Skoda Yeti

It was the Car of the Year 2010, and the Skoda Yeti has continued to win praise for its fantastic value for money and grown-up driving dynamics. You can choose between powerful or frugal engines and opt for a basic equipment list or a fully-specced model with all the gadgets you’ll ever need. There really […]

It was the Car of the Year 2010, and the Skoda Yeti has continued to win praise for its fantastic value for money and grown-up driving dynamics. You can choose between powerful or frugal engines and opt for a basic equipment list or a fully-specced model with all the gadgets you’ll ever need. There really is a Yeti for all price ranges.

The Yeti’s styling won’t be to everyone’s taste, but the trademark Skoda grille and oversized foglights help to create a smart look. The high-riding vehicle manages a good compromise between a stylish family car and a rugged off-roader.

For the majority of people, the Yeti will be spacious enough. The only time the rear can seem a little cramped is with two people over six-feet sitting behind each other. The Yeti’s interior is well built and pleasingly upmarket. ‘E’ models are incredibly cheap but still come with an air-conditioining and front electric windows. It’s worthwhile upgrading to ‘SE’ spec though, which adds electric rear windows, cruise control and rear parking sensors.

If you do a lot of motorway miles, it might be worth avoiding the 1.2 TSI – for all other occasions though it’s a fantastic little engine. There’s also a 1.4 TSI and a 1.8 TSI unit with 150bhp and four-wheel drive. The diesels are all refined and available with 104bhp, 109bhp, 138bhp or 168bhp. The last three of these are available with four-wheel drive. The Yeti impresses with its car-like handling and good off-road ability – although the latter only applies to the four-wheel-drive models.

The entry-level 1.2 TSI is surprisingly efficient for a petrol engine, returning 44.1mpg. The Yeti is best suited to the more frugal and punchy diesel engines like the 1.6 TDI, which claims 61.4mpg.

The Yeti’s boot is marginally larger than that of the Nissan Qashqai – trumping its 410 litre figure by just six litres. This figure can be increased to 1,760 litres though by folding away the rear seats. The clever rear seats also allow you to take out the middle seat and move the outer seats towards the middle to increase shoulder room.

Many of the components in the Yeti have proved themselves elsewhere in the Volkswagen Group line-ups with very few problems. In the Euro NCAP crash safety test, the Yeti achieved a full five stars.

For Nigerians, it is very useful for many things you can think of but its not the kind of car you’d buy for prestige of change of levels. But be assured the Yeti will give you your moneys worth.