Overview

The Skoda Enyaq Coupe is an unashamedly aspirational vehicle, which means it doesn’t slot neatly into the firm’s range of no-nonsense family cars. It’s a slightly more rakish and less practical version of the standard Enyaq – and it’s a more exclusive alternative to its more upright counterpart.

Skoda’s online configurator clearly illustrates the company’s vision for the car. The Coupe is positioned firmly at the top of the Enyaq line-up. That means you can’t specify it with the standard SUV’s 58kWh battery pack – it’s the 77kWh unit or nothing. Also, the least potent electric motor you can specify for the Coupe produces 286hp. That’s reserved for mid-range models and up on the conventionally shaped Enyaq.

Obviously, Skoda’s decision to give the Coupe a higher standard specification has inflated its price. It’s around £7,500 more expensive than the conventional Enyaq, which seems like a high price to pay for less practicality. With our sensible hat on, we’d probably spend that money on a standard Enyaq with a bigger battery.

But the coupe SUV niche is booming right now, so we can understand why Skoda jumped on the bandwagon. It just makes good business sense. However, the popularity of the segment means Skoda is being attacked from all angles by rivals such as the Ford Mustang Mach-E, Smart #3, Tesla Model Y and the Parkers award-winning Kia EV6.

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To complicate matters further, the Enyaq Coupe also needs to fend off competition from within the Volkswagen Group. Buyers will likely be cross-shopping between this Enyaq and the arguably more aspirational Volkswagen ID.5 and Audi Q4 Sportback E-Tron, all of which share the same battery and motor technology.

That’s somewhat of a sticking point for the Enyaq Coupe because, if you want an upmarket car to make your neighbours jealous, you’re looking in the wrong place. Skoda has long been a brand focused on practicality and value for money – and we fear the firm has lost sight of those ideals with the Enyaq Coupe.

Plus, the standard Enyaq is already very good. In fact, we think it’s one of the best electric cars on sale today – and we’re not sure the Coupe’s racier styling has done much to improve it. Read on to see how we rate it after driving several versions on UK roads – you can find out how we test cars to see how we’ve come to our conclusions, especially as in this case, our editor Keith Adams ran one for six months on long-term test.

What’s it like inside?

The Skoda Enyaq Coupe’s cabin is incredibly spacious. There’s loads of elbow room and headroom up front, and the car’s gargantuan (and standard-fit) panoramic sunroof banishes any feelings of stuffiness. You can further lift the mood inside by specifying Skoda’s optional beige seat upholstery. It brightens the space dramatically.

We like the layout, too. Unlike its Volkswagen-branded equivalent, the Enyaq gets a 13.0-inch infotainment system with a row of physical shortcut buttons. The larger screen makes it easier to hit the icon you’re aiming at – and you can operate the shortcut buttons without taking your eyes off the road. Compared to the Volkswagen ID.5, it’s ergonomic nirvana.

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The screen also has very clear graphics and a quick processor, which means you won’t be swearing at the dashboard in frustration whenever you want to do something routine like adjust the cabin temperature. Skoda also treated the Coupe to a couple of software updates, including a better public charging map (which still isn’t quite as good as Tesla’s system), some rather convenient hot keys on the screen and support for over-the-air updates.

Like the standard Enyaq, space in the back is plentiful although you lose a bit of headroom to the sportier coupe rear end. That sacrifice is measured in millimetres rather than inches, though – and that huge glass roof doesn’t cut into headroom enough to be of concern to anyone this side of a basketball player.

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It’s the same story with boot space. The Coupe has 570 litres of luggage space, which is only 15 litres less than you get in the standard Enyaq. That doesn’t sound like much of a sacrifice, but it’s worth noting that Skoda measures both cars’ boot capacities up to the level of the parcel shelf. The SUV can carry far more if you’re prepared to load it up to the roof.

But don’t let that put you off. The Coupe is arguably easier to live with day-to-day because its liftback rear end leaves a wider opening. That means you can simply drop heavy items into the boot rather than sliding them in.

What’s it like to drive?

If we’re being honest, it’s not that different to the Enyaq SUV. But that’s not such a bad thing because the standard car is an excellent starting point. Skoda also updated the Enyaq in 2023, increasing the performance of its electric motors across the range.

Now, the most basic Enyaq Coupe 85 is powered by a new 286hp electric motor mounted on the rear axle. It has a whopping 82hp more than the old entry-level iV 80 – and that’s had a profound effect on the way the car accelerates. The 85 can sprint from 0–62mph in 6.7 seconds, which is a whole two seconds quicker than the old 80 variant could manage.

The new motor has loads of power in reserve, too. It produces 545Nm of torque (pulling power) which, to put that another way, is around 100Nm more than you get in a Porsche 911 Carrera. That means the Enyaq Coupe 85 is great at overtaking – simply flex your big toe and you’ll scythe past your victim in a silent fury of speed.

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You can also have a four-wheel drive version of the Enyaq Coupe, called the 85x. It has an extra electric motor on the front axle. We’re struggling to find a reason to recommend it, though, because it’s barely any faster than the single motor model and it can’t travel as far on a single charge, yet it costs almost £4,000 more.

In fact, it has the same amount of power as the 85 – and its 0-62mph time is only 0.1 seconds faster. The only reason you’d opt for it over the rear-wheel drive model is if you need the extra grip for scrabbling along shattered country lanes or snow-covered roads.

If you want a four-wheel drive Enyaq, we reckon you’d be better served by the performance-focused vRS model. When Skoda unveiled the vRS in 2022, we were rather underwhelmed by it. It only produced 299hp which, at the time, was a mere 34hp more than the model that preceded it in the pecking order – and that didn’t feel like enough of an increase to justify the added expense.

