Skoda Kamiq Select 2024 review

The Chasing Cars editorial team has been vocal about our admiration for the small SUV that is the Skoda Kamiq. 

In 2022, we awarded it the top gong for best small SUV and, later, I personally reviewed the Kamiq Style and gave it 8.5/10. Chasing Cars’ founder Tom Baker gave the Kamiq an even higher score of 9/10.

Since its introduction in 2019, the Skoda Kamiq has wowed us with its engaging and charismatic driving experience, especially in base specification. It also represents cracking good value for money, with Skoda still offering 85kW Kamiq Runout Editions for just $31,790 driveaway. 

A mildly facelifted 2024 Kamiq is now arriving on our shores, with the line-up simplified to just two grades: entry-level Select and top-spec Monte Carlo. 

Priced from $33,990 driveaway for this updated version, the Kamiq remains a strong competitor to the likes of the Toyota Corolla Cross, Hyundai Kona and Subaru Crosstrek.

But is the Kamiq still as fun as it was pre-facelift? And does Skoda’s small SUV still represent a solid, practical buy?

We road-tested the new Kamiq through the Dandenong Ranges and out to the Mornington Peninsula in Victoria to explore what the 2024 updates bring to this Chasing Cars favourite.

What are the Kamiq Select’s features and options for the price?

The Kamiq variant we extensively tested was the new entry-level Select, which has been priced competitively at $33,990 driveaway. The Select’s higher-spec, more powerful sibling, the 110kW/250Nm Monte Carlo, is quite a step up at $44,990 driveaway. 

As standard, Kamiq Select offers the following features:

• 8.0-inch digital instrument cluster (NEW)
• Slightly larger 8.25-inch centre touchscreen (NEW)
• Wireless Apple CarPlay and wired Android Auto
• LED fog lights (NEW)
• LED headlights 
• 17-inch alloy wheels 
• Four 45W USB-C ports – two front, two rear
• Cloth seat upholstery 
• ‘Simply clever’ features including door umbrella, ticket holder and phone pocket
• Leather-rimmed multi-function steering wheel
• Redesigned dual-zone climate control (NEW)

For the outlay, I think the Kamiq Select is great value and feature-packed, but it does miss out on features such as adaptive cruise control, panoramic glass roof and sports seats – all found in the pricier Monte Carlo variant.  

Otherwise, the Kamiq has all you really need in a small SUV, making it an easy car to slot into the large majority of people’s lifestyles.

How does the Kamiq Select drive?

It was in a moment of realisation during a spirited drive down Arthur’s Seat on Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula that I completely forgot I was driving a small SUV. Surely this kind of vehicle type can’t be fun, right? Well, the previous Kamiq had a good chassis and nothing has changed in that regard for 2024.

Powering the new Kamiq Select is a tiny 1.0-litre turbocharged three-cylinder petrol engine that produces just 85kW of power and 200Nm of torque. You may turn your nose up at such power outputs, but this thrummy little engine is a cracker, and full of charm. 

And while you’re probably wondering why I was doing a spirited drive in a small SUV, this is, in my opinion, a model that sits more in warm hatch territory. Discover a decent twisty road in the Kamiq and you’re met with very little body roll, great turn in and enough punch from the turbo-triple to keep things fun. The 1.0-litre engine thrums away nicely and, although it’s pretty quiet, you still get a pleasant amount of induction and exhaust sound. Again, it’s a bit strange me saying this about an SUV. 

Paired to this little 1.0-litre engine is Volkswagen Group’s seven-speed dual-clutch transmission. In normal D mode, the transmission is a little too sluggish and doughy for my liking, but pulse the shift lever down to S, and the Kamiq has a very different feel. Throttle response sharpens, gearshifts from the DSG are quicker, and the doughiness of Drive is long forgotten. 

Despite having a blast through the back roads of the Mornington Peninsula, I also realised that once you’re back on the highway, the Kamiq is incredibly frugal, sipping away lightly at the fuel in its tank. Its official highway figure is just 4.9L/100km, and while I didn’t match that, I saw mid-fives so still pretty respectable.

Settling back to around-town life, the Kamiq is easy to drive and comfortable. While I do prefer the higher spec Monte Carlo’s seats, the Select’s standard buckets are still supportive enough. There is good visibility from the driver’s seat (and a decent seating position, too) and there is generally a feeling of spaciousness in the cabin.

The Kamiq is also simple to operate. Push-button start, gear selector down to Drive, and off you go. And a manual handbrake means you’re not going to fumble around when putting the handbrake on, something where there’s little commonality (and therefore commonsense) between different vehicle models and brands. 

But as with almost every car, there are some downsides to the Kamiq’s driving experience. Noticeable amounts of tyre and road noise fill the cabin, the 85kW engine could do with a touch more power for overtaking and, as I’ve already said, the response of the transmission could be a bit less doughy when in the regular ‘D’ drive mode. 

On the Australian launch, I drove both the Select and the top-spec 1.5-litre turbo-petrol four-cylinder Monte Carlo. But as the sun set on a big day of Skoda driving, I began to really fall in love with the Kamiq again, and especially this budget-friendly Select variant. 

Sure, it’s not perfect, but the Kamiq, quite unsurprisingly, remains a very good thing to drive, no matter the journey or duration.  

