This, ladies and gentlemen, is the brand new Skoda Octavia. And as you can see, it is as handsome as a car can be. It’s clean, sophisticated and full of purpose.
This, ladies and gentlemen, is the brand new Skoda Octavia. And as you can see, it is as handsome as a car can be. It’s clean, sophisticated and full of purpose. It is, visually, the quintessential European mid-sized saloon. Things are much the same inside as well. I speak this quietly but it has the build quality of an Audi. It’s all beautifully laid out and you get the impression that the engineers who did the interiors weren’t allowed to go on their lunch break until they got everything right. The high-end Elegance gets a sunroof, LED daytime running lamps and many more features. I also spent some quality time with two of its four drivetrain variants — the 2.0 diesel with a 6-speed DSG and the 1.4 petrol with a 6-speed manual. There’s also a 2.0 diesel with the 6-speed manual and a 1.8 petrol with a 7-speed DSG. First, the diesel DSG. The term ‘easy to drive,’ was certainly coined for this car. You turn it on, slot it in D and away you go. At low speeds, with the windows up, you can’t tell when it’s shifting gear. And as speeds build, you’ll find that you don’t need to stamp on the throttle to get more power — just a gentle squeeze will bring on a smooth downshift, albeit in a second or two. The chassis and suspension engineers must finally be allowed to go on their break because they’ve done an absolute stellar job. If I could, I’d shake every one of their hands because the balance between ride and handling is just sublime. This time, I’ll leave the figures aside because this drivetrain is about more than its numbers would suggest. It never feels underpowered unless you’re driving like a complete mental. Suffice to say that it won’t leave you wanting. On to the 1.4 petrol. This drivetrain is essentially carried over from the VW Jetta. It puts out 140bhp, 250Nm of torque and you get a slick 6-speed manual to play with. Being a small petrol means that the front end is lighter than the diesel. This also means that, by default, the steering is lighter. The only criticism I have of the diesel DSG is that the steering could have been heavier. And it’s a bit worse in the petrol. Also, I stalled the petrol quite a lot. And the turbo lag means that you have to keep working away at the gearbox to keep it in the power band. Honestly, putting that 1.4 petrol engine in this car is like putting Justin Bieber’s heart into Arnold Schwarzenegger and hoping for the best with two crossed fingers. But don’t worry, we’ll soon be bringing you a full review of the 1.8 turbo petrol. But what about competition Chevy’s Cruze VW’s Jetta Toyota’s Corolla Honda’s hopeless Accord Not a chance. The Octavia’s got what it takes to even worry Audi’s forthcoming A3, Merc’s A Class and BMW’s 1 Series... provided Skoda get the pricing right.
