Skoda Rapid interior
The Skoda Rapid has plenty of passenger space for the money, a large boot and an easy-to-use interior – it’s just a shame the dashboard’s good-looking plastics feel hard and cheap
Style
The Skoda Rapid’s dashboard has a straightforward layout that makes it easy to use. The plastics on the dashboard look just like the soft-touch ones you get in the more expensive Skoda Octavia, but in the Rapid they feel hard and cheap. That said, everything is well put together without any squeaks and rattles.
Entry-level S models’ interiors are particularly uninspiring because their dashboards are made from uniform black plastics and the seat upholstery is also very dark. At least the latter hides mucky stains.
SE models are little bit brighter thanks to use of some lighter colour materials on parts of the seats, less drab trim pieces,small flashes of shiny black plastics. The steering wheel and gear knob are trimmed in leather, so feel nicer than the rubberised versions in S models.
Sport models get shinier black plastics and also have sports seats with extra side support to keep you from sliding about in corners. Their upholstery is also black but has diamond shaped stitching.
That leaves SE L models, which give you some limited scope for customisation. You can choose from black or ivory-coloured upholstery and plastics – the latter brightens up the place significantly. Spend an extra £300 and you can also have body-hugging sports seats, although they only come with grey fabric.
The Skoda Rapid’s interior is a bit like an unfurnished flat – spacious but spartan
Infotainment
All Rapids come with Skoda’s basic Swing infotainment system as standard. It’s simple to use via its 6.5-inch colour touchscreen but features are limited to a Bluetooth phone connection, a USB connection, and an Aux plug – even DAB digital radio costs an extra £100.
The upgraded Amundsen infotainment system is a £575 option on all but entry-level S models. It has built-in sat-nav that’s easy to type a postcode into, but there’s no Apple CarPlay or Android Auto smartphone mirroring, although Mirrorlink – which is compatible with most Android smartphones – is included.
Like the Rapid’s infotainment, the stereo is pretty basic. All models come with a four-speaker unit that’s fine if you only listen to talk radio, but pretty useless for anything else. Annoyingly, there’s no option to upgrade.