Skoda Yeti

Well built, decent to drive, economical and practical – there’s a lot to like about the Yeti. Look out Qashqai, Skoda has you in its sights.

• Comfort

  Like any car of this shape and size the Yeti's jacked-up suspension means it lollops over speed bumps, but the ride isn't squidgy.

  

• Performance

  There’s 1.2 and 1.8-litre TSI petrols and a 2.0 diesel with either 110, 140 or 170bhp. So far we’ve only driven the 1.2-litre, turbocharged unit matched to a seven-speed DSG ’box. It’s a great little combination: efficient yet rapid, quiet yet revvy. Despite being small it doesn’t feel short on power, though it could start to struggle with a big load.

  

• Cool

  Surprisingly cool... for a family car.

  

• Quality

  Inside, the knobs, dash and dials are familiar from other VW Group cars and are predictably well put together.

   

   

  

• Handling

  Show it some pace and it rolls slightly as it leans on those high springs. But it grips well and certainly handles better than a Qashqai, which is an unrewarding thing to drive quickly.

  

• Practicality

  There's plenty of room here for five passengers and the maximum boot space of 1,760 litres is huge. But it's the Varioflex seats that impressed us the most, with a folding/flipping/removable second row like the Roomster. The Yeti loses 20 litres of max bootspace to its MPV sibling, despite being a bigger car, because its roof is lower. Still, 20 litres is just a couple of carrier bags.

  

• Running costs

  The 1.2 is the cheapest to run, thanks to 149 g/km of CO2 (£125 road tax) and 44mpg, although the 140 and 170bhp diesels come close with 159 g/km of CO2 (£150) and 46mpg. Stay away from the 1.8 TSI - it returns just 35mpg and is in the £215 taxation band.