Skoda has launched the Skoda Karoq Sportline at the Paris motor show, alongside the recently announced Karoq Scout. The Sportline gets sportier styling to complement a mooted Karoq vRS.
The Sportline is the only trim to be offered with the 187bhp 2.0-litre TSI petrol engine in the Karoq range, although it’s also available in 187bhp and 148bhp 2.0-litre TDI diesel guises, as well as a 148bhp 1.5-litre TSI version. Only the most powerful diesel gets four-wheel drive as standard, though, as well as a DSG automatic gearbox. Four-wheel drive and the DSG are options across most of the engine range.
The Sportline is marked out by 18in alloy wheels and different bumpers. Sportline badging on the front wings, as well as tinted windows and black roof rails, also hint at the car’s range-topping status.
Inside, the seats are bolstered for extra support and finished in an exclusive Thermoflux fabric with silver contrast stitching, which extends to the stitching on the leather steering wheel. A black headliner is also fitted, as are stainless steel pedals and ambient lighting. Like the Scout, the Sportline gets the Volkswagen Group’s Virtual Cockpit display instead of traditional dials.
The Karoq’s larger SUV sibling, the Skoda Kodiaq, also gets a Sportline trim, which will sit below the Skoda Kodiaq vRS performance flagship.
The Karoq is also expected to gain a vRS-badged sibling along the line, as Skoda continues the expansion of its sporting sub-brand. At the Karoq’s launch last year, however, a final decision hadn't yet been made.
As with the Scout, prices for the Sportline are as yet unconfirmed, but it’ll likely be a few hundred pounds more than the Scout, as per the Kodiaq Scout and Sportline. Above £28,000 is likely.
