My ENYAQ iV: it turns heads wherever we go

Ørjan Langvik, a 45-year-old Norwegian plumber, didn’t choose just any ENYAQ iV. His red electric stunner is perhaps the most customised electric car in Scandinavia.

10. 2. 2022 eMobility

Ørjan and his wife Elin have had their ŠKODA ENYAQ SPORTLINE iV 80 since June and have driven it around 16,000 kilometres so far. At first they opted for the grey Quartz colour, but as soon as ŠKODA announced the SPORTLINE version, they immediately changed their initial order to the red Velvet.

“We fell in love with the design as soon as the first articles about it appeared. We needed a new car with a better range and a big boot. When pre-orders started, we didn’t hesitate. Still, we had to wait a few months – because here in Norway there was a lot of interest in the ENYAQ iV. When we first got the chance to see it at a local dealership, we knew we had made the right decision. We found the SPORTLINE to have a more attractive design and also sport seats for more comfort. The interior is all black and there’s no chrome on the outside,” Ørjan beings his paean to his ENYAQ SPORTLINE iV.

He and his wife mainly use the car for shopping, jaunts and visiting family and friends. They also needed a large boot for their 50kg dog Leo. And they use the trailer hitch quite a lot.

Ørjan also has experience with other ŠKODA models – he drove a FABIA COMBI for eight years. Before that, he had an older electric car with a 22 kWh battery, so its range was very limited and the car had to be charged every night. His ENYAQ iV, however, only needs to be charged about once a week with a home charger.

“We bought our first electric car in 2018, mainly because the government was building a lot of toll stations around our cities and on the highways for internal combustion engine cars. For a while it was free to drive an electric car, but now the fees are 50 per cent for 75 trips a month, and the rest is free,” he explains. The range of their previous car was about 130 kilometres, which is night and day compared to the more than 520 kilometres offered by the ENYAQ iV. And there are a number of other benefits that go hand in hand with owning this car. According to Ørjan, the ENYAQ is much cheaper than a petrol car, mainly due to their home wallbox. “I rarely use public charging stations,” he admits. Owning an electric car reduces servicing and maintenance costs, and in Norway it also reduces road use charges, which includes ferries or free parking in some public places. Electric cars can also drive in public transport lanes.

Ørjan’s wife drives the car every day. “My wife loves the car. She no longer has any worries about charging, and the convenience is incomparably better than any other car she has driven. We each got our own key and the seats and mirrors automatically adjust to our personal settings. We also have another ŠKODA owner in the family. My father-in-law drives an OCTAVIA. He tried out our car in the first week, and guess what: now he wants to buy an ENYAQ iV too. He was very impressed,” says the plumber from Sandnes in southwest Norway.

Ørjan Langvik with his ŠKODA ENYAQ SPORTLINE iV

According to Ørjan, one downside of the electric car can be that the charging infrastructure is still not optimally developed and evenly distributed across the country. This increases the likelihood of getting stuck in a queue for a charging point, especially in the summer when everyone is on holiday, but this doesn’t worry him too much as he had a home charger installed when he bought his first electric car. “99 per cent of the time we charge at home. It’s much cheaper. The monthly electricity bill is not that much higher than it used to be. The savings are much higher and there are no exhaust fumes,” he says.

A network of charging stations where you can use POWERPASS

So far, it hasn’t happened that the ENYAQ iV ran out of power while on the road, but he admits that he once drained the battery to 3 per cent as a test, because he wanted to see how long it would take to fully recharge. With a 7.7-kilowatt charger, it took about 11 hours.

As an experienced electric car driver, does Ørjan have any tips for new users? “Read the user manual and take the time to familiarise yourself with all the menus and sub-menus. And become a member of one of the several ENYAQ iV Facebook groups and online electric car forums where you can find tips and user experiences from other owners,” he advises.

Ørjan concludes the story of his life as an electric car owner with a few stories that really illustrate that owning this car brings an avalanche of positive effects. “When we went to pick up the car, the dealer told us it was the most beautiful ŠKODA they had ever sold. A few employees even came to compliment the car. Our family and friends also like it, and the looks and modifications I’ve made cause heads to turn wherever we go. Once we were at a friend’s wedding and I was on driving duty the whole evening. Coincidentally, the bride’s brother also ordered an ENYAQ iV, but in black. When they saw ours, he and his wife changed their minds and first thing Monday morning went down to their local dealer to change the colour to red Velvet and the SPORTLINE option!” he says, smiling proudly.

Electric jewel

Ørjan’s ENYAQ iV is no ordinary car. When you ask Ørjan what modifications he has made, he starts walking around the car, pointing and demonstrating. The list is quite long – and the result is sporty and alluring. The car has no chrome on the exterior, it’s all black and red. It also has a personalised number plate reading ENYAQEN, which means ENYAQ iV in Norwegian. “I put 15 per cent tinted film on the front windows, tinted the headlights and taillights and changed the emblem on the bonnet from chrome and black to black and red. I applied paint protection film to all the doors and the rear bumper and boot; the side mirrors have been coated in carbon film and the head-up display is similarly protected as well. The car has custom-made 21-inch carbon-graphite rims with red valve caps,” Ørjan points out. Due to the harsh Norwegian climate, the car has been endowed with long-lasting protection for the paintwork and chassis. Ørjan also installed front and rear dash cameras to record what’s happening around the car, and a mobile broadband router for internet connectivity. Last but not least, he installed a ŠKODA ENYAQ iV Plug & Play audio upgrade with amplifier and subwoofer.