New Skoda Kodiaq vRS gets a Golf GTI engine and seven seats for £53k

• Hot version of the Kodiaq SUV
• 261bhp and 0-62mph in 6.4 seconds
• Prices start from £52,595

If you’ve ever felt the urge to take your seven-seater SUV for a track day, the new Skoda Kodiaq vRS could be just what you’re looking for. Skoda has given its largest SUV a host of performance upgrades, designed to make it as fun to drive as it is practical. It sits as the new flagship of the Kodiaq range, with a confirmed starting price of £52,595.

We were already impressed by the regular Kodiaq last year, awarding it our Best Large Family Car Award for 2025, but the vRS will provide a new performance edge that’s currently missing from the lineup. It arrives at the same time as a mildly warmer Kodiaq, using the same engine as the vRS but with less power and without the supporting performance upgrades.

Buyers have their fair share of performance SUVs to pick from today, ranging from the Ford Puma ST to the Porsche Cayenne, but few will be able to match the space of the Kodiaq at its £53,000 price point when it goes on sale later this January.

What upgrades does the Skoda Kodiaq vRS get?

Open the bonnet of the Kodiaq vRS and you’ll find the same 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine as the Volkswagen Golf GTI – our Best Hot Hatchback 2025 award winner. It delivers an identical 261bhp, but here, power is sent to all four wheels through a dual-clutch automatic gearbox, rather than just the front pair. That results in a 0-62mph time of just 6.4 seconds, and it’ll keep accelerating up to 144mph.

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Bringing a car as large as the Kodiaq to a stop needs some hefty brakes, and Skoda has helpfully fitted uprated discs and calipers to the new vRS model. It also gets Skoda’s Dynamic Chassis Control Plus (DCC Plus) system, which brings adaptive suspension with 15 different settings. The Dynamic Sound Boost system uses a speaker under the car to provide a rortier soundtrack, too.

From the outside, you’ll spot a Kodiaq vRS model by its sportier front bumper and gloss black grille, plus the body-coloured side sills and rear bumper. The latter gets a pair of stainless steel exhaust tips, while you get 20-inch alloy wheels as standard. Inside, there’s microsuede upholstery, or optional perforated leather for the seats. A sports steering wheel and stainless steel pedal covers complete the sporty upgrades.

If you like the sound of a nippier Kodiaq but don’t need all the go-faster upgrades, you’re in luck, as Skoda has added a detuned version of the vRS 2.0-litre engine to the lineup. Available in SE L and Sportline guise, the 2.0-litre petrol Kodiaq produces 201bhp and comes exclusively with four-wheel drive. It may be slower than the vRS, but it’s a whole lot cheaper – prices for this model start from £45,255.

How much does the Skoda Kodiaq vRS cost and when can I buy one?

Pricing for the Skoda Kodiaq vRS starts from £52,595 before options. As expected, that makes it the priciest Kodiaq of the lot, costing over £2,500 more than the previous flagship. It goes on sale from January 16th, along with the new 2.0-litre petrol model.

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