Skoda Kodiaq iV SE L - long-term review

Kia registered 47,163 Sportage models in 2024, to put it second in the UK car charts, comfortably ahead of the bronze-placed Nissan Qashqai (42k) and not far behind the dinky Ford Puma crossover (48,240). The Kodiaq, meanwhile, was at 12,447, a 31.2 per cent increase versus 2023, bumped by the introduction of the Mk2 model we’re running. That's quite a gulf though, and it’s fascinating (okay, that’s the wrong word) to see how we got here.

Remember when Andre Agassi was the face of Kia? That was as the UK got its first Sportage in ’04, with 4,000 coming here out of 20,000 imported for all of Europe. Prices started under £15k, and you could get a 2.7-litre V6. Ah, the past, such an innocent, affordable time…

Since then, Kia has been on the fast track. The Cee’d was a watershed moment in 2006 and scrappage (remember that?) spiked 2009 UK registrations above 50k – up from a record of 33k in 2004. A seven-year warranty across the range (and being TG’s Reasonably Priced Car) headed off any decline for 2010, and Sportage sales were 5,618 out of the 56k that year.  Then we went crossover and SUV crazy, on which Kia capitalised: of 77k registered vehicles in 2014, 21k were the Sportage; a decade on it’s nearly 50k out of a total of 112,252.

Skoda has done well in that time too, albeit not kept pace: market share has doubled to four per cent since 2010, but from 41k registrations back then, it climbed to 78,601 last year, as MG (82k) sneaked ahead into the top ten.

Have UK buyers (of which my parents are one) been right to side with the Sportage over the Kodiaq? I’ll leave cost aside (as the Skoda’s list price is a little dearer but lease deals put it three-figures-cheaper per month), so let’s rattle through the rest.

Design

I’ll give it to the striking Sportage, because the Mk2 Kodiaq's now a little awkward: the tracks don’t look wide enough, the wheelarches are a funny shape, and the oversized headlights resemble a child with their first adult teeth.

Driving

The Kia initially feels more agile, and the four-wheel drive system prohibits any of the Skoda’s FWD wheel-spinning hooliganism, but the latter has a calmer and better insulated ride. Draw.

Space

Win for the Skoda. It’s physically bigger and trumps the Kia resolutely on boot and back seat space. And it’s ahead up front, too: here the flatter seats and skinnier transmission tunnel might seem drab to the Kia’s more visually interesting dashboard and narrower, sportier seats, but I’m a big man, so I fit in the Skoda and feel squeezed in the Kia.

Infotainment

The Kia has the better stereo, but the wired Apple/Android connectivity is unreliable (as on every car ever) and the touchscreen (complete with Miami Vice-alike pink and blue colour scheme) is positioned too low, with the landscape layout meaning too much scrolling up and down vs the (wireless) Skoda.

Verdict

Would I rather stick with the Skoda or swap to the Kia? Happy (stretching out) where I am.