You wonât find it on any map â because it existed for only a couple of days.
Skodaville, as it was called, was established near Inverness recently on a small exclusive estate which for a short time at least resembled something out of the spooky TV-set fake town in The Truman Show where everything seems real but is in fact completely false.
Looking around Skodaville, I felt it was also a bit like something out of The Stepford Wives. Everything was immaculate. The houses were identical and pristine and in every drive in exactly the same position was a brand-new Skoda Superb. Everything, from the doormats and American-style letterboxes to the shampoo in the showers, was Skoda-branded and it certainly made a big impression.
Which wasnât surprising as Skodaville was the setting for the Czech companyâs UK launch of the third generation of their flagship Superb model.
If ever a car was well-named, this is it and it reminds me of the well-established salesmanâs technique. âThis is what Iâm going to tell you. This is what Iâm telling you. This is what Iâve told youâ. In other words if you want someone to know something, the most effective way to get over the message is to tell them and keep telling them.
In the world of cars this is where the name is vital. Which is why Skoda have an excellent name for their superb top-of-the-range model. If youâve got a superb car and you want customers to know how good it is, then following their slogan of Simply Clever, the simple and clever thing is to call it the Superb.
The Superb name has been around for some considerable time â since 1934 in fact when it was a showcase for Czech engineering and set new standards at the time for comfort and refinement of ride. More than 2500 of the stylish big black beasts were built over the following 15 years and after the fall of the Iron Curtain and the merger in 1991 with the Volkswagen Group, in 2001 the Superb became the third completely new Skoda to be launched in Europe following on from the Octavia and Fabia.
The name has certainly worked for them, especially with the estate version. Itâs been around for just six years but in that time more than 200,000 have been made and it is recognised as one of the best cars in what is an impressive Skoda range.
For the latest all-new version Skoda have done an incredible job in making something which was already very good, even better. It combines space, equipment and performance in a great value for money package, equal to its counterparts in the VAG Group, including the upmarket Audi, but without the hefty price tag.
Its main selling point â apart from its sub-ÂŁ20,000 starting price – is its cabin capacity, even bigger than before with the largest interior and boot of its class. This is a big car and even with the rear seats in place and acres of legroom for the passengers – around twice as much as the nearest competitor –Â thereâs still a huge cargo area behind them with a height adjustable boot floor.
The quality of interior finish is alsoâŚ.well, superbâŚ.and I couldnât help wondering why anyone would be prepared to spend many thousands more just to have an Audi badge at the front instead of the winged arrow Skoda logo when the cars are effectively the same under the surface.
Performance has been greatly improved with a 30% reduction in fuel consumption and CO2 emissions, down as low as 109 g/km.
At the same time thereâs up to 20% more power and with a 75 kg reduction in weight and improvements in drag coefficient, this may be a large car but itâs quick off the mark and especially surprising with the remarkable 1.4 litre engine in the featured test car. For a small engine in such a big car, it returned amazing performance, dealing quietly, efficiently and easily with a variety of challenges on the steep and twisting roads around the stunning scenery of north-west ScotlandâŚâŚafter leaving the protective façade of Skodaville.
Thereâs a choice of seven engines, coupled with optional DSG auto gearbox or 4×4 transmission and five trim levels, yet even the all-singing and dancing top-of-the-range 2 litre diesel with DSG and four wheel drive in luxury Laurin and Klement (the names of the Czech founders) trim, will still give you change out of ÂŁ36,000.
The new car is longer and wider and has an increased wheelbase to make it look and feel like a big car. The stylists have done well to turn what would otherwise be a saloon with a box at the back, into a dynamic and flowing machine with an extended roofline and significant shoulder crease to guide the eye along its length.
At the front end, the revised honeycomb grille takes on a distinctly BMW kidney shape with the Skoda badge implanted at the top edge and in fact the whole car has the look of the big 5 Series Touring, but with a more modern slant.
Itâs full of the latest technology and a host of Skodaâs âSimply Cleverâ features, eleven of which are in boot area alone, including a clever couple of folding brackets which fix to the floor with Velcro and stop boxes or cases sliding about in the boot, a rechargeable magnetic torch which can attach to any metal surface and an ingenious cup holder which lets you open a bottle with just one hand without having to take both hands off the wheel.
Thereâs also storage space in each of the four doors for a high visibility jacket and an ice scraper which slots into the fuel filler cap for easy access on winter mornings.
The car comes with all the usual modern safety features but some nifty other options including a virtual pedal system which opens the boot by waving your foot under the rear bumper and a folding towhook which pops out from under the rear end and disappears again by pulling a small lever on the rear sill.
Replacing the single umbrella in one of the rear doors, the new Superb has now slotted a pair of umbrellas into the front doors. The only other place Iâve seen that was in a Rolls-Royce Phantom with a price tag twelve times that of the Skoda.
Itâs been clear for some time now that the smart money goes for a Skoda. The new Superb simply and cleverly takes that to a new level.
CAR: Skoda Superb Estate 1.4 TSI SE
PRICE: ÂŁ22,390
POWER: 1395cc 150PS
TORQUE: 250Nm
PERFORMANCE: Top speed 135 mph 0-62 mph 8.7 secs
MPG: 55 mpg combined
CO2 EMISSIONS: 119 g/km
TT Rating:Â 
