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The latest Skoda Enyaq The electric-car market will bounce back to last year’s levels, a motoring expert has forecast. While there is self-interest in generating such positivity, Skoda’s John Donegan is among the first to publicly hold out hope that the turmoil of this year for battery electric vehicles (BEVs) is coming to an end. Mr Donegan, brand director with Skoda Ireland, was speaking at the launch of the latest Enyaq electric SUV that’s on the market here.
Time will tell if he is correct. “We are forecasting a rebound in the Irish electric vehicle market next year, returning to 2023 sales levels,” he said. He is also confident his brand will grow its share of the BEV market next year, especially with the arrival of the new Elroq compact BEV, which will sit below the Enyaq in terms of size.
For this year, the brand is expecting to finish third or fourth in overall sales here and is confident it can replicate that next year. This confidence is backed by the recent arrival of the latest Kodiaq and Superb plug-in hybrids, which the brand reckons will be of interest to customers who don’t want to switch to fully electric vehicles just yet. But the focus for now is the revised Enyaq, which is available to order now.
Models of the SUV have been sold out for some time, with only second-hand and demonstrator cars available. The latest model costs from €48,900. The car gets 27 additional specification upgrades, including substantial upgrades to the cabin, full leather interior and heated seats.
Sportline models will have an illuminated crystal glass grille and 21-inch alloys, while all versions come with advanced technology, including matrix LED headlights and adaptive cruise control as standard. However, the 58kWh battery (Enyaq 60) model has been discontinued. The largest 77 kWh battery, with a claimed range of up to 569km, will now be exclusively in the Enyaq 85+ and the Enyaq 85+ Sportline versions.
While the Enyaq 85+ is priced from €48,900, the Enyaq 85+ Sportline starts at €55,000. Prices include delivery, VRT rebate and SEAI grants. The coupe version costs from €52,750.
All Enyaqs come with an eight-year manufacturer warranty. Just to provide an idea of some of the 27 equipment items added, there is a keyless entry system, wireless charging pad, adaptive cruise control including traffic jam assist, driver alert, drive mode select, heated front seats and heated washer nozzles, climatronic three-zone air con, two USB-C ports (rear), anti-theft alarm, roller blinds for rear windows, matrix LED headlights including headlight washers, electric driver seat including electric lumbar/memory function, adaptive lane assist, 20-inch alloys and a full leather interior. It is impossible to predict, but the €3,500 grant from SEAI and the VRT rebate will be with us for next year at least.
That is a good thing and will incentivise some to take the plunge. But will it be enough to get us to last year’s levels, as Mr Donegan asserts? The downside is that these incentives have been around this year and the bottom has fallen out of the BEV market since January. The upside is that we could have had a much worse situation had they not been in place.
Imagine what the numbers could be like in that scenario. The key plea from those in the industry has been for a revision and extension of the BIK concessions to get more businesses and people signing up for a BEV. This is regarded as vital to get some real movement into the market.
But even at that, public sentiment is in such a low state as far as BEVs are concerned that it is going to take time for it to recover. That may come next year, largely on the basis of keener pricing and more lower-cost models arriving on the market. But until depreciation of BEVs settles at more reasonable levels, it is hard to see a major rush.
Mr Donegan could yet be right. It would be a significant shift. Join the Irish Independent WhatsApp channel Stay up to date with all the latest news.
