A quick look at the Skoda Octavia

With well over five million units sold till date, the Octavia is Skoda’s best-selling and most popular model in the world. The first-generation Skoda Octavia made its appearance in the international car scene back in the end of 1996, and it was sold as a sedan and also in station wagon avatars. The C-segment Octavia used the Volkswagen Group’s PQ34 platform in its construction, which was also being used to underpin cars such as the Mark I Audi A3 and Mark IV VW Golf. The second iteration of the Skoda Octavia arrived in 2004 with an updated platform, new design, and several other quality and technological improvements. This one was finally eclipsed by the outgoing, third-generation model which launched in 2013, now underpinned by the modern MQB architecture from the VW Group.

In several countries, the new-gen Skoda Octavia continues to be sold in sedan and station wagon body types, though that doesn’t apply to markets such as the UAE. Here, the Skoda Octavia sedan goes up against some of the very best such as the Toyota Camry, Honda Accord, Hyundai Sonata, and Volkswagen Jetta.

Exterior

Since its first appearance over twenty years ago, the Skoda Octavia has grown in size -- it’s now 4.670 meters long, 1.814 meters wide and 1.461 meters tall at the roof. Its wheelbase of 2.686 meters is also an improvement over its predecessor, so is its 590-liter boot. Akin to some of its VW counterparts, the overall exterior styling of the Skoda Octavia is mellow and doesn’t particularly excite or intrigue in any way. The Octavia’s design mostly consists of straight but crisp lines, soft yet non-controversial contours and ridges -- its appearance may not blow your socks off, but it certainly won’t offend, either. The front incorporates the marque’s new grille design that’s now sandwiched between rakish, split headlamps with their individual LED DRL elements and a jutting bumper with its horizontally-oriented fog lamps and honeycomb-styled air intake.

The no-nonsense side profile of the Octavia sedan comes with bold-looking 18-inch alloy rims, prominent fender flares, distinctive mid-body character line, and an impressive amount of ground clearance. Around the back, the Octavia’s simplistic design equates to squared and compact tail lamps, a sculpted tailgate and rear bumper. Generally speaking, while the latest-gen Skoda Octavia might not make you salivate looking at it, its functional yet under-the-radar styling certainly has its takers.

Interior

The interior of the Skoda Octavia gets several things right: it’s spacious, well-built, ergonomic, practical, and there are several smart features and safety equipment. Having said all that, this cabin is certainly isn’t particularly gorgeous or interesting. In terms of conveniences, the Octavia can be had with dual-zone automatic climate control with rear vents, cooled glove compartment, electric sunroof, leather seats, built-in wastebasket, 8-speaker sound system, cruise control, automatic headlamps, rain-sensing windshield wipers, touchscreen multimedia head unit, and parking sensors with a reversing camera.

The Skoda Octavia boasts a 5-star EURO NCAP safety rating, an can be has with at least six airbags, Anti-lock Braking System (ABS) with Electronic Brake-force Distribution (EBD) and Brake Assist (BA), driver fatigue detection, collision detection, and ISOFIX anchor points.

Engine and performance

The 1.4-liter four-popper petrol motor in the Skoda Octavia churns out 140hp and 250Nm of peak torque. It drives the front wheels via a 7-speed DSG automatic gearbox, pulling the Octavia from naught to 100 km/h in a brisk 8.5 seconds and on to a top whack of 215 km/h. The Octavia’s frugal powertrain can also help you attain up to 5.2 L/100 km, which is a really commendable figure considering this sedan’s size.

Verdict

Available in two trim options, the Skoda Octavia is priced from between AED 66,000 to AED 91,000.