Skoda Octavia vRS

[Plex]

The Skoda Octavia vRS is faster than a Golf GTI. Surprised? You shouldn�t be. The new Skoda Octavia vRS is virtually a Golf GTI in drag, using the same mechanical package in a longer and more aerodynamic body.





It means the vRS can outrun the GTI, just one digit short of the magic 150mph, whereas the Golf manages a mere 147mph. Yes, it�s all academic, and in the important sub-70mph range the lighter Golf has edge, but again it is tantalisingly close, with a 7.3 second 0-62mph time for the Czech contender. Significantly the Skoda doesn�t give ground in the chassis department either.



Rewind for a moment to consider the well-known Volkswagen group platform strategy. Take the same mechanical components, stick them in turn in a Golf, Octavia, three SEATs - Leon, Toledo and Altea - and the Audi A3 and you save yourself a massive part of your investment budget on each new car. Build your Octavia in the Czech Republic and you don�t have to pay the wage rates of all those expensive German employees either. So the Octavia vRS looks great value alongside the Golf GTi. At �17,500 it�s �2.5k cheaper than a 3dr GTI and �3k less than the directly comparable 5dr. Skoda Octavia vRS



Gunning the vRS up a winding Spanish mountain pass in the January sun, there is no way the Skoda is going to short change you. The steering is delightfully sharp, something of a rarity in these days of electric power steering systems. Cleverly, the power assistance lessens at high speeds so the steering weights up to give you more feel and confidence. The grip in corners is so prodigious that it�s extremely rare to get close to the limit. Sure our example has the optional 18-inch wheels rather than the regular 17 inchers, but the width is unchanged and so will be the grip. The way the suspension deals with bumps with those extra-big wheels was all the more impressive, for this is a sports hatch that rides exceptionally well too.

There�s 200bhp to play with too. That�s a decent number of horses and the 2-litre turbo feels just right as the needle spins around to the 6,5000rpm limit to a sharp crackle from the exhaust. But what�s equally important, as every Impreza WRX or Mitsubishi Evo owner will tell you, is that a turbo charger means there is a massive depth of torque available at pretty much any engine speed. After a very short while the driver will come to appreciate that it�s this torque that allows such instant access to the performance, no matter which of the six gears you are in. Have no doubt about it; the Octavia vRS is a very rapid machine indeed.


It�s also head and shoulders above rivals in terms of everyday practicality. There�s a more rear legroom than most and the luggage space in the hatchback is enormous. Then there is the estate option. Skoda claims it has a better load volume than the 5 Series Touring and is only a tad short of the capacity of a Volvo V70. The Octavia vRS estate is also arguably better looking than the hatch, the latter with an ugly wing on the boot lid. Inside either there are some unique vRS touches, including great, massively support seats, decent leather for the wheel and gearlever and some extra alloy trim on the dashboard and pedals. You get a six CD autochanger and climate control as standard too. Green brake callipers have become a bit of Skoda vRS thing, though they still look odd to me.



The downsides of this most powerful ever road going Skoda are few but important. Curtain airbags are an extra where they really should be standard. And is it really the bargain it first seems? �3,000 is a useful saving over the Golf GTi, a car that the Octavia vRS is genuinely the equal of. But two or three years down the line that saving is likely to have been swallowed up by the faster depreciation of the Skoda.

Forget that, though. Buy the Octavia for what it offers and you�ll end up with a cracking, practical hatchback. Or an even tastier estate.

[Yeo]

Nice.
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[Plex]

would be interested to see if skoda getting into the aftermarket parts for their cars, somehow i feel their parts will be VW or Audi for turbo upgrades..

[NickJr.]

all of the skoda aftermarket parts are the same as the VW's and Audi's... the only differences are in the badging. NEUSPEED supports their applications
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