ŠKODA Superb

Image 1 of 1

By Paul Mack

Dispite being made famous as the location for the ABC TV series Seachange, Barwon heads has somehow managed to retain it's quiet beach front charm.

Few places along the Victorian coastline epitomise the lazy beachside holiday village like Barwon Heads. Immortalised as the setting for the fictional village in the ABC's Seachange TV series, Barwon Heads has managed to retain its quiet small town charm and picture postcard setting while slowly gaining a more sophisticated cafe culture.

But despite its growth and the fame that came with its regular appearance on the small screen, there remains just one main shopping street and one pub ensuring Barwon Heads is still small enough to maintain its cosy atmosphere while also being able to handle the summer crowds. And being just over an hour and a half's drive southwest of Melbourne, it also makes a great Sunday Drive destination.

Whether it is to swim in the calm sheltered waters of the river estuary or take to the surf at the nearby Thirteenth Beach, drop in a fishing line, play a round of golf or simply sit in the cafe at the end of the historic jetty and watch the world slowly drift by, Barwon Heads is the perfect place to escape the city for a seachange, even if it is only for a day trip.

Getting there is not exactly challenging taking in long stretches of freeway so with economical cruising comfort high on our priority list and the need to load up for a day at the beach, Sunday Drive opted for ŠKODA's new Superb Wagon as perfectly appropriate transport.

The launch of the Superb Wagon earlierthis year followed on from the arrival of the VWowned Czech brand's Superb Sedan last year and is ŠKODA's first venture into the large wagon market. But like the sedan before it, it has made its debut with a superb product.

Already based on a fairly large car, the Superb Wagon uses its 4.8 metre length and 1.8 metre width to great advantage delivering a very large luggage capacity of 663 litres that can be expanded to a massive 1865 litre with the rear 60/40-split fold seat back folded flat.

At the same time, it still offers a vast accommodation for passengers with an abundance of leg and headroom in the rear for adult passengers making it a very appealing family transport alternative to the ubiquitous SUVs that populate our roads. Like the Sedan, the Superb Wagon offers a choice of three engines, two transmissions and two spec levels - Ambition and the top spec Elegance.

At the top of the range, the Superb Wagon is powered by a 191kW/350Nm 3.6-litre petrol V6 engine that drives all four wheels through a six-speed DSG twin-clutch automated manual gearbox. True to its European origins, the two front drive four cylinder powerplants are small capacity turbocha rged engines an entry level 118kW/250Nm 1.8-litre petrol mated to a seven-speed DSG and the mid-range 125kW/ 350Nm turbo diesel paired with the six-speed DSG. The latter was Sunday Drive's choice.

Prices excluding statutory and dealer costs start at $40,990 for the Ambition 1.81-51 rising to $57,990 for the V6 4x4 Elegance with our choice of the Elegance 2.0 TDI sitting mid-range at $49,990. From the outside, the Superb is a solid looking vehicle that commands the road with its presence and the subtle touches of chrome add a certain air of, well, elegance.

Plenty of thought has gone into integrating the large rear end luggage space too and with its sharply angled rear hatch and slightly curved roof-line topped with aluminium roof rails, it actually appears quite sleek and sporty looking.

There is no denying the size of the car though and this is especially noticeable when you slip inside into the broad comfortable and supportive driver's seat. Up front there is no shortage of space but as mentioned, it is in the rear that the real surprise lies with an abundance of leg and headroom to accommodate the largest of adults on a long journey and that massive carpeted luggage space.

But the ŠKODA Superb Wagon is no entrylevel load lugger as both from the driver's seat or any other position in the car, it exudes a real air of prestige with a high quality fit, finish and design. The dash is stylish and functional with all controls laid out for ergonomic and intuitive use and the soft touch materials, plastics and fine leather upholstery all add to the premium ambience.

As a prestige product, there is no shortage of standard kit either with climate control, cruise control, power windows, mirrors and front seats and a superb sounding touch-screen operated hard drive/CD player.

There are also plenty of neat detail touches that add a further air of luxury and convenience like the heated seats for both front and rear passengers, an automatic downward tilting passenger door mirror that looks to the kerb when reverse gear is engaged, and the extendable boot floor, which stretches over the rear bumper when the tailgate is open to make moving larger items around much easier.

