New Skoda Superb review, test drive

It’s the perfect start to the day. The early morning air feels crisp and cool as the soft summer sun pops out and bathes the road ahead in a warm glow. The best part is, I seem to have beaten the morning traffic; there’s practically no one out on the road. What’s even better is, yesterday’s doom and gloom seems well behind us – there are no showers expected today.

The roads out of London can sometimes be confusing. In the past, I remember sitting with the good old A-Z map book in my lap, doing my best to look up at the road and down at the map at the same time. Thankfully, I don’t have that problem today. The nice lady from Skoda’s Navigation department is calling out the turns, and since we seem to be well in sync, I relax and try and pay attention to the new Skoda.

It’s not that this is the first time I’m driving the new SK461. No, I’ve been behind the wheel all of yesterday. That, however, was spent running from one photo-shoot location to the other and dodging the rain in between. So I’m really looking forward to this undisturbed one-on-one time with the car.  

Problem is, I don’t know where I’m going. Yes, the GPS is programmed and I’m following dutifully, but all I know is that I’m headed towards roads somewhere on the outskirts of town, where I can give the new Superb a good workout. There’s plenty of stuff I want to confirm about the car, and there’s a lot to discover too.

What I’m paying rapt attention to right now, however, is just how easy this behemoth is to thread through a city scape. The direct steering makes placing this car accurately super easy and the new Superb feels so light on its feet and ready to change direction, most of the effort is subconscious. It feels as agile as a Swift, and that’s saying a lot. Remember, this car is almost 5 metres long, after all.

The other thing that gets my attention right away is the ride of this car. Set in Comfort via the 8-inch touchscreen, the Superb rides well over bumps. You do feel a few of the bumps, but it is also reasonably absorbent. Body control in Comfort, however, is loose at times – there’s a bit of float and the nose bobs a bit when you encounter some bumpy bits.