Last month I nearly shed a tear as I said goodbye to my trusty Skoda Karoq. It was pretty much the perfect daily companion as it was practical and used its space in a clever and thoughtful way, while also having superb (no pun intended) comfort and refinement levels.
Its replacement is its smaller brother, the Kamiq. I have gone for the top-of-the-line Monte Carlo model, and it features bucket sport seats, fake carbon fibre inlays on the door cards and seat bolsters, diamond-cut alloy wheels and a full-length glass panoramic roof.
There was a pang of disappointment as I clambered aboard for the first time to find no leather interior, no heated seats or steering wheel, and no magnified ice scraper.
But, if we gloss over those little first-world issues, the last month has proved that the cheaper Kamiq can still impress me in many areas.
First of all, while it may not feature as many clever design features as the Karoq, it still comes with a parking ticket holder on the windscreen, a phone holder located on the back of the driver’s seat and an umbrella in the driver’s door.
My Karoq was fitted with a very smooth 1.5-litre TSI four-cylinder petrol engine, but this Kamiq has a smaller 1.0-litre TSI unit under the bonnet. Like the Karoq, though, it comes with a seven-speed DSG automatic gearbox.
Out on the road the three-cylinder engine does sound a little thrummy, and the gearbox has the same annoying characteristics as before, such as being a little slow to respond, and at times, shifting down a gear when not needed. However, the Kamiq does drive well and is easy to manoeuvre around town. My first impressions are that it’s not as comfortable to drive as the Karoq, but its visibility is better, thanks to the larger side windows.
The rear seats aren’t as versatile either. The Kamiq comes with a 60:40 bench seat which just folds down, whereas the Karoq’s 40:20:40 individual seats that could slide, recline and even be removed altogether were more practical.
But, the Kamiq does come with a few nifty options which makes life a bit easier. It’s fitted with a powered tailgate, and it comes with pop-out door edge protectors to prevent you from chipping the paint on walls when opening the doors.
The full-length panoramic roof does flood the cabin with light, which is a nice feature, and the Kamiq isn’t short of cubby spaces. Like the Karoq, the Kamiq also comes with a nifty little storage bin (literally) in the front driver’s door card.
I haven’t been able to use the Kamiq as much as I would have liked recently due to a number of other short-term test cars arriving at my house, but I did stretch the car’s legs on a trip to the Goodwood Festival of Speed last month. It proved to be refined and comfortable at speeds and because you sit lower than you do in traditional SUVs, it feels more car-like to drive.
Our example is front-wheel drive and in the muddy, slippery fields of Goodwood you could feel it struggling slightly for grip, but not to the point where you felt as though the car was going to get stuck.
It’s also been on a couple of other trips with four-up and it performed well. There were no complaints of passengers struggling for head and legroom, and the drive didn’t feel all that different with the extra weight of those onboard.
My first few weeks behind the wheel have been enjoyable, and I am looking forward to the months ahead. Sure, it’s not as luxurious, comfortable or not as practical as the Karoq, but I think I will grow to love it just as much.
- Model as tested: Skoda Kamiq Monte Carlo TSI DSG
- Price as tested: £32,205
- Engine: 1.0-litre turbocharged petrol
- Power: 114bhp
- Torque: 200Nm
- Fuel economy: 43.9mpg
- CO2: 132g/km
- 0-60mph: 10 seconds
- Top speed: 121mph
- Mileage: 3,035
