, accessed by the oddball TwinDoor boot system that allows you to decide whether you want your Superb to act as a saloon or a hatchback, lies a massive 565-litre luggage area (which even with two demanding children aboard, we were unable to overwhelm with luggage). It’s these practicalities of space and comfort that give the Superb such an instant ‘want-one’ factor – the fact that there are few, if any, tasks you could give it which it would not be able to easily deal with.
Standard equipment includes bi-xenon headlights, 18” alloy wheels, Bluetooth phone and media player connection, full leather trim, climate control (for both front and rear passengers), heated seats (ditto), automatic wipers, cruise control, sat-nav. The list goes on and on, but it should be noted that apart from the deep brown colour of the leather seats, there is nothing here that you couldn’t already spec an existing Superb model up with.
As with all other Superbs, the L&K steers sweetly and faithfully. It never exhibits the handling alacrity that you’d get in a Ford Mondeo, but it’s never less than utterly competent in the corners and is a very relaxing, easy-going car to drive. Skoda has improved the Superb’s ride quality over the years, but it remains a touch too jiggly at times, which is a shame given the car’s overall levels of comfort and refinement.
The 170bhp 2.0 TDI diesel engine, familiar from many other Volkswagen Group applications, remains a paragon of its kind – quiet, efficient and with decently brisk performance. We averaged 6.5-litres per 100km, better than 40mpg, but bear in mind that your overall touring range will be limited by the Superb’s surprisingly small fuel tank. An on-paper 8.8secs 0-100kmh dash time makes the Superb sound quite quick, but the reality is that its performance feels more relaxed than that.
It’s a very satisfying car, the Superb L&K. One of those cars that feels instantly ‘right’ the moment you sit in, and that’s a feeling that doesn’t fade with familiarity. As a spacious, high-quality family car, it’s all but impossible to beat, and loaded up with the L&K’s extra equipment and luxury appointments, it really can take on the likes of the BWM 3 Series and Mercedes-Benz C-Class. It’s not as agile to drive as either, but destroys the Germans when it comes to interior space and practicality.
For all that, you could say the same of any Superb, and if you’re willing to forego the soft leather and sat-nav, there’s better value to be had further down the price list. Not that dear old Vaclav and Vaclav would have cared though; most of their original L&K cars were luxury models anyway...
Skoda Superb 2.0 TDI 170 Laurin & Klement
Price as tested: €36,645
Price range: €24,695 to €47,895
Capacity: 1,968
Power: 170bhp
Torque: 350Nm
Top speed: 222kmh
0-100kmh: 8.8sec
Economy: 5.7l-100km (52.3mpg)
CO2 emissions: 149g/km
Road Tax Band: C. €330
Euro NCAP rating: 5-star; 90% adult, 81% child, 50% pedestrian, 71% safety assist
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