Skoda Announces Enyaq iV For Emergency Services
The Czech firm, Skoda, have been offering fleets of vehicles to the emergency services for over 110 years now. For example, the UK police use fully converted Skoda Scala cars as these are versatile and comfortable to drive. Meanwhile, many NHS authorities use Skoda vehicles including the Skoda Karoq for the ambulance services.
In a recent announcement, its been revealed that Skoda will produce converted Skoda Enyaq iV cars for the emergency services. This comes as the American Automotive Company, Tesla, conducts Tesla Model 3 police car testing in the UK. So, let’s delve deeper to find out more about Skoda’s plan.
Skoda Enyaq iV
The Skoda Enyaq iV is a fully electric 5-door SUV offering a decent range and spacious interior. This electric car has a WLTP combined range of up to 333 miles – very impressive! Furthermore, the Skoda Enyaq iV has an array of tech and safety features available to enhance your driving experience. Also, capable of 50kW rapid charging as standard, the Enyaq iV can reach 80% charge in 1 hour 10 minutes. Skoda introduced this electric car to rival the new Volkswagen ID.4 as the surge in demand for electric cars continues. Of course, the converted Skoda Enyaq iV cars will feature the necessary emergency vehicle graphics to ensure these are easily recognisable.
Why the Skoda Enyaq iV?
Firstly, the Enyaq iV is expected to be available to emergency services as both the 60 (62 kWh battery) and 80 (82 kWh battery) version. The 80 model is capable of reaching 62mph in 8.5 seconds, with the 60 model only marginally slower. Of course, rapid charging will be key for the emergency services which is possible with the Skoda Enyaq iV. In fact, the 80 model will be capable of rapid charging to 80% capacity in under 40 minutes.
Furthermore, emergency services’ vehicles require a substantial interior space to store life-saving equipment. The Skoda Enyaq iV has a luggage capacity of 585 litres (1,710 litres with the seats folded). To top this, the Enyaq offers high quality rides and excellent handling. Converting the cars will include adding the required lighting, as well as adjusting the infotainment system.
Typically, electric cars offer lower maintenance and running costs than a petrol or diesel equivalent. Therefore, this electric Skoda model is a great option for the emergency services in order to cut lifetime costs of the cars. It will be even better when a four-wheel-drive variant arrives in the near future.
With the projected 2030 UK ban on new petrol and diesel cars, we’re not surprised that emergency services are introducing the use of electric cars. In particular, the Skoda Enyaq iV is a fantastic electric car and should meet the requirements of our emergency services once converted. This is also a more affordable EV than the Tesla Model 3, making it a more sensible choice for a car fleet. That said, what do you think about electric cars being used by the emergency services?