2016 Skoda Superb 1.4 TSI Acceleration Test: the Basic Stuff

If some old fellow came to me and asked "what's the most spacious sed...", would cut him off and say the Skoda Superb. There really isn't anything with this much legroom available for similar money.

But picking the perfect engine is another matter entirely. Diesel seems like the most obvious choice, but the 1.4 TSI has several advantages. Firstly, it heats up much faster. We all know how frustrating it is to have a working heater just when you arrive at work on those cold winter mornings.

The second is the small displacement itself, which means there's less oil to change and smaller taxes in some European countries. That being said, we think the 2.0 TDI or even the 1.6 TDI are better choices if you plan on doing longer journeys frequently. Considering most second-hand Superbs we find have well over 150,000 kilometers on the clock it seems to be the case.

We may have gotten a little sidetracked here, as we were supposed to talk about this video of an acceleration test. But it's pretty easy to understand. You've got a 2016 Superb sedan equipped with a 1.4 TSI that also features ACT, short for Active Cylinder Timing.

The car requires two attempts to get a better launch, partly because it's weird to shift way before the red line and also because the road is wet and/or frozen. But doing 0 to 100 km/h in under 9 seconds is excellent for a sedan this size. The outcome is on par or better than vanilla versions of the Peugeot 508 or Ford Mondeo. In some cases, 180 horsepower diesels engines take the same 9s to reach the benchmark speed.

Price? In Germany, anywhere from €26,300, for this exact engine and 6-speed gearbox. That's not bad, but you will have to pay a lot more for style and comfort.