Skoda Octavia long term review final report

Autocar India, over the years, has run numerous versions of the Skoda Octavia or Laura. First came the soda-green Laura TSi in 2009; then in 2013, we ran a canary-yellow Laura RS; and in 2014, we’ve had this car — a silver Octavia petrol — for a few months. Over the years, our respect and love for the car has only grown. A lot of this has to do with the engine under the hood, the brilliant petrol EA888, a common factor in all three cars. We’ve also always loved the Octy’s combination of practicality and comfort, its grown-up driving manners and the fact that this car has always delivered massive value for money. Is there a car out there in the Rs 20-40 lakh band that gives you more pound for pound?

The new Octavia, however, was quite a departure from the earlier Laura. Bigger, but not built as tough, the new lighter car was designed to help lower CO2 emissions. It took a while for us to take to our new longterm car. We initially missed the Laura’s slightly more compact dimensions, we missed its more solid build and that brilliant six-speed manual gearbox was missed too.

But as the weeks passed, the new car soon got under our skin. Space and comfort struck the first chord. The Octavia’s big seats and generous cabin space made long drives a pleasure rather than a pain. And what helped tremendously was the fact that the car with its long wheelbase and perfectly setup suspension rode so well. I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve thought, “Thankfully we’ve got the Octavia for the long trudge back home tonight”, especially after a dawn-to-dusk shoot somewhere in the wild, 150 or so kilometres outside Mumbai.