Giving the well-received Skoda Octavia a mild facelift, the Czech carmaker has added a new lease of life to the car. Priced at Rs 15.49 lakh onwards, the car competes with other saloons like the Elantra, Corolla, Jetta, etc.
But unlike its competitors, the VW MQB-based car has a unique hatchback-style boot, which scores high in accessibility and space. The top-quality cabin is as spacious as before, but also gets a new eight-inch touchscreen display, ambient lighting, up to eight airbags, panoramic sunroof, etc.
Engine options remain unchanged (1.4 TSI, 1.8 TSI, and 2.0 TDI), and only the 1.8 TSI engined model gets a multilink suspension setup at the rear. That aside, there’s Multi Collision Braking, handsfree parking, fatigue alert, etc. The car is front-wheel drive (one of the best ones at that), and is available with both manual (on the 1.4 TSI and 2.0 TDI) and automatic (1.8 TSI and 2.0 TDI) gearbox options.
There are three trim levels available: Ambition, Style, and Style Plus. The base variant gets four airbags, a 6.5-inch infotainment system, reverse parking sensors, 16-inch alloy wheels. Moving up the trim level, and the Style variant gets two more airbags, a larger touchscreen display, cornering lights, rear view camera, etc. The fully specified Style Plus gets aforementioned features, in addition to those available on the lesser trims.
Elsewhere, or rather more importantly, the car now gets a new front-end. Quad headlamps differentiate it from the older car, while the LED tail lamps add to the sharp styling. The jury is out on the new styling, but from the pricing perspective and what it offers, the new Octavia looks like the car to consider when you’re in the market to buy one.
You can read Anubhav’s thoughts from the first drive review here