What is the Kamiq Select’s interior and tech like?

Inside the Kamiq, it’s not the bargain model you suspect it would be for $33,990 driveaway. First impressions on cabin materials are that the Kamiq feels largely premium inside, despite its low asking price. 

New to the Kamiq’s interior is the use of a textile Skoda calls Krepp, which is a fabric-like material that works really well. Its grey colour adds a pop of sophistication to the space, along with a nicely upholstered leather steering wheel, grey headlining, and a nice-to-the-touch leather-trimmed handbrake, too. 

While the Kamiq Select gets comfort seats instead of the sculpted sports items in the Monte Carlo, the Select’s pews are still nicely supportive and comfortable, even after several hours behind the wheel. 

All of Skoda’s 2024 Kamiq range now gets a digital instrument cluster. Before, base Kamiqs featured a small screen with traditional analogue dials on either side, but for the 2024 Select, this cluster becomes an 8.0-inch unit that displays a range of important driving info, including speed, driving range, engine revs and even map guidance. As is the case for most cars in 2024, the driver can run through the menus by using steering-wheel buttons. And even these buttons are nicely tactile and feel quite premium. 

The centre display in the Kamiq Select is a slightly larger 8.25-inch screen that runs wireless Apple CarPlay and wired Android Auto. The screen itself is fast enough, but I found that the Apple CarPlay struggled to connect without a cable in our test car, which was odd as I rarely have issues in Volkswagen Group vehicles. Although hardly used in many new cars today (thanks to CarPlay and Android Auto), the Select does not come with satellite navigation. 

As for other features, the Kamiq gains two 45W USB-C ports, two generous cupholders, decent enough door bins for a water bottle, a sunglasses holder, and some quirky features such as a door umbrella and phone pockets. 

In the rear, the kids will be able to charge their iPads thanks to two more USB-C ports, mounted beneath the rear air vents, and there are map pockets in the backs of the front seats. Room is pretty good for my 5ft 11 frame and the seats themselves are nice and soft, just like the fronts. 

In the boot there’s 400 litres of capacity (which is great for a small SUV), along with a space-saver spare wheel and a couple of nooks to store more items. Unlike the Monte Carlo, the Select gets a manual tailgate (an electric one is optional, forming part of a $4200 Signature pack). 

All in all, the Kamiq continues to punch above its weight with cabin materials and tech, and has been enhanced just enough to justify the slight price increase of this small SUV in 2024.

Is the Kamiq Select a safe car?

The Skoda Kamiq has been crash tested by ANCAP, but back in 2019. Thankfully, this rating won’t expire until December 2025.

As for standard safety features, the Skoda Kamiq Select is fitted with the following tech:

• Front and side curtain airbags
• Front AEB with pedestrian and cyclist detection
• Side assist with rear cross-traffic alert
• Lane assist
• Front and rear parking sensors
• Reversing camera
• Advanced drowsiness detection system

A Signature pack ($4200) is available for the Kamiq Select, which adds the following features:

• Travel Assist
• Adaptive cruise control 
• Park assist 
• Electric tailgate
• Lane assist with adaptive lane guidance 

In terms of safety tuning, I found the Select to largely succeed in this area, with gentle lane-keeping input from the vehicle. Although I expected speed-sign recognition to be standard on the Kamiq, it was actually handy not having another annoying feature bonging at you frequently.

What are the Kamiq Select’s ownership costs?

The updated Skoda Kamiq range is covered by a seven-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty which is impressive in this segment and the longest warranty of any Volkswagen Group product. 

In terms of servicing, a Skoda seven-year service pack will cost $2650, with service intervals needing to take place every 12 months or 15,000 kilometres, whichever occurs first. 

Skoda’s official fuel consumption for the Kamiq Select’s 1.0-litre turbocharged three-cylinder engine is 5.5L/100km combined, and just 4.9L/100km for extra-urban or highway. 

In our real-world testing on the 2024 Kamiq’s launch, we saw a combined figure of roughly 6.1 to 6.5L/100km which included some sporty mountain driving, as well as time spent in town and on the highway. 

The Kamiq has a 50-litre fuel tank and requires 95 octane premium fuel or higher.

The honest verdict on the Kamiq Select

In 2024, Skoda continues to offer some of the most underrated, underdog cars in Australia and the Kamiq is a shining example of this.

For just under $34,000 driveaway, the Kamiq Select offers a seven-year warranty, a frugal turbocharged three-cylinder petrol engine, a surprisingly accomplished chassis, enough tech to keep 95 percent of owners happy, and, most of all, offers an engaging driving experience. 

True, it’s not perfect: the Kamiq suffers from a doughy and slow-reacting transmission when left in Drive, it lacks adaptive cruise control, and it doesn’t feel quite as special as its fancier Monte Carlo sibling. 

All in all, I can confidently say that the Kamiq will remain in my books one of the great budget drives offered in the Australian market, and one of the best driving small SUVs, too.

The little tweaks and improvements brought to the 2024 Kamiq make it even more accomplished and appealing than before. 

And the best part? I think the Select is the pick of the duo. 

Go out and test drive a Skoda Kamiq. It’s very unlikely that you’ll come away disappointed.