Skoda has been swimming on a wave of success for years, to which the flagship Superb, especially in the station wagon version, has contributed a lot. The customers of the Czech middle class have always ordered a lot of additional equipment. One reason for the VW subsidiary to include “Sportline”, a particularly high-quality version of the Superb Combi, in the price list. The primarily optically pepped up version costs from 35.490 euros.
The top model of the series rolls on 19-inch aluminum, for example, they should underline the sporty note of this variant as well as some black design elements. These include the correspondingly painted radiator frame, the chrome strips in the lower air inlet, the roof rails and the housing of the exterior mirrors. The fog lights and rear side windows as well as the rear window are shaded or tinted. The interior was also trimmed to be sporty. The headlining, the sports leather steering wheel, the Alcantara covers for the sports seats, side panels and the dashboard - everything is black. The pedals, on the other hand, are made of aluminum, the decorative strip on the dashboard is made of carbon look.
Technically, Skoda has given this Superb version the adaptive suspension with adjustable damper characteristics as standard. The driving profile selection offers a button in the center console to choose between Normal, Sport, Comfort, Eco or an individual setting. The body also lowers one centimeter closer to the road.
The Superb Combi Sportline is based on the equipment line Ambition. There are also bi-xenon headlights with LED daytime running lights and LED rear lights in crystal glass optics. The standard equipment also includes two-zone automatic air conditioning, fog lights, heated front seats, cruise control system including speed limiter and rear parking sensors, as well as the higher-quality music system "Swing" with a colored five-inch touch display.
However, there are no innovations in the engines. Four petrol and two diesel are available. The entry is the 1,4 TSI with 110 kW / 150 PS. The power is transmitted via a manual six-speed gearbox. A seven-speed dual clutch transmission is also available for an extra charge. The 1.8 TSI has 132 kW / 180 PS, the two-liter TSI has 162 kW / 220 PS. Top petrol is the 206 kW / 280 PS strong two-liter TSI with all-wheel drive and six-speed dual clutch transmission.
The diesel part is taken over by a two-liter TDI with 110 kW / 150 PS and a variant with the same displacement and with an SCR catalytic converter that delivers 140 kW / 190 PS. Here, interested parties have the choice between front or all-wheel drive as well as manual six-speed or six-speed dual clutch transmission. The large diesel engine in particular is great on the gas, pulls powerfully in all engine speed ranges and leaves little to be desired when it comes to noise and smooth running. To match this, the suspension is so sporty that even fast turns through bends are no problem and still have enough comfort.
Because the Superb Combi with its enormous amount of space for passengers and payload (660 liters of storage space) is already in fourth place in the sales statistics of the estate models among private customers, behind the Mercedes C-Class, the VW Passat and the Audi A4, including both Ford Mondeo as well as Opel has left Insignia behind, those responsible now hope with the new top model to further consolidate this position. After all, 20 percent of future sales will be attributable to the Sportline, according to the forecast. (Wolfgang Schäffer)