► Very spacious and long electric range
► Elroq sits beneath the Skoda Enyaq
► Volkswagen Group’s smallest electric SUV to date
It’s been an excellent 12 months if you’re in the market for a more compact electric SUV. Renault revived the Scenic to much fanfare, the Kia EV3 has managed to distil everything good about its larger EVs into a smaller package, and now there’s another strong contender: the Skoda Elroq.
It’s the smaller sibling to the Enyaq, an impressive first attempt at a ‘ground-up EV’ and one that continues to sell in huge numbers. Skoda has shifted 200,000 Enyaqs in 3.5 years, and it was Europe’s most popular electric car in October 2024.
The Elroq is looking for similar success in replicating the Enyaq in a dinkier package, but is it on the course for success?
At a glance
Pros: Very spacious, excellent interior quality, good to drive
Cons: Expensive options, not *quite* as good value as it first seems
What’s new?
The Elroq arrives as the Volkswagen Group’s smallest electric SUV to date and serves as the electric equivalent to the popular Skoda Karoq SUV. It also establishes a new design direction for Skoda called ‘Modern Solid’ (awful name)and it brings a new front end that you’ll see rolled out across future models from the Czech firm. A gloss black strip replaces the traditional Skoda grille and new SKODA lettering at the front replaces a badge. After this, it appears Skoda ran out of design inspiration as the rear is just like an Enyaq – no bad thing, admittedly.
But it’s otherwise business at usual, with the Elroq mirroring attributes from other cars based on VW’s MEB platform – lots of space, a generally button-free interior and a choice of versions. Choice is key as it enables the entry-level 52kWh battery model (usable capacity) to start from £31,500, a cracking price for an electric SUV with as premium a feel as the Elroq.
What are the specs?
There are three different powertrains available on the Elroq – all rear-wheel-drive; you’ll have to wait for an Elroq vRS before you get a four-wheel-drive version in the UK.
Kicking things off is the Elroq 50, using a 52kWh battery and electric motor producing 168bhp and 229lb ft torque. A nine-second 0-62mph is fairly leisurely by modern EV standards, but it can comfortably keep up with traffic and is generally more than enough pace. It’s only when overtaking that you’ll wish for more. You may also wish for more than its claimed 232-mile range. Just five per cent of Elroq buyers are expected to choose it in the UK.
The Elroq 60 slots in the middle with its 59kWh battery and motor producing 201bhp and the same 229lb ft of torque, dropping the 0-62mph to eight seconds and raising the range to 260 miles. Most punters are expected to buy this.
If you want the most range and power, go for the Elroq 85. Packing a big 77kWh battery and electric motor with 282bhp and 402lb ft of torque, it’s quicker than most of its rivals with a 6.6-second 62mph sprint time. The 360-mile range is also the longest of any electric Skoda, if just behind the 375-mile figure of a Kia EV3. Things are competitive in the compact electric SUV world.
How does it drive?
Things get off to a great start as soon as you sit in the Elroq with a huge amount of seat and steering wheel adjustment available. Want to sit high like a proper SUV? Excellent. Want to feel a bit more involved with a lower seating position? Also excellent. Refinement is generally good, too, with only the smallest bit of wind noise from the rather chunky door mirrors. The turning circle also deserves a special mention, too, as it’s impressively small. I ask an engineer if it’s got four-wheel steering I’m that surprised. (N.B. it doesn’t)
There are no tricks or gimmicks to the way the Elroq drives, but just a well-judged electric SUV that ticks all the right boxes. Ride comfort even on the standard suspension is impressive. Supple, well-controlled when cornering hard and excellent around town and over big speed bumps. I thought it was pretty impressive until I tried it back-to-back with an Elroq equipped with DCC adaptive dampers that soften it up noticeably. It’s impressive, but £650 impressive? I’m not so sure. And you can only have it on the top-spec 85 Sportline model. Confusing options is a running theme of the Elroq.
