Skoda Octavia vRS – performance and practicality

The Skoda Octavia vRS is a performance car with a difference. With hot-hatch dynamics, class-leading practicality and amazing levels of standard equipment, the new Octavia vRS offers outstanding driving pleasure without the drawbacks usually associated with sports motoring.

Powered by a state-of-the art 2.0-litre TFSI turbo engine, the Octavia vRS breaks new ground on many fronts. With an output of 200bhp, it’s the most powerful production car ever made by Skoda. It’s also the quickest with a top speed of 149mph and a 0-62mph time of just 7.3 seconds. And, with a price tag expected to be below that of all its class rivals, the Octavia vRS will deliver more bang per buck than any other car in the sector.

Characterised by deeper bumpers, a new boot spoiler for the hatchback and new ‘Zenith’ alloy wheels, the vRS is a striking addition to the Octavia range. The interior features new, figure-hugging sports seats along with aluminium-effect trim and a three-spoke sports steering wheel to enhance the sporty feel.

The vRS doesn’t just look the part. A host of engineering changes have been made to the car to ensure the vRS drives as well as it looks. Lessons learned in Skoda’s World Rally Championship programme have been put to good use in the pursuit of driving excellence. The body has been strengthened to increase torsional rigidity while the suspension has been modified to improve body control and cornering ability.

What really makes the Octavia vRS a unique proposition in the hot hatch market is that it delivers all this while still being a practical, everyday car. Both the hatchback and estate have large boots and cabins filled with innovative storage areas. After all, what’s the use of having a great performance car if you have to leave it in the driveway when you need to carry five passengers and their luggage? With the Octavia vRS, you really can have it all.

vRS – a badge with serious heritage

The new Octavia vRS continues a sporting tradition that dates back 100 years. Skoda has a rich motorsport history and has been successfully competing with its production cars since the mid-1930s. In fact, Skoda has been involved in motorsport longer than most manufacturers have been in existence.

The vRS badge? Well that first appeared in the mid-1970s on the famous Skoda 130 RS. An instant winner on the race tracks and rally stages of Europe, it twice won its class on the Monte Carlo rally and scored an impressive string of victories in the European Touring Car Championship.

The badge was reintroduced in 2000 when the Skoda Octavia vRS with a 1.8-litre 20 valve turbo engine generating 180bhp blasted onto the market. The car rapidly achieved cult status in the UK and remains a highly sought-after performance model on the used market.

Skoda doubled the size of its vRS range in 2003 with the arrival of the Fabia vRS. Like the Octavia, the Fabia proved an instant hit thanks to its combination of performance, value for money and practicality. It was also the first diesel-engined car to be genuinely considered a hot-hatch – an achievement that still marks it out as unique.

Skoda’s commitment to the vRS brand is considerable. Working on the old adage that racing improves the breed, Skoda has been involved in the World Rally Championship (WRC) since its inception and continues to be a driving force in the sport today. Indeed, the current Fabia WRC car is such an exciting package that British rally legend and former world champion Colin McRae has been tempted out of retirement to drive one in this month’s Rally of Great Britain.