Skoda has emerged with one of its biggest haul of industry accolades in DieselCar Magazine’s annual Top 50 awards and that big bear the Kodiaq, the company’s superb 4x4, is among the prizes again.

The highest placed model in the DieselCar Top 50 was the Kodiaq, which finished fifth overall and took the Best Large SUV title.

DieselCar editor and publisher Ian Robertson said: “The Kodiaq is mighty close to being the perfect car.

“This five and seven seater is practical, comfortable and tough enough to revel in family life. That’s the basics covered, but get behind the wheel and you’ll also find the best interior in any ŠKODA so far, and a surprisingly rewarding driving experience.

“To top it all off, the Kodiaq offers great value for money, and ŠKODA owners rate the brand highly for customer satisfaction.”

As well as the Kodiaq the Skoda Superb, Octavia and Yeti models were among the DieselCar awards and this his latest round of honours adds to an impressive list of industry titles already won by ŠKODA models in 2017.

These include three 2017 WhatCar? Awards, a Fleet World Award for the Superb and DieselCar Used Car title, also for the Superb.

The Kodiaq, which is a seven seat 4x4 was launched in Berlin last autumn to which Skoda invited 800 guests from all over the world and it won its first award even before it reached the British roads.

It scooped the accolade for Best Car for Big Families as awarded by TopGear Magazine, a publication which doesn’t hand out its awards cheaply.

The magazine and the website were so impressed with the new Kodiaq, which is Skoda’s first ever seven-seater, that they named it Best Family Car in the title’s Best Cars in the World issue.

The Kodiaq has 24 different variants with four trim levels; S, SE, SE L, and a new Edition grade that celebrated the car’s arrival.

Prices start from just £21,495 with the launch range featuring five engine options, two and four-wheel drive, and a choice of manual or DSG gearboxes plus a 4x4 issue.

Among the many design highlights of the new Kodiaq are more than 30 features - seven of which are new. These include a number of family-friendly features such as electrically-activated child locks and special sleep headrests for rear seat passengers.

Other systems integrated into the Kodiaq include Front Assist - including City Emergency Brake (standard on all models), Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC), Lane Assist, Blind Spot Detect and Rear Traffic Alert. Safety systems include Driver Alert, Emergency Assist (DSG only), Crew Protect Assist, Multi-Collision Brake and Travel Assist with Traffic Sign Recognition.

The Kodiaq’s all-wheel-drive system with electronic control delivers exceptional traction, stability and driving safety in all conditions. Off-road mode can be selected by the simple touch of a button (optional for the all-wheel-drive versions in combination with Driving Mode Select.

Skoda is one of the longest-established vehicle production companies in the world and since 1895, the Czech headquarters has seen the production firstly of bicycles and then motorbikes and cars.

They produce six passenger car models: Citigo, Fabia, Rapid, Octavia, Yeti and Superb. The Kodiaq is the seventh.

In 2015 they produced more than one million vehicles to customers worldwide.

They operate at three locations in the Czech Republic, produces in China, Russia, Slovakia and India mainly through Group partnerships, as well as in Ukraine and Kazakhstan and employs over 25,800 people globally and is active in more than 100 markets.