By far Skoda's most popular car, the Octavia received a much-disputed facelift towards the end of last year when the designers from Mladá Boleslav sliced the headlights. The decision was taken to make the "heart of the brand" stand out from the crowd, so that people would be able to distinguish it from the cheaper Rapid and the flagship Superb. Well... All we have to say is that it worked, but not necessarily in a good way. Truth be told, the odd headlight arrangement looks way better in real life than it does in images, or at least that's what I think.
Seen here are the pricier versions of the extensive Octavia family, the sporty RS and the rugged Scout. The former is more powerful than ever, now with standard 230 horsepower coming from the familiar 2.0 TSI engine shared with other MQB-based models, such as the closely related VW Golf GTI. At an additional cost, buyers are able to get the RS 245 version, which is the strongest and fastest production Octavia ever made: 0-62 mph (0-100 kph) takes 6.6 seconds and top speed is electronically capped at 155 mph (250 kph).
We shouldn't neglect the diesel, a 2.0 TDI with its 380 Nm of torque and the optional all-wheel drive. As with the pre-facelift variant, the TSI-powered Skoda Octavia RS sadly can't be had with AWD.
As for the wagon-only Scout, the all-rounder comes as standard with the grippy AWD setup and sits higher than the other versions of the range. The Audi-made 1.8 TSI with 180 hp can be found under the hood of this version and it's hooked up to a six-speed DSG as standard. A gasoline-powered Octavia Scout is somewhat of a rare breed considering most people go with the 2.0 TDI. It can be had in 150 hp & 184 hp flavors and both are linked to a six-speed DSG, but the base version of the diesel is also available with a new seven-speed DSG offered on the aforementioned RS 245 as well.
Both the Octavia RS and Scout come with a multi-link rear axle, as it's the case with all AWD-fitted Octavias and the ones powered by the aforementioned 1.8 TSI engine. In addition, the thrifty (and rather rare) G-Tec model running on compressed natural gas (CNG) also has the independent rear suspension, but that version is not available in all of the Octavia's markets. With the mid-cycle refresh, all Octavias equipped with independent rear suspension have received a 30-mm wider rear axle, while the cheaper ones have been extended by 20 mm between the two rear wheels.
If you want to refresh your memory about all of the Octavia's technical specs in these two trims, check out the press release below.
