Skoda tries to get balance right with latest Karoq

Mixing and matching colours, decor, equipment levels and engines for the vast variety of tastes and needs in the marketplace is one of the really tough challenges for car makers.

I know they spend a lot of time and money on research and feedback.

And most of the time they get it right. Sometimes, not so right, maybe.

I don’t envy them their task because if one area doesn’t pass muster, it can detract from the overall package. More about that later.

Many reasons for hike in rental car prices – but the worst may be yet to come

I took the latest Skoda KAROQ crossover/SUV for a long journey north recently. I’d had a brief runout in another version some time back, but this was the real thing: a long, long drive mixing good and not-so-good roads; good and not-so-good weather conditions.

I felt it was a really good, thorough test for a car because I got to see several sides to its demeanour and behaviour.

The KAROQ is called a crossover or, more commonly, a compact SUV (nearly everything that is tall and a bit muscular is these days).

But the compact description is a little misleading because this has really good room in the cabin and a nice touch on most of the driving dynamics.

It may be compact in stature, but it uses space well. There is also, for example, a more-than-decent sized boot.

The previous one I had driven came in a strong orange colour. My test car this time was grey – and I think it dulled the car’s looks a lot. I am not a fan of grey. It would put me off buying one.

And that is despite the fact that the car has just benefitted from a series of modifications to keep it smart and competitive.

For example there is a longer rear roof spoiler, several styling tweaks to sharpen looks all round, improved aerodynamics (which means it costs less fuel/energy to propel the car and that is important considering what we are being charged at the pumps) and little upgrades all over the place.

My test car had a one-litre petrol engine (110bhp) under the bonnet and I thought it was a tad under-powered. I had to change down more than I would have liked on slower roads. I didn’t have a big load on board or anything like that.

But I need to be clear; I’m talking about my subjective preference. There are loads of people out there who would find it perfectly acceptable because they don’t look for power in their family SUV and are quite happy to drive nice and sedately.

There is also the matter of lower price for the smaller engine. As well as my 1.0TSI (110hp), there is a 1.5TSI (150hp) petrol, which is a powerplant I know from the Volkswagen stable and it is a cracker.

Oh, and there are two diesels, a 2.0TDI 115hp and 2.0TDI 150hp. So they seem to have the bases well covered.

I wouldn’t like to think that my reservations about one engine would be taken as a general criticism for the range. It’s just a case for me of thinking the strong frame of the KAROQ could do with something more powerful to get it along more vibrantly. That’s because it has a nice chassis working for it and it’s a well-balanced drive.

It had a lovely feel to the steering, nice and light but providing enough feedback to instil confidence.

One criticism of some SUVs/crossovers is how poor visibility can be out back, especially those with sharply raked rooflines. It was quite the opposite with this, I had great vision. And because of its height I found it easy to get in and out.

Seating was good, reasonably firm and supportive, but I would have liked a bit more adjustment to allow better bolstering of the thighs. On a long journey, I tend to notice these things more, these days.

And so to the engine. It was fine at cruising motorway speeds, but as soon as we got into narrower, hilly, twisty roads, I noticed it needed to be taken down a gear or two.

I think a five-speed gearbox might have been a better option than the six.

It’s just that when I’m driving, I am extremely sensitive to how the engine is doing. Maybe too sensitive. Maybe someone else would just change down to fourth and think no more of it. But all I can do is let you know what my experience was in that respect.

Otherwise, I enjoyed the car a lot and I can see now – something I didn’t before – how half a million people worldwide have come to buy one. It is a particularly good little package. And it is on sale in 60 countries.

Would I buy it?

I certainly would. But I would opt for a strong, definite colour. And, as you might guess, I would favour a larger engine.

Many reasons for hike in rental car prices – but the worst may be yet to come