The Škoda Roomster (Type 5J) is a small family car manufactured and marketed by Škoda Auto from 2006 to 2015 over a single generation with a single intermediate facelift. It has a five-door, five passenger, front-engine, front-wheel drive, high-roof design and has been described as a hatchback, an estate car, or a multi-purpose vehicle. Styled by Thomas Ingenlath and Peter Wouda, the Roomster premiered at the 2006 Geneva Motor Show) as the first car marketed after Volkswagen Group's takeover of Skoda, sharing the A4 (PQ34) platform and components with the second generation Škoda Fabia. Assembled at the Škoda factory in Kvasiny, Rychnov nad Kněžnou District, sales began in June 2006. A five-door, two-seater panel van variant launched in March 2007 as the Škoda Praktik, a name used previously on a panel van version of the Škoda Fabia Combi. In October 2015, development of the second generation Roomster begun, spy shots of the new Roomster were taken that month revealing that instead of designing a completely new model, the second generation Roomster was to be a rebadged Volkswagen Caddy. In December 2015, development of the second generation Roomster was scrapped so that they could focus on the upcoming Kodiaq mid-size crossover and another reason why development was cancelled is due to cost reasons, leaked images of the second generation Roomster without any camouflage were also spotted with an estimated 100 prototypes built before cancellation.

Overview

The Roomster is based on the concept car of the same name, announced in September 2003 at the Frankfurt Auto Show. The concept was slightly shorter – 4055 mm against 4205 mm – than the production model with a longer wheelbase – 2710 mm against 2617 mm, and featured a single rear sliding door on the passenger side, which was replaced by two conventionally-hinged swinging rear doors. The Roomster's cargo arrangement is marketed as VarioFlex, with 40–20–40 split rear seats that can move longitudinally or transversely (by removing the middle seat), recline up to 7°, fold forward — or be removed to form a flat load surface. The load surface can raised or lowered 250 mm. At launch, the Škoda Roomster used four-stroke engines from the Volkswagen Group. Petrol engines included the multi valve inline three cylinder 1.2-litre, with power initially DIN rated at 47 kW, but with launch of the second generation Fabia rated at 51 kW, followed by the 1.4-litre and 1.6-litre inline four-cylinder EA111 engines, with power of 63 kW and 77 kW respectively. The 1.6-litre was also available with a tiptronic six-speed automatic transmission. Diesel engine propulsion came from the inline three-cylinder 1.4 Turbocharged Direct Injection (TDI), with two power levels, base at 51 kW and "sport" at 59 kW. The top option was a four-cylinder 1.9 TDI, with 77 kW. The Roomster could combine standard body colours (both solid and metallic) with a white, black, or silver roof. An offroad-styled Scout trim level was introduced late 2006. A single piece panoramic sunroof is optional.

Facelift

A facelifted Roomster premiered at the 2010 Geneva Motor Show with a revised front fascia and fog lights. Inside, the facelift featured a revised steering wheel. Headlights elements were revised with their housing. 1.2-litre TSI turbocharged petrol engines came as a replacement of the previous 1.4- and 1.6-litre MPI engines, providing significant improvements to fuel consumption and corresponding reductions in emissions. The Aisin automatic transmission previously used was also replaced with the seven speed dual-clutch Direct-Shift Gearbox (DSG) (optional on 77 kW 1.2 TSi models), providing a reduction of over 30% in emissions for the 77 kW automatic derivative (compared to the previous 1.6-litre). Diesel engines were updated to the common rail system and four valve technology. The manufacturer's combined consumption for the Roomster GreenLine with brand new 55 kW, 1.2-litre, three cylinder diesel engine is 4.2 L/100 km, which is 109 g per km. The design of the Roomster Scout also evolved (front bumpers, front fog lights).

Related models

Skoda marketed from 2007 a five-door, two-seater panel van version of the Roomster called the Škoda Praktik (Typ 5J8). Its cargo space is 1605 mm long, 1016 mm wide (minimum), and 900 mm in height – giving a cargo load space of 1900 L, and a payload from 550 to 640 kg. It also includes a moveable internal load bulkhead, 'hidden' underfloor storage, anti-slip load bay floor covering with six lashing points, and full length roof rails. It was never sold in RHD markets. The model was targeted at Central and Eastern Europe. The Praktik was facelifted in 2010, as with the Roomster.

Engines

Overview of engines available for the Roomster (Typ 5J), incl. Praktik and facelifted model. Petrol engines Diesel engines