Škoda Superb Combi 2

Station wagons are one of the oldest car types that became popular enough to be considered a category. Decades ago, they combined simple construction to numerous seats, fun-ish driving, large baggage room, and even off-road capabilities. However, over the years their buyers have been snatched by minivans, crossovers and SUVs, simply because each of these is better at one of those tasks. Today, roomy SWs are ignored by most companies, so the few ones which stuck with them ended with a whole market niche all for themselves. The result is that they strive to offer cars that result quite interesting.

What still keeps station wagons alive, although not as much as some years ago, is the fact that no car class can do it all. Minivans, for instance, are the last cars to buy for those who actually like to drive. Conventional SUVs are only worth having if you do off-road activities regularly. And crossovers try so hard to be good at everything that, in the end, they aren’t really good at anything. The same thing happens with station wagons. After having mentioned their weak points, it’s also necessary to remember that their handling can be as good as sedans’ or even hatchbacks’. The construction similarity also enables them to have affordable prices easily. And their design allows the automaker to give it almost any trunk space it wants.

After such a successful debut with Superb’s last generation, the new Combi arrives offering the biggest room of its class. Compared to its predecessor, length and width stretched by 23 and 47 mm, respectively, while the wheelbase increased by 80 mm. Such growth enabled this vehicle to offer a 660-liter trunk, which surpasses any other Superb ever produced. When you fold down the rear seats, this capacity jumps to 1,950 liters. Škoda has some tough direct rivals in this segment, such as Ford Mondeo, Opel Insignia and Peugeot 508. But while those have a permanent fight to seduce customers using breathtaking style or cutting-edge technologies, Combi is the only really attractive one to those who want more space and less frills.

Then again, being this rational never meant it couldn’t look good. Škoda’s current design language strikes one more time, bringing a series of strong, horizontal lines. The differences from Superb’s three-box variation (it looks like a sedan, but its tailgate actually makes it a notchback) begin with the rear doors, which were redesigned to follow the new roofline. However, it’s nice to see that the company could create such a large cabin without recurring to what Volvo did until the 1990s: Combi’s rear glass is very inclined, even compared to other station wagons. The reason is the simple need to dissimulate its length. This is what has allowed Škoda to concile huge room and some beauty at the wagon siblings of Fabia, Rapid and Octavia.

Going to the technical part, Volkswagen’s MQB platform was, once again, the responsible for an interesting weight reduction – the official average here is 75 kg, but it depends on the trim level. These, by the way, will be S, SE, SE Business, SE L Executive, and the upscale Laurin & Klement. When it comes to powertrain, the engine range starts with a 1.4-liter with cylinder deactivation and ends with a 276-hp 2.0-liter combined to all-wheel drive – both use gasoline, but there will be several diesel options too, along with the DSG seven-speed, dual-clutch transmission. In order to stay famous for the good reselling value of its cars, Škoda is selling Superb Combi with roughly the same price of its previous generation.