Skoda Octavia: An old favourite ticks all the boxes 

There is an old Irish proverb referencing achievement which goes along the lines of ‘praise the ripe field and not the green corn'. 

A proverb is generally accepted to be a short, pithy, and traditional phrase which expresses either an accepted truth or a piece of advice and it can be nominally applied to any number of things, occasions, or people.

In this case I have dredged this old Irish one up to highlight something many people — especially those of an automotive bent — seem to be missing about the mass rush to the electrification of our vehicular lives as hived upon us by environmentalists, do-gooders, the well-intentioned, and Big Auto.

Right now in the marketplace, there are a number of cars powered by internal combustion engines, be they diesel or petrol, which have benefited hugely from the application of new technologies to make them cleaner and less environmentally harmful than would have been imagined possible just a few short years ago.

Because of this, there are many people who, still unconvinced about the viability of the electric cars on offer right now, are still leaning towards what might be called the more traditional types of cars on sale.

Several brands are keeping their options open in this regard, offering these established variants while also stepping into the new realm of electric and plug-in hybrid offerings. Skoda is one such, what with its customary choice of petrols and diesels as well as a raft of forthcoming ‘leccies’ and PHEVs.

It is interesting to note too when talking about Skoda, in particular, that its masters in Germany (the company is owned by VW) have decided that plants it has built in India and Asia which were intended for other uses are now being handed over to Skoda to allow it build diesel and petrol cars for markets where the electric options are not yet critical.

This will allow Skoda, and, by association, the greater VW Group, to continue to profit from selling cars which in other markets might be perceived to be past their sell-by date.

In the meantime, though, Skoda will also concentrate on its ‘home’ markets across Europe where it will sell a mixture of time-honoured ICE cars and a new generation of electrics. 

The company’s Enyaq iV electric has already sold out its Irish allocation on pre-orders, bolstering the brand’s already solid fourth place in the Irish sales charts.

While drawing new customers to its established base is always a necessary component of successful and sustained growth, keeping your existing punters happy also has to be part of the mix.

Natural 'everyman' appeal

That being the case, the car we test this week is very much an old favourite with Irish punters and a model variant of one of this country’s most popular car of the last two decades, the Octavia.

This is a car which has natural ‘everyman’ appeal, but derivative versions such as the vRS strain have also built a strong customer base.

And it is the diesel version of the new vRS that we try this week — a car which has taken the idea of a performance diesel to new heights since it was first seen in 2006 with the second generation of the Octavia. The sporty diesel variant was an instant success.

The fourth-generation Octavia, which is an excellent car, by the way, was unveiled late last year and at the launch there was considerable anticipation that the new petrol and diesel vRS versions would provide discerning punters with the above-and-beyond thrills they crave.

Now, it must be admitted that ‘hot’ diesels are not exactly to everyone’s taste and the genre is something of a niche thing. VW produced a few Golf GTDs down the years which did well and there have been one or two others such as the Focus ST TDCi and the oil-burning SEAT Leon FR, but in popularity terms — and certainly here in Ireland — the Skoda has been the hands-down winner.

Having driven the new one, I expect it will continue to be the pacesetter as a good-looking, ferociously equipped, and fast option.

That it is an excellent buying choice because of value retention and nailed-on second-hand demand only adds to the argument in its favour.

While Skoda will also be plugging the petrol and PHEV vRS models (both of which are considerably quicker than the diesel), oddly, it is the supposed lesser of the genre which has curried most favour with the buying public here.

The diesel vRS comes with the same engine as is in the Golf GTD and that means a turbocharged four-pot outputting some 197 bhp and with a claimed 7.4-second 0-100km/h time and a top speed of 249km/h.

One of those figures did seem strange to me, however. The 0-100km/h time seemed tardy — very tardy indeed from what I experienced. 

Car manufacturers are not generally known for underplaying their cars’ potential, but in this instance, it seemed to me, Skoda was definitely undervaluing the quickness of this thing.

The turbodiesel was never going to be a land-speed record machine, but just on gut feeling — I didn’t have a stopwatch handy — it felt more like a sub-seven second car to me, but that’s of little real concern. What was of more interest was that it took just seven seconds to make the jump from 50 to 110km/h.

That indicates a serious mid-range ass-kicking ability and, in truth, the vRS was pretty astonishing in that regard. Indeed, the strength of the engine (aside altogether from its 5.0 l/100km — 56 mpg — frugality) was that mid-range punch.

At one point early in my time with the car, I felt it really was oversteering terribly and I made a note to mark down the trait. Then I looked at the speedo and I was doing nearly…. Well, let’s just say, a lot. Without wishing to attract the forces of law, the thing was so fast, it was no wonder it was understeering.

Without any of the limited slip diff trickery or the electronic wizardry so many hot hatches employ these days to keep them planted, this vRS was remarkably sorted on the handling front, even if the ride was crashy and harsh when you were on it.  Sure you tended to find things a little exciting at the edge, but the thing was you reached the edge much quicker than you could have anticipated.

With a little self-control, the vRS was a brilliant steer and a delight to live with — even on our mainly sub-standard roads. And I loved the deep, rumbling burble the engine produced and I couldn’t care less if it was acoustically manipulated. It was a delightful added characteristic.

As for the interior, you can expect the usual ridiculous Octavia spaciousness — front, rear, and boot — while the sporty seating was excellent, as was the standard level of kit, including a truly excellent infotainment system. The decor too was well up to scratch.

So what we have here is probably something of an anachronism: An amazingly fast and pliable (and economic) diesel which is a lot more clean than anyone could imagine (just 131 g/km) and which is also a very workable family saloon — albeit with considerable teeth.

That makes it a ripe field and not green corn.

— Many thanks to Justin and the team at Galvins of Bandon for their help with this review.

Colley's verdict

• Cost: From €42,245
• Engine: A very potent two litre diesel
• Specification: Top notch
• Overall verdict: Might be a slight dinosaur in the current climate, but if it is, it’s a Velociraptor (the quick one)
• Star rating: ****