We tried (in preview) the Škoda Elroq, Volkswagen’s most affordable electric car

Skoda has just made its new electric car, the Elroq, official. It is a compact SUV competing with the Peugeot e-3008, Volvo EX30 and other electric Renault Scénic E-Tech. We were able to drive this new car to get a first opinion, before its official launch which will take place later in 2024. Great autonomy, a compact format with a more affordable price than the Skoda Enyaq: the recipe seems to be good on paper .

Skoda, which belongs to the Volkswagen group, plans to launch many electric cars in the coming months. We are patiently waiting for the Skoda Epiq, the cousin of the future Volkswagen ID.2 which should be sold for less than 25,000 euros. But in the meantime, Skoda has (partially) lifted the veil on the Skoda Elroq. A more compact electric car than the Skoda Enyaq and Volkswagen ID.4, but more spacious than the Volkswagen ID.3. It is in fact more or less the SUV version of the latter, but signed by Skoda.

For the moment, the Czech manufacturer has not fully unveiled this new electric car. Skoda presents it camouflaged. We cannot yet appreciate the design and the final interior, which will be unveiled next October. But we were still able to approach this camouflaged version, and even drive it. Because the technical base is definitive (it is the MEB platform of Volkswagen), which already allows us to know many technical characteristics of the machine.

We were able to take the road for several dozen kilometers around Amsterdam. The opportunity to give us a first opinion on the road capabilities of this compact electric car, belonging to the C segment of SUVs. Without further delay, let’s discover its technical sheet.

Technical sheet

Design: A heavily camouflaged compact SUV

Difficult to talk about the design, since the Skoda Elroq, with its 5 doors and 5 seats, was heavily camouflaged. However, we can appreciate the size of the car, announced at 4.488 meters long. Compare with the 4,658 meters of a Skoda Enyaq.

For the rest, we will have to take Skoda’s word for it, which announces that the Elroq will be the brand’s first vehicle to inaugurate the new visual identity, called Modern Solid. The grille usually present on Skodas disappears entirely, in favor of a “Tech-Deck Face”. By this, understand that the grille is almost entirely flat, slightly curved, and devoid of holes. This allows Skoda to place a beautiful logo in full letters and a light signature. Above all, the radar is now integrated into the grille, invisibly.

At the bottom of the bumper, an active shutter betrays the battery’s need for cooling, while improving the car’s range. At the rear, the design seems a little less revolutionary for the manufacturer, but we still have the right to an LED light signature.

Skoda is proud of the front and rear design of its car, but also the sides. The manufacturer has integrated a spoiler at the rear which brings dynamism to the silhouette. This seems to be rather aerodynamic, with a drag coefficient (Cx) announced at 0.26. 19 to 21 inch rims will also have an impact on range.

As we understand, the Skoda Elroq is a compact SUV. The design should change radically compared to the brand’s current creations, but we will have to wait for the camouflage to disappear in the coming months to find out more.

Habitability: a compact but clever SUV

The interior of the Skoda Elroq is not yet completely final. The dimensions are, but the details and the dashboard are still at the prototype stage. However, we were able to sit in all the seats, to appreciate the space offered within the vehicle. Adults are well accommodated in all seats, except the middle one, a little harder, because of the central armrest.

There is no transmission tunnel, so the floor is completely flat. Which allows the middle seat to be a little more comfortable. Nice surprise, the air conditioning is 3-zone, which allows passengers in the back to have their own temperature setting.

Skoda obliges, we find the “Simply Clever” features specific to the brand, such as the umbrella hidden in the front door, or a net, positioned under the trunk shelf, allowing you to store your charging cable while maintaining access to it. in case of full trunk. The interior is full of several storage spaces, totaling 48 liters in total.

For the trunk, we can count on 470 liters (and the presence of a sub-trunk). This one is quite modular, with different accessories. By folding down the rear seats, we go to a volume of 1,580 liters.

Infotainment: hard to judge

The entertainment system takes the form of a 13-inch central screen in horizontal format, with a new version of the in-house operating system. There is also a small 5-inch screen behind the steering wheel, which acts as an instrument cluster. A head-up display is also included.

