The Skoda Enyaq Previews Automaker’s EV Plans for Singapore

Jek Ray

10/01/2024

Skoda is one of the remaining few brands along the Leng Kee car belt that does not currently offer an all-electric model locally.

But as we continue to get ever closer to the Singapore Green Plan deadline, every automaker that offers a car for sale here would at least have one EV in its pipeline. And for Skoda, there’s little reason to doubt that when they eventually decide to start offering electric cars, it’d probably start with the Skoda Enyaq.

Which is why Skoda Singapore added an Enyaq 80 iV to their media fleet sometime in 2023. It allowed us journalists to sample an upcoming model, and for us to draw our own conclusions about it, before the public ever gets to even be in one.

What is an Enyaq?

Skoda’s first-ever fully electric car was unveiled as two separate concept vehicles. The first, dubbed the Vision E, introduced the public to the idea of an electric Skoda. Two years later, in 2019, the Czechoslovakian automaker unveiled a refined version of the concept, dubbed the Vision iV, which had exterior styling that was more feasible for series production.

A year later, the final production Enyaq was unveiled, and it has been in production ever since. Skoda built its Enyaq on Volkswagen’s MEB platform, which has been designed from the ground up for electric vehicles. This platform has also been used to build cars like the upcoming Volkswagen ID.4 and ID.5, and the Audi Q4 e-tron and Q5 e-tron.

Our test car is the 80 model. This designation means the car packs a single motor, mounted in the rear, that develops 200 bhp. It has an 82 kWh battery pack, of which, 77 of those kWhs are actually usable.

It’s a Skoda. Just, Electrified.

EVs typically fall into one of two camps. You have the electric cars that are futuristic seemingly for the sake of it, then you have well-thought out vehicles that just so happen to be electric. The Enyaq falls very firmly into the latter.

There’s no infinitely adjustable mood lighting, or the inclusion of highly sophisticated autonomous driving technology. But the Enyaq feels better without those pieces of kit. It feels like an honest-to-god vehicle, and works much better sans any gimmicks.

It is very practical too. There’s no shortage of room of any kind in the cabin, and a large glass panoramic roof allows the interior to feel even airier. Need to carry large, bulky items? The Enyaq’s 585 litre boot would comfortably swallow any cargo that you could throw at it.

The Driving Experience

Impressively, despite its heft, the Enyaq actually feels surprisingly agile. This is no doubt assisted by its 200 instantaneous bhps. Ride quality is generally acceptable, but it could perhaps do more to soak up some of the worse bumps on our roads.

Expect a real-world range of just north of 300 kilometres (330 kilometres on a single charge is achievable), which is mighty impressive considering its size. It certainly isn’t built for your stereotypical EV off-the-line pace, though it still has enough torque and power when you actually need it.

The Future is Bright for Skoda EVs

The Enyaq is not just a commendable first attempt, it is a properly well-thought out vehicle. It doesn’t chase technology for the sake of it, with Skoda exercising a healthy amount of restraint when both styling and optioning the car.