Skoda students have have built another ute concept, this time based on the Superb wagon, as a homage to the brand's 130-year history.
Skoda has revealed another ute, this time based on the Superb large car but like the Kodiaq-based Mountiaq from 2019, the L&K 130 will likely never make it to a showroom to rival the Ford Ranger and Toyota HiLux.
The tenth Skoda Student Car, the Skoda L&K 130 is actually the third ute built by the brand’s trainees following the aforementioned Mountiaq and 2015’s Fabia-based Funstar.
According to Skoda, it took 28 students around 2000 hours to put the L&K 130 together, which pays homage to the brand’s origin as Laurin & Klement in 1895 as a bicycle manufacturer.
The L&K 130’s exterior white, red, gold, and black colour scheme is also a tribute to Skoda’s founders, with the motif also reflected in the cabin.
With the aim of building a support vehicle that could be used during professional bike races, like the Tour de France that Skoda supports, the students landed on a pick-up body style.
Taking the new-generation Skoda Superb plug-in hybrid wagon – or Estate, as it is known in Europe – as a basis, the roof from the C-pillar back has been removed with a new rear window installed just behind the rear seats.
The rear tray is retractable, extending for easier loading/unloading of cargo, and with two racks fitted, the bikes tilt upwards to preserves the original length of the Skoda Superb wagon.
A third bike can also be fitted to the roof, with the roof racks shortened to fit the new roofline.
Keeping the cyclist-friendly philosophy, the rear right door now slides to open to prevent dooring any incoming bicycle riders.
Skoda says it has not changed the powertrain of the Superb wagon, which in this case is a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV).
Fitted with a 1.5-litre turbo-petrol engine that produces 110kW/250Nm, it combines with an 85kW/330Nm electric motor for a total output of 150kW/350Nm.
Also fitted with a 25.7kWh battery, the Skoda Superb wagon in unmodified form is rated to travel 120km on electric power alone on the WLTP standard, though whether weight, and therefore range, in the L&K 130 changes this figure is unclear.
The L&K 130 is not the only unique Skoda model to celebrate its 130th anniversary, with the local division of the Czech brand bringing to market 130 Years Edition variants of its Karoq mid-size SUV and Elroq electric car.
Tung Nguyen has been in the automotive journalism industry for over a decade, cutting his teeth at various publications before finding himself at Drive in 2024. With experience in news, feature, review, and advice writing, as well as video presentation skills, Tung is a do-it-all content creator. Tung’s love of cars first started as a child watching Transformers on Saturday mornings, as well as countless hours on PlayStation’s Gran Turismo, meaning his dream car is a Nissan GT-R, with a Liberty Walk widebody kit, of course.