Given its size, the standard front and rear parking sensors are welcome as is the Park Assist system that automatically takes over the steering duties when parallel parking.

Other worthwhile options include the electrically operated tailgate, keyless entry and start and the huge panoramic glass roof. Fire up the engine and there is a slight but unobtrusive diesel engine note at idle but plant the right the foot and the four-pot turbo unit reveals a smooth and refined powerplant that is not short of energy. Despite the car's size, the engine is more than strong enough for a smart and efficient power off the line with the sixspeed DSG providing smooth shift changes under moderate throttle. Mirroring its visual aesthetic, the car has a real solid air of purpose about it in the drive experience and with the maximum torque of 350Nm available from just 1750rpm, it has plenty of mid range grunt for easy and safe overtaking.

Heading southwest out of Melbourne on the Ml, the ride was on the firm side but more than supple enough to soak up any harsh ruts created by recent roadworks ensuring a comfortable and serene quality to the ride.

So with the cruise control locked on, the stereo turned up and the climate control set for optimum comfort, Sunday Drive cruised on towards Geelong.

Passing through Geelong, we turned southeast onto the B110 that leads to Point Lonsdale and again, although the road was of a coarser surface than the freeway, the ride remained comfortable and there was little in the way of noise to penetrate the quiet calm of the cabin.

Turning south onto the Wallington-Ocean Grove Road we were given the opportunity to push the Superb Wagon through a few bends and through the tighter corners, body movement was minimal and well controlled with the car feeling very solid on the road, delivering a secure and confidence inspiring drive.

Despite the large load space on the rear, the car was very balanced with good direct steering and without glancing rearwards, you could as easily have been driving the Superb Sedan. Overtaking slower moving traffic was easy with ample mid-range torque on tap and all decent thrust of the accelerator pedal and the smooth DSG box quickly responded dropping a ratio or two to help the car surge forward with confidence.

Through Ocean Grove, we turned southwest onto the C129 and followed it along the edge of the Barwon River and onto Barwon Heads.

There is currently some major road work going on surrounding the bridge that crosses the river - which having been built in 1927 is Victoria's longest wooden bridge - but pass the heavy machinery and you find yourself nestled in the sleepy coastal atmosphere of Barwon Heads.

If you are after something to eat, there are plenty of good cafes along the main street but the best place to sit and relax and soak up the setting is The Heads. Sitting at the end of the jetty that juts into the estuary, it was the old cool stores adjacent that featured as Diver Dan's shack in Seachange.

You can also dangle a line off the end of the jetty, swim at the nearby beach that stretches west towards the bluff or simply sit and relax and watch the seagulls fly by.

If you are after something a little more active, the local area is also home to a couple of top notch golf courses with the Barwon Heads course consistently rated among Australia's best. While not especially long, the course tests golfers of all standards with cleverly positioned hazards, subtle slopes and greens, along with challenging tree positions.

The other course is the 36-hole Thirteenth Beach complex that is also ranked in the top 50 courses in Australia. It offers golfers real variety, with several holes on the highly rated Beach Course running parallel to the coastline, with just the dunes as a buffer between golfers and board riders. The Creek Course, designed by Nick Faldo, is more of a parkland style, set among cypresses and pines.

However we had driving of a different nature on the agenda and from Barwon Heads, we headed west along 13th Beach Road as it follows the coastline before turning north onto Black Rock Road, to join the C121 as it skirts west around the marshlands surrounding Lake Connewarre.

After winding through the wide sweeping bends with the Superb Wagon again proving far more athletic and agile than you might expect of a large family wagon, we continued on into Geelong and back onto the M1 for the comfortable cruise back to Melbourne.

Barwon Heads offers plenty for an active Sunday Drive but the beauty of this small coastal hamlet is its relaxed pace making it a perfect escape for a day out to recharge the batteries and get ready for the working week.

And with the ŠKODA Superb Wagon providing an abundance of space to load up the family and everything you might need for a day out, a premium ambience, economical performance and solid driving dynamics, it makes for an equally relaxed, cruisy and comfortable way of getting there.