“Did you get the note about fuel?”, said the delivery driver of that morning’s press car. “99 RON only, got it” I replied.
This is an exchange often limited to the realms of exotic sports cars arriving, think something like a Porsche 911 GT3 or a Maserati MC20. It once happened for an Abarth 124 GT. Never, though, would you have expected it just by looking at today’s car.
Indeed, as with any press car booking, I’d received a bunch of documents beforehand for “Skoda – Superb Estate L&K 2.0TSI 280PS* 4×4 DSG”. Among those was one corresponding to that asterisk. “Please note, that should you need to refuel the Superb Sleeper, please only use 99 Octane fuel,” it read. “For optimal performance, please ensure the vehicle is in ‘Sport’ Mode when testing.”
You’d need a very keen eye to understand why. That, or you’d already read the name of the car in the headline. Or on the line before this. Or watched Jonny Smith review this very car on the Late Brake Show about a week before I had it (yes, people of the internet, I know he drove it. You can stop telling me).
While yes, on the surface and still at its core, this is a Skoda Superb L&K, there is more to it than that. If you’re keen-eyed, you’ll spot the 50mm lowered ride height courtesy of KW coilover suspension, or the red callipers on the gigantic six-piston AP brakes on the front axle, neatly tucked behind OEM 19-inch alloy wheels. Those tell you of a car hiding more. Much more.
Skoda’s press office handed off this Superb to the boffins at UK tuner RE Performance which once built a Bonneville-prepped Superb capable of a recorded 227mph. So they know what they’re doing.
Along with those chassis upgrades, the firm went to town on the 2.0-litre EA888 engine. That included a gigantic turbocharger, an upgraded fuel system plus a new induction system along with an uprated intercooler from Do88 Performance.
The result? 470bhp and 488lb ft of torque. In a practically stock-looking, Royal Green Skoda Superb Estate.
Any unassuming driver or passenger would know something’s quite unusual on startup. Though the stock exhaust backbox has been retained to keep the sleeper look and somewhat mute the sound, powering the car up reveals an extra bit of throatiness to the engine at idle.
Skoda Super Sleeper Edition, rear 3/4, driving
Not so much the roar of a tiger in the midst of danger, but rather its purr at rest. Well, if tigers could purr, anyway (guess who just discovered a new fact).
Bimbling around doesn’t reveal the secrets of the Superb, either. Yes, you do notice a little bit of extra turbo wastegate whoosh but there’s little else to suggest there’s more to this than a pleasant Superb.
Despite the lower, slightly harsher ride, it’s neatly set up to deal with coarser UK roads, remains compliant around town and is capable of taking on speed bumps without issue. The new tuning doesn’t affect the DSG’s behaviour at civil speeds, either, so progression is smooth.
Skoda Super Sleeper Edition, wheels
It’s when things get a bit more, shall we say, ‘national speed limit road’ that the true personality of the Skoda Superb Sleeper is revealed. Put your foot down, and it’s as though the Airbus A380’s Rolls-Royce engine hanging out of the 660-litre boot has just been awakened.
A surge of power rather than a harsh delivery comes, and it never seems to stop coming – right up to the 6,000rpm redline. Even when you expect it, knowing the stats of the car and the tech underneath, your mind still doesn’t quite know how to process it. Nor will a passerby who sees it here, there and then gone.
Yet, don’t mistake it for some bonafide transformed sports car in estate car drag. Cornering is certainly sharper thanks to the coilovers and ultra-grippy Yokohama tyres but still does feel like you’re helming a 1.7-tonne Czech family car because, well, you are.
Skoda Super Sleeper Edition, interior
The main drawback of the experience lies in the DSG, though. That hasn’t been reworked to cope with the power, and its shortcomings are a little exposed as a result. It takes a moment for it to fully engage if you fancy a sudden sprint and when you are on it and frequently varying through its ratios, the seven-speed does hang on a little too long. It’s a reminder that though a very well-engineered one, it’s still an aftermarket modified car.
Which is something that will remain. This was never a signal of production, something to test the waters with the media before Skoda does the unthinkable or some kind of wild vRS teaser. No, this was a beautiful, tan-leathered send-off to the fourth-generation Skoda Superb.
You could say it’s a… brilliant way to say goodbye, but it’s sadly one that’ll only be reserved for scruffy journalists fortunate enough to have access to such things. That said, now that RE Performance has built one, we’re sure it wouldn’t mind doing another if you had the cash and desire. Let us know if you’re bonkers enough to do it.