With the all-new Skoda Kylaq, the Czech major have readied their new sub-four-metre offering and we drove a pre-production camouflaged model at a private event in Coimbatore. Here is what to expect.
The compact SUV segment has a commanding market share in India—a huge number of cars sold are sub-four-metre SUV-styled vehicles. However, there was one big name missing from the arena: Skoda. And they are set to address this bustling segment with their new offering, the Kylaq.
The Skoda Kylaq name comes from the winner of a naming contest. The rules were simple: start with K and end with Q, a la Kushaq, Kodiaq, Karoq, Kamiq, Yeti, et cetera. That apart, the Kylaq is their first small “A00” SUV based on the formidable MQB platform which underpins major VW Group cars today, especially the ones made here in India at Chakan, near Pune. Cost-efficient, robust, and dependable? That’s what they all are. And fun! So, does the formula stay put?
In a word, yes. The Skoda Kylaq is all of those things and it is lighter, lower, and more engaging than most others in the segment it is targeting. It seems to be a scaled-down Kushaq; a rather excellent thing. It measures 3,995 millimetres long and has a wheelbase measuring 2,566 mm—85 mm less than the Kushaq’s. The width was not disclosed but we were told it was almost identical if not the same as the Kushaq’s. The height wasn’t mentioned as well. This prototype ran blacked-out 17-inch wheels with 205/55 rubber.
The catch is, we were driving prototype Skoda Kylaq cars, dressed in camo with a temporary-panelled interior devoid of trim elements, with only the steering wheel, gear lever, and climate controls on the centre console, among other bits, visible to us. However, this Skoda Kylaq review is not about the interior at all. It is about the ride and handling characteristics. That said, the Skoda Kylaq gets the 1.0 TSI powertrain and in identical spec as the Kushaq 1.0 TSI models, with 115 hp and 178 Nm, available with the six-speed manual or torque-converter automatic transmissions. And it also included me having to channel my inner Georg Kacher and step into the camouflaged vehicle with the manual transmission ahead of three laps around the Coimbatore Autosports and Transport Trust (CoASTT) racing circuit, the first of which included a moose test for evasion, a braking test from 80 km/h to zero, and a slalom, allowing me to get a hang of the car before attempting to go hard at it and getting it to squeal.
The aspect that stood out was how agile it felt while also feeling planted and sure-footed. It changed direction easily with the steering feeling on the lighter side, but the suspension having just the right amount of stiffness to not have it break its stride, while being tuned so that should some exterior cause it to step out and break traction, it has the ability to snap right back and collect itself. There will be a slew of safety systems to assist with just that, among several other things in the real-road-world. The Kylaq gets a whole bunch of active and passive safety features, including six airbags as standard, as well as some trims with ADAS or the suite of advanced drive assistance systems.
