Is the regular Skoda Enyaq Coupe slower than the RS? Yes. Is it less dramatic to look at? Sure, but not by much. Is it actually just as good? Maybe...
In the metal
OK, so let's make something clear: coupes have two doors. I'm sorry, but that's the hill I'll die on, and yes, I know there's precedent in the shapes of both the original Mercedes CLS and the classic Rover P5B. Honestly, though - taking a bulky SUV like a Skoda Enyaq and calling it a coupe just because you've given the rear end a bit more rake? Puh-lease.
Darned if it isn't a good-looking thing, though, nomenclature notwithstanding. The Enyaq Coupe is one of those cars that doesn't photograph all that well. The camera's un-lying lens seems to emphasise the car's bulk and heft, but when you're standing in front of it, it's really rather good looking, and while the chop to the rear roofline might be daft in a practical sense, it genuinely does look good, avoiding the visual awkwardness of other similar models, such as the BMW X4. It's especially good at wearing a strong colour, such as the metallic orange of our test car.
Inside, there are quite simply no complaints. Skoda has long been slyly undercutting its Volkswagen Group stablemates by making the nicest cabins of the lot (seriously - try hopping from the current VW Polo into the new Skoda Fabia and tell me which one is nicer...) and the Enyaq is one of the best. Of course, it helps that this is a specced-up version, loaded with options such as the big head-up display shining onto the windscreen, and upgraded seat and dashboard upholstery.
It has a really comfortable driving position - you sit straight in front of the wheel, and there's no pedal offset - and the view out is excellent. Over-the-shoulder visibility does suffer a bit, of course, but the standard-fit panoramic glass roof fills the cabin with light, which at least gives the impression that you can see loads. There's a reversing camera as standard too, though, so that's OK.
Overall cabin quality is excellent too, and you get plenty of storage space (and four USB-C sockets). That said, it's noticeable how much extra space the little drive selector, down on the centre console, takes up. The VW ID.4's drive switch, mounted up on the instrument panel, makes for a more elegant solution, we reckon.
In the back, Skoda says that the Enyaq Coupe has the same headroom as that of the standard SUV model, thanks mostly to the fact that the heat-absorbing roof glass does without a bulky sunblind. You will feel a little more enclosed back there, though the view out through the side glass remains decent so your kids should be happy enough. The boot barely suffers at all, falling from 585 litres in the standard Enyaq to 570 litres here. Still more than enough for most.
Driving it
Having already tested the rapid four-wheel-drive 299hp RS version of the Enyaq Coupe, you'll be expecting this standard model, with its 204hp, rear-wheel drive and 0-100km/h time that's more than two seconds slower, to be pretty pedestrian.
But no. It's not. OK, so the RS is quicker, definitively so, and has the neat trick of being able to add big extra bursts of power at higher speeds. It's more agile in the corners, too. But the RS's advantage is never quite enough, simply because this standard Enyaq Coupe is so good.
It's never a car that's exactly going to thrill you on a twisty road, mostly because it's just too heavy for that. Then again, the RS is pretty much the same in that regard, so although this standard model won't tuck its nose quite so deep into an apex, it's still a hugely satisfying car to drive. The steering has reassuring weight, if no actual feel nor feedback, and the body control is impressive for a car tipping the scales at 2.2 tonnes. You will feel that weight when braking hard, though, and the pedal - in common with a lot of other electric car regenerative braking systems - could do with more bite.
The ride quality has also taken a bit of a hit compared to the regular, taller Enyaq. This Coupe version has suspension that sits a little lower and stiffer, so there's considerably more bump-thump up through the springs when you're on a bad road. On a smooth road, there's little enough in it, but anyone dealing with Irish country roads on a regular basis should maybe check out the standard Enyaq before committing. Or, alternatively, spec your Coupe with the optional adaptive dampers, whose Comfort mode does a good deal to smooth everything back out.
It's not especially fun to drive, then, and with rear-wheel drive you will find that the traction control can smother performance somewhat when accelerating out of a tight corner or junction. Nonetheless, there's something satisfying about driving the Enyaq Coupe. It just feels so solid, so reassuring and it's exceptionally refined too.
It's also long-ranged. The Enyaq Coupe is fractionally more aerodynamically efficient than the standard car, and so has a little more range available. With the 77kWh (net) battery your one-charge range stretches to a potential 540km. In relatively mild conditions (13 degrees Celsius) and on a mixture of motorway, urban and winding country roads, we were seeing better than 500km on a full battery, so it seems plausible at the least.
This Enyaq Coupe also charges a little faster, at up to 135kW from a DC charging point compared to 125kW for the standard model - although older Enyaqs will be offered a free software upgrade later this year to boost their charging speeds - so its all-round performance is excellent, and long journeys should be really quite painless, even taking into account Ireland's sparse fast-charger network.
What you get for your money
We can't give a solid answer here yet, as Skoda Ireland has not announced prices for the Enyaq Coupe. Volkswagen Ireland is pricing its ID.5 at €58,695 compared to the standard ID.4 at €51,790 (both prices before grants) so the Enyaq may well be significantly more expensive than its SUV sibling. Whether it's worth paying the extra for some slightly racier styling will be very much up to individual tastes, but if it helps it looks as if Skoda Ireland is going to offer the Enyaq Coupe with the spectacularly tacky light-up 'Crystal Face' grille as standard...
Other standard equipment will include 19-inch wheels, parking camera and sensors, leather heated steering wheel and the big 13-inch touchscreen. All Enyaqs will also be getting a software update, which includes future over-the-air updates, and a raft of new safety features including more advanced lane-keeping steering - that will now be able to change lanes for you on the motorway - and improved navigation that automatically includes charging stops on longer journeys.
Summary
To be honest, this is the right Skoda Enyaq Coupe to go for. The RS is fractionally more fun to drive, and can be had with the wild Hyper Green paint finish, but it doesn't put enough clear air between itself and this one to justify its likely chunky price tag. The Enyaq Coupe has all the style and kerbside appeal of the RS, and essentially the same cabin, and while it's slower against the clock, it never feels slow on the road. Plus, it has that impressive 540km range, which makes the biggest difference of all.
