And now for something completely different – well, not quite. Natalie Middleton takes delivery of our new Škoda Enyaq long-termer.

P11d (BIK): £44,485 (2%) RANGE: 348 miles ON FLEET: N/A EFFICIENCY: N/A

First report:

As our SEAT Ateca moves onto another team member, I’m now heading behind the wheel of a distant relation, slightly removed, in the form of the Škoda Enyaq.

Built on the Volkswagen Group’s MEB platform and closely related to the Volkswagen ID.4, the Enyaq launched early 2021 as Škoda’s second electric car and its first electric SUV. Also available as the more rakish Enyaq Coupe, it’s being joined by the Elroq compact SUV, an electric successor to the Karoq, which arrives later this year as the first of six new Škoda battery electric vehicles (BEVs). The brand has also newly previewed its Epiq entry-level crossover ahead of its 2025 unveiling.

Ours is the Enyaq 85 model, complete with a 286hp rear-mounted motor, giving a top speed of 111mph and a 0-62mph time of 6.7 seconds. Along with the all-wheel drive 85x, it sits above the entry-level Enyaq 60 but below the flagship dual-motor vRS model – which boasts 340hp and a 5.5-second sprint for the 0-62mph dash.

It was previously known as the Enyaq 80 but, as with most of the range, was given extra range, power and equipment for the 2024 model year.

In terms of vital statistics, the Enyaq 85’s 82kWh battery gives an official WLTP range of 348 miles and WLTP consumption of 4.1mpkWh. I’m not the greatest at hypermiling in ICE cars and my EV skills are a bit rusty so it’ll be interesting to see how the range fares – but luckily the Enyaq has rocked up as the UK weather (hopefully) is warming up.

Our Edition grade comes with a mighty long list of features, such as adaptive cruise control, heated front seats, keyless entry and LED Matrix headlights. In fact, too many to go into for this report. It’s also fitted with various design and comfort-orientated packages and options, bringing the total OTR price to £48,140. As always, it’s the brand’s signature Simply Clever features that I look forwards to the most.

Electric vehicles might not be everyone’s cup of tea but for me personally, after nearly two years of being back driving ICE cars, I can’t wait – not just for the elevated performance and technology that electric cars give but also to slightly escape that feeling of guilt every time there’s images of melting ice caps on the news.

As someone who does have a home charger fitted, I’m on the right side of the ‘driveway divide’. But having previously relied solely on public charging for the first five months of my last electric long-termer, I know that anything is possible if you want to make an electric car work.

Really looking forwards to the next five months.