2022 Skoda Superb Sportline 206TSI Liftback Review

Compared with the hey days of the late 1990s where Commodores and Falcons where literally everywhere, large sedans have seen a big demise in recent years with the influx of SUVs in the market. Thanks to these market trends, this cars like the aforementioned Australian icons, as well as the Volkswagen Passat sedan, Ford Mondeo and Kia Optima have ceased production and finding a family car that isn’t an SUV these days can be difficult. Thankfully, the 2022 Skoda Superb Sportline 206TSI proves that a large sedan is still relevant and can be an excellent choice in today’s SUV-filled market.

For the 2022 model year, the Skoda Superb got a slight facelift changing some exterior body panels and adding some equipment. Like all vehicle updates there was also a slight price hike which brings the Superb more into premium car territory, so how does it fare against its rivals? Let’s find out.

Price & Equipment: 8.5/10

While the Superb model used to offer four models, the 2022 Skoda Superb range only offers two models: the $56,990 drive away entry-level Superb Style 162TSI and what we tested: the top-spec Superb Sportline 206TSI, which starts at $68,990 drive away. A wagon variant of each model is available for a further $2,000.

While it isn’t cheap, it is well equipped and the Superb Sportline’s equipment list includes 19-inch alloy wheels with a space saver spare, a 9.2-inch touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, satellite navigation, digital radio, a 10.25-inch digital driver’s display, an eight-speaker Canton audio system, drive mode selection, tri-zone climate control, suede and partial leather upholstery, heated electric front seats with memory functionality, heated rear seats, an auto-dimming rear mirror, auto all-LED lighting and auto wipers, heated and auto-folding exterior mirrors with puddle lamps, an umbrella in the driver’s door (like a Rolls Royce), keyless entry with push button start, a power tailgate and configurable LED ambient lighting.

Safety kit in the Superb Sportline includes nine airbags, automatic emergency braking (AEB) with pedestrian and cyclist detection, driver fatigue monitoring, automatic rear braking, blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alert, lane departure warning with lane keep assist, lane trace assist, adaptive cruise control with stop and go functionality, emergency assist, automatic post-collision braking, Matrix adaptive high beam functionality, a reversing camera, front and rear parking sensors, semi-automatic parking and tyre pressure monitoring.

Missing from the 2022 Skoda Superb Sportline’s equipment list are a heads-up display, a heated steering wheel and a 360-degree parking camera, but that’s really it. The Superb comes pretty well loaded so there’s not much it misses out on.

However, despite the high pricing, there are a few options available on the Superb. You can choose from the $1,900 full leather seats with ventilated first row and driver’s massage functionality, a $1,700 sunroof and $300 19-inch ‘Supernova’ black alloy wheels. In terms of paint colours, ‘Steel Grey’ is the only non-cost option, with ‘Race Blue’, ‘Moon White’, ‘Graphite Grey’, ‘Brilliant Silver’, ‘Black Magic’ and our test car’s ‘Graphite Grey’ adding $700, while ‘Velvet Red’ is $1,100. Our loaded test car was fitted with every possible option and is priced at $73,660 drive away.

Rivals to the 2022 Skoda Superb Sportline are the $52,065 plus on-road costs Hyundai Sonata N Line, the Peugeot 508 GT Fastback (from around $69,000 drive away) and the $69,890 drive away Kia Stinger GT. All of these cars have equipment similar to the Superb but all miss out on all-wheel drive.

Engine & Performance: 8/10

The engine offered in the 2022 Skoda Superb Sportline is the brand’s familiar 2.0-litre ‘EA888’ four-cylinder turbocharged petrol unit that powers all four wheels and produces 206kW of power (at 6,500rpm) and 350Nm of torque (between 1,700rpm and 5,600rpm). This engine is used in a plethora of other Volkswagen Group products. It also makes the sprint from 0-100km/h in just 5.8-seconds, which is quite brisk for such a large car.

Even though this particular tune of the EA888 engine uses the older six-speed DSG and it isn’t the latest version of this engine, the Superb is very rapid. Thanks to its wide spread of torque throughout the rev range, there’s always ample grunt. The acceleration from a standstill is the most impressive aspect of the Superb’s power delivery, particularly when using the launch control system. But when you’re not on it, it’s perfectly liveable and quiet around town.

The only transmission option on the Superb Sportline is a six-speed dual clutch (DSG) automatic which has both a sport and manual mode (with steering mounted paddle shifters). It is one of the better DSGs we have tested, but it’s still not perfect. The take-off from a standstill can be a little jerky but once in motion the Superb is smooth and effortless, though putting it into sport mode makes it even snappier and quick in changing gears.

The claimed average fuel consumption for the Superb Sportline liftback is 8.0L/100km, which is not bad for a large sedan putting out over 200kW of power. Our week spent in the Superb with mostly urban driving – but some freeway driving too – saw an average figure of 10.3L/100km. The Superb requires 95RON premium unleaded and it has a 66-litre fuel tank.

