The Skoda Yeti is a real people’s car, owned as daily driver for those with supercars to families who just need to be able to fit three children’s seats in the back. As its production run, starting in 2009, is about to come to an end, we take a look at the end of the line car to figure out if it’s going to be missed.
With the Karoq arriving soon, Skoda’s compact SUV line-up will be changed forever. With the Yeti, Skoda offered a car with the abilities of a four wheel drive SUV, but without too much compromise in driveability. The looks may have been divisive, but if you get past that, then you could get a real ‘do anything’ vehicle for just over £17k.
To fill the gap left by the Yeti, the Volkswagen group can now offer you an updated VW Tiguan (the comfortable option), a SEAT Ateca (the sporty option) and soon, the Skoda Karoq (the good value option). The thing is though, all of those are genuine compact SUVs, and that’s not necessarily what everyone wants to drive.
The Skoda Yeti is built on the VW A5 (PQ35) platform like the old MK6 Golf and MK2 Audi TT, and it was given a body that’s part hatchback, part MPV and small part SUV. This results in the Yeti having a few odd angles, and a hint of Popemobile, but with many real car people loving it. Perhaps it harks back to a time when manufacturers made curio models, like the Renault Vel Satis, and these were held dear to owner’s hearts. Unlike curios, however, the Skoda Yeti has sold nearly 600,000 units worldwide!
Our car was a Skoda Yeti Oudoor SE Drive 1.2 TSI 110PS with: Hill Hold Control, KESSY (keyless locks and ignition), Park Assist , Partition Net Screen and Space Saver spare Wheel coming in at £20,255 (£21,620 with options). This isn’t too far from the Yeti’s £17,770 starting price and means that car comes with a host of extras inc: Amundsen touchscreen sat nav with DAB and extra speakers, front and rear parking sensors, heated windscreen and 17” Matterhorn alloys.
On the inside the Yeti has a basic and yet rugged and well built quality about it. You have all the tech that you’d expect from a car of this price range and you’re unlikely to feel short-changed from the low starting price. Having said this, compared to the current Nissan Qashqai, it does feel a bit more utilitarian.
Take the Yeti out on the road and you can get back to understanding the cult nature of this car’s fanbase – it’s much more car like than it is SUV. While some recent SUVs, like the SEAT Ateca, are finally getting to the stage where they drive more like a hatchback, the Yeti has been doing this since 2009.
The 1.2 TSI 110PS engine is not the one I’d usually recommend for any VW Group car, but it does the job well in this scenario and easily handles both motorway and local commuting needs. For A road overtakes and more extended motorway driving then the 2.0l TDI 150PS would be a better selection to make. Like with most family SUVs, there’s no need to take the 4x4 option unless you live out in the deepest, darkest countryside. Front wheel drive gives you better fuel economy, lower co2 and a car that’ll be cheaper to run in the long-term.
While using the Yeti as family transport for a week it’s a very easy thing to live with. Those big doors that make the car awkward to look at, make it easy for getting children into car seats and bulky items in and out. One thing that did surprise me a little is the size, or lack of, the boot. It’s 416l but is quite short meaning buggies or other long items take a manoeuvring to fit in.
After a week with the Yeti, and having chatted to a few owners about it, I’m left with the question of why can’t Skoda keep this as well as the Karoq? I already know the answer (factories are at capacity and running two production lines + models is very expensive) but I do wonder if the march to full SUV line-up will mean losing out on customers who wanted something a bit different.