The first drive is taking place on the twisty mountain roads of Mallorca, not the ideal place for a sensible compact electric SUV, you’d think but the Elroq performs admirably well – and much better than the Vauxhall Frontera EV driven on the same route a few days earlier. The steering has a decent feel to it, and you can really feel the rear bias of the Elroq if you push it out of a corner. The traction control will always stop the back from stepping out, but it’s a nice reminder that the Elroq has a small amount of playfulness to it. The 85 model is also pleasantly brisk with an instant power delivery that whooshes you off in silence (there are no silly EV sounds here).
What’s it like inside
The Elroq’s interior is almost a carbon copy of the larger Enyaq, and that’s fine by me as it’s certainly a better cabin than you’d get in the equivalent Volkswagen ID.4.
Skoda offers various interior combinations called ‘Design Selections’, with Loft being the standard choice on all but the Sportline trim. Despite being the freebie choice, it’s great. You get grey fabric for the seats, door cards, and dashboard and it feels very Scandinavian. The Sportline model gets a racier look with various black and microsuede elements but it’s dark and dull in contrast. At the other end of the spectrum is the ‘Lodge’ look, with creamy-coloured seats and orange details. It’s a bit much, especially for £400.
The Elroq’s interior is not as interesting to look at as that of a Kia EV3, but it’s smart and modern and feels better finished. A 13-inch touchscreen is standard, with new shortcut buttons on the screen for turning off the infuriating speed bonging and lane assist. The icons should be larger to improve their ease of use, though we should be grateful you get a strip of physical buttons for the climate and drive assist menu – another example of Skoda making a better interior than VW from the same bits.
But without a doubt, the Elroq’s best strength is its interior space. It makes you question why you’d need the Enyaq with its generous rear-seat space that can easily occupy adults. It’s quite a wide car by compact SUV standards, but it’s at least put to good use, with the same floating centre storage area and general feeling of airiness. The boot is a good size at 470 litres, with plenty of optional storage solutions available. The ‘Transport Package’ is easily worth £250 just for a parcel shelf with a storage net beneath it to keep the electric charging cables out of the way.
Before you buy (trims and rivals)
The Elroq undercuts core opposition with its £31,500 starting price, which is roughly the same as you’d pay for a similarly-specced Skoda Karoq. This price parity is set to be key to the Elroq’s popularity and we can’t dispute it.
That low price applies to the SE trim, which is only available with the smaller 52kWh battery. Standard equipment is generally good, though, with 19-inch alloy wheels, a 13-inch touchscreen, reversing camera and dual-zone climate control included.
The SE L trim is only available in 60 guise, with extra equipment including heated front seats, satellite navigation and drive modes for £33,250. Edition seems the most lavishly equipped with its unique dark chrome details, adaptive cruise control, wireless smartphone charging for £34,450. Top-spec Sportline models start from £37,400 and add 20-inch alloys and a black styling kit for the visuals, but also an electric boot and Matrix LED headlights.
Above this, Skoda also offers various option packs but not individual options, per se. The firm is often a bit brazen with how much it charges for extras and the Elroq is no different. The ‘Maxx’ package, for example, bringing features such as massaging front seats, a head-up display and Canton sound system will cost an eye-watering £5,200. Choose things like this and the Elroq no longer seems such value for money.
It’s worth looking at the opposition, too. Skoda references the Renault Scenic, BYD Atto 3 and Hyundai Kona Electric as its core rivals, but we can’t ignore the new Kia EV3. It might start for more money, but when you start comparing specs, it comes out better. The UK twin test will produce the ultimate decision.
Verdict
It’s no secret that Skoda now makes the best cars of all the mainstream VW Group brands, and the Elroq is the latest to impress. It’s the best electric SUV that this brand makes, with a mix of driving manners, practicality and interior quality that makes it very easy to recommend.
The Skoda Elroq might not be the cool or desirable kid in the electric SUV class, but it does the sensible side of things far better than anything else at this price. Sensible is the new cool.
Specs are for Skoda Elroq Edition 85