Ride & Handling: 8/10

Using the same MQB platform as a plethora of other Volkswagen Group cars, the 2022 Skoda Superb Sportline drives quite well. While it’s no dynamic superstar, for its intended audience, it’s excellent. Standard on the Sportline are adaptive dampers, which provide a nice range of adjustability for the car – in comfort mode, the ride is just too soft, but in normal and sport modes, it firms up nicely and the body control improves immensely. The Superb’s steering isn’t the last word in feel, but it’s well weighted.

The handling ability of the Superb is rather surprising for such a large car. In sport mode, there is a tiny amount of body roll but the speeds you can corner at will make you think you are not in a large luxury sedan at all. That’s thanks to the standard all-wheel drive system, which does a great job of putting power to the ground. Again, the Superb is a great dual personality car.

Interior & Practicality: 9.0/10

Skoda’s are known for their quality and practical interiors and thankfully, the 2022 Skoda Superb Sportline does not disappoint. While the design is conservative, most surfaces are covered in soft touch materials and stitched leather. The switchable mood lighting adds an expensive feel, as do the high-quality screens in the centre of the dashboard and in front of the driver.

There is a soft touch dash, soft touch portions on the doors, very comfortable seats and there are also flock-lined door bins that stop rattles from putting your keys in them. The rear door panels are a little on the harder side, but those are the only negatives we have with the quality of the Superb interior. There are also the little Skoda touches like the bin in the driver’s door bin, the ticket holder for the windscreen, an umbrella in the driver’s door and the little notches in the cup holder to open bottles on the move.

The storage throughout the cabin is exceptional. There is a small cubby by the driver’s right-hand knee for keys or coins, large door bins, a space for your phone in front of the gear selector (where the wireless smartphone charger is), a large glovebox, a generously proportioned cooled centre console, rear map pockets and the cup holders have a cover on them so when not in use they can be used as storage.

The 9.2-inch ‘Discover Pro’ touch screen in the Superb is excellent, although the lack of a proper volume knob is frustrating, and the gesture controls rarely worked for us. The system itself is fantastic, though with menus that are easy to navigate, and the screen quality is very sharp. The navigation system is good, although no live traffic updates or internet connectivity is annoying. Like most people, we would just connect our phone via the wireless Apple CarPlay or Android Auto and use the maps on our phone. The digital driver’s display is very configurable and easy to set to what you like.

The rear seats in the Superb liftback are comfortable and offer a good amount of support, while there are also a plethora of rear amenities for rear passengers. There are rear sunshades, map pockets, rear heated seats, a rear 12-volt power outlet (no USB ports here), rear climate control and air vents and a fold down centre armrest with cupholders. Plus, the legroom on offer is absolutely massive – the Superb offers easily the most spacious back seat this side of the Mercedes-Benz S-Class.

Opening the power tailgate on the 2022 Skoda Superb reveals a cavernous 625-litre boot. There are also hooks to hang shopping up with, storage bins to the side of the boot, nets, tie down points, a 12-volt power outlet, levers to fold the rear seats down and dividers that stick to the carpet to hold items in place. Folding down the rear seats opens this space up to 1,760L, which is excellent for a liftback/non-SUV. In comparison the Hyundai Sonata’s boot can carry 510L, the Peugeot 508 can swallow just 487L/1,537L and the Kia Stinger GT can hold 406L/1,114L. The Superb has the most cargo space by far in its segment, and it really does make you wonder if you need an SUV (answer: you don’t!).

Service & Warranty: 7/10

The 2022 Skoda Superb Sportline liftback comes with Skoda’s five-year unlimited kilometre warranty. The same warranty is offered on the Hyundai Sonata N Line and the Peugeot 508 but the Kia Stinger comes with a seven-year unlimited kilometre warranty. The Superb also comes with 12 months of roadside assistance that’s topped up to five years in total with each dealer service, like the Kia Stinger, whereas the Peugeot 508 has a full five years of roadside assistance.

The Superb requires servicing every 12 months or 15,000km, which is better than the 12 month/10,000km intervals the Hyundai Sonata and Kia Stinger have, but not as good as the 12 month/20,000km intervals of the Peugeot 508. The cost to service the Superb Sportline over five years or 75,000km is $3,262 (an average service cost of $652.40) which is quite expensive. There is a service pack which can be bought at the time of purchasing the vehicle which lowers the five year service cost to $1,800.

2022 Skoda Superb Sportline Liftback DiscoverAuto Rating: 8.1/10

The 2022 Skoda Superb Sportline is a rather excellent vehicle that unfortunately, only few will experience. Due to the popularity of the SUV more people are likely to flock to the Skoda Kodiaq rather than the Superb, which makes us sad. The Superb liftback is an insanely practical, fast and comfortable car to own. There is a lot more cargo space on offer than a Mazda CX-5, more power than a Volkswagen Golf GTI and yet, it costs less than a lot of German cars that have less equipment. So why wouldn’t you?

Well, the Superb isn’t cheap to buy, it is rather expensive to service (if you don’t get a service pack) and it could be a little better on fuel (we wish it had the latest tune of this engine with the seven-speed DSG gearbox, like European models – and the local Volkswagen Arteon – get) but these are small negatives to what is ultimately a great family hauler. It’s far better than an SUV and it’s a great reminder of why large sedans were once so popular.