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But performance car enthusiasts will be pleased to know that Skoda has updated the vRS for 2024, giving it a much-needed shot in the arm. It now produces 340hp and has a 0–62mph time of 5.5 seconds, making it the fastest car in Skoda’s line-up by a comfortable margin.

Because it has four-wheel drive, it can get that power to the ground cleanly. There’s loads of grip and the steering system is accurate enough to allow to exploit the chassis. The steering is also quick off-centre but, like most modern cars, it offers little in the way of feedback.

If we had to criticise the controls, we’d aim our complaints at the brakes. They’re a little spongey (although less so than the rear-wheel drive Enyaq Coupe 85) and they require quite some effort to haul off speed. You get used to it, though.

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Body control is good for the most part. Skoda’s adaptive dampers manage to keep the car admirably flat in the bends – but no amount of suspension trickery can disguise the Enyaq’s sheer size or its 2.2-tonne kerb weight.

The Enyaq can feel a little unwieldy on narrow roads and, even though it concentrated low down, the inertia of all that weight can surprise you on undulating surfaces. It produces more up and down movement than you’d expect in a petrol-powered car. Crest a hill too quickly and your stomach will turn over like you’ve just dropped off the peak of a rollercoaster.

Overall, though, the vRS Coupe has the best body control of any Enyaq we’ve encountered so far. It’s sporty when you ask it to be and, with the dampers locked in Comfort mode, it does a good job of cushioning you from the worst broken tarmac and potholes.

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Refinement levels are equally excellent, but there is one weakness with the vRS model. It’s fitted with massive 20-inch alloy wheels that produce significantly more tyre noise at autobahn speed. The problem’s exacerbated further if you go for Skoda’s optional 21-inch wheels.

Range and charging

Every version of the Enyaq Coupe is powered a 77kWh battery pack. Skoda says the entry-level 85 model can cover 353 miles on a single charge, which we found to be rather optimistic. We only managed around 280 miles, averaging 3.2 miles per kWh. To be fair to Skoda, though, we were testing the car in winter when batteries are at their least efficient.

After 6,000 miles in a vRS, Keith Adams said in his long-term test: ‘After a full recharge, the displayed range is estimated from your last time spent in the car, which generally proved reliable – and what I found is that it reported between 260 and 280 miles depending on where I’ve been taking it. The lower figure represents time spent on the motorway, with the higher estimate reflecting lower-speed A- and B-road commuting.’

A 280-mile range is still commendable. It’s certainly good enough to enjoy a longer journey, especially if you can plan your route around rapid chargers. The Enyaq can accept DC rapid charge speeds of up to 135kW, which can top the battery up to 80% capacity in less than 30 minutes. That’s an ideal amount of time for a comfort break.

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A full charge using a slower 7kW AC wallbox takes around 12 hours. However, it’s rare that you’ll be in this situation. If you plug the Enyaq into your home wallbox every day when you return home from work, it’ll probably only take a few hours to brim the battery. We also found the Enyaq Coupe’s range indicator to be very accurate, which makes it easier to plan charging stops.

Safety

The Enyaq Coupe is fitted as standard with Volkswagen’s Travel Assist system. It’s a semi-autonomous driving mode that can assume control of the car’s steering, acceleration and brakes on the motorway, providing you keep your hands on the wheel. It can really take the strain out of a long drive – but the system isn’t perfect.

For starters, it isn’t very good at recognising when you have your hands on the wheel. If you rest your right arm on the top of the door card and place your palm on the front of the wheel (which is far more comfortable than death-gripping it), your skin doesn’t engage with its haptic sensors. That means the car will issue a constant stream of warning messages, urging you to retake control, despite the fact you’re perfectly capable of steering.

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It has another, more dangerous fault, however. Travel Assist also includes a function that automatically decelerates the car to a speed it deems safe to round an approaching corner.

The mapping calibration needs a lot of extra work, though, because our test car regularly recognised passing motorway slip roads as sharp corners – and it hammered on the brakes while we were on the main carriageway, sharply dropping the car’s speed from 70mph to 40mph. If there was any traffic following us closely, it would have rear-ended us. Thankfully, you can override the system by matting the accelerator.

What models and trims are available?

There are four trim levels called 85 Edition, Sportline, Laurin & Klement and vRS. Even the most basic model is packed with equipment, such as 19-inch alloy wheels, Matrix LED headlights, a panoramic sunroof, a 13.0-inch infotainment system, heated front seats, a wireless smartphone charger and adaptive cruise control.

Buyers of the most basic Enyaq Coupe 85 can also choose from a range of four interior upholstery finishes called Loft, Suite, EcoSuite and Lounge. The Loft specification comes with fabric trim, while the rest feature a range of leather upholstery finishes. EcoSuite is the most unusual, as it trims the Enyaq Coupe’s seats, door cards, dashboard and centre console in soft brown leather.

The Enyaq Coupe Sportline gets a few racy styling tweaks, such as 20-inch alloy wheels, more aggressive front and rear bumpers, microsuede upholstery, sports seats, aluminium pedals and carbon-effect interior trim.

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Above that, there’s the Enyaq Coupe Laurin & Klement. This is the luxury option in the range – and it features platinum grey exterior trim, a unique set of 20-inch alloys and a posh Canton sound system. The front seats get an upgrade, too, with built-in air conditioning, a massaging function and perforated leather upholstery in either beige or black.

At the top of the range, there’s the Enyaq Coupe vRS. Its spec is much like the Sportline’s, but it gets a lot more power, loads of vRS badges and a model-specific set of 20-inch alloys.

Read on to discover what it’s like to live with a Skoda Enyaq Coupe in our long-term test, and then find out how we rate it overall in our expert verdict.