Unfortunately, not much can be said about the whole system, since it was still in the prototype stage. But the teams told us that it would take the basis of the existing Skoda Enyaq. It is a shame, however, that Skoda and the Volkswagen group do not use Google and Android Automotive for the operating system, as is found on the Renault Megane E-Tech for example. In our opinion, this is the most advanced and practical system for the driver on an electric car.

It should be noted, however, that a ventilated wireless charging pad (15 watts) for smartphones is included, as is a USB-C port with a power of 45 watts, allowing you to connect, for example, a computer.

Driving aids: full fuel

For driving assistance, Skoda uses the most common features on the market, namely level 2 semi-autonomous driving, with adaptive cruise control and lane centering. We weren’t really able to try out these functions in the Dutch traffic flow, but lane keeping seemed to work well when we got a little too close to the shoulder lines.

The big news is the appearance of the Remote Park Assist function. A first for a Volkswagen group car. This is the ability to control your car using your smartphone, while being outside of it. You just need to be less than four meters from the vehicle. Practical for accessing very narrow parking spaces for example. Or for entertaining the gallery.

Route planner

The Skoda Elroq will obviously be delivered with a route planner, like all electric cars from the Volkswagen group for several years. We weren’t able to test drive it, due to the pre-production version of the car. But there doesn’t seem to be any big update on this side. Usually, the route planners of Volkswagen Group cars work correctly.

Driving: an appreciable DCC

Driving is the part we got to try the most. But, unfortunately, the roads around Amsterdam did not give us the pleasure of fully testing the dynamic capabilities of the car. We were able to perform a few accelerations to realize that the engine of our test version (85) was more than sufficient.

It must be said that the APP550 engine, installed on the rear axle, with a power of 210 kW (286 hp) and its torque of 550 Nm allows to go from 0 to 100 km / h in about 6 seconds for a maximum speed of 180 km / h. There is also an all-wheel drive version (85x) which increases the cavalry to 220 kW (300 hp). These two versions share the battery with a gross capacity of 82 kWh (77 kWh net).

There is also the 60 version, with its single 150 kW (204 hp) engine, with its speed limited to 160 km/h, and performances not yet communicated. It comes with the 63 kWh gross (59 kWh net) battery.

Finally, the most affordable version, 50, integrates a motor with a power of 125 kW (170 hp), associated with the battery of 55 kWh gross (52 kWh net). Unfortunately, we have not been able to try these versions at the moment.

With our Skoda Elroq 85, we were able to try the optional DCC controlled suspensions. Switching from comfort mode to sport mode is immediately felt on major bumps in the road. The damping thus becomes firmer, especially in the relaxation phase, when the shock has passed. An option that is rarely found on C segment cars.

For city driving, the small turning radius (9.3 meters) makes maneuvering much easier. But be careful, because as with all Volkswagens, the reversing camera offers a poor quality image. Too bad, because it doesn’t necessarily make reversing any easier.

It is also regrettable that the regenerative braking is only adjustable to two positions, like all cars that share the same platform. It is also a shame that one-pedal driving is not offered.

Autonomy, consumption and charging

Skoda has been much more forthcoming about batteries, range and charging. But if you dig a little deeper, it’s completely normal. The Czech manufacturer simply takes the batteries from the MEB platform as we saw just above. Which translates, in fact, into a range of more than 560 km on the mixed WLTP homologation cycle with the largest battery, and the 85 propulsion version.

The range will be around 350 km for the small 52 kWh battery and around 390 km for the 59 kWh battery. The 85x version should increase to 550 km.

For charging, Skoda announces 25 minutes to go from 10 to 80% with the 50 and 60 versions, and 28 minutes for the 85 and 85x versions. The latter have a maximum charging power of 175 kW.

11 kW AC charging allows for between 5.5 and 8 hours of charging depending on the battery.

Battery preconditioning is also included, whether automatically via the range planner, but also manually, via the infotainment.

Price, competition and availability

For the moment, Skoda is not giving the price of its Elroq. We just know that it should cost 15 to 20% less than the Skoda Enyaq. That is an entry-level price estimated from 32,000 euros excluding ecological bonus. The car will be made official during the month of October, and orders should open in early 2025. The first deliveries should take place a few months later.

Competitors include the Volvo EX30, the Peugeot e-3008 and the Renault Scénic E-Tech. The MG4 should be a good, more affordable competitor, despite its less SUV style. To compare these cars with each other, you would need to have all the technical characteristics and prices of the different versions of this Skoda.