First Drive: Škoda Octavia & Roomster

Review by Feann Torr - 10/October/2007

When I was a lad there were a lot of jokes about Skoda. One of them went something like this: What do you do if a Skoda overtakes you? Walk a bit faster. Not very witty that one, but it certainly captured the public feeling towards Skoda vehicles in the '70s and '80s.

But that was then - this is now. Having just driven the new and improved cars, I can honestly say that the Skoda jokes will have be put on hold for now. Even the most cynical among us would be hard pressed to fling insults at the two cars being launched in Australia. They are creative and, well, one of them at least is remarkably quick.

In recent times, Skoda has reinvented itself and with aid of the Volkswagen Group, which bought the company in 2000, has become very successful in Europe. In fact, Skoda is one of the fastest growing brands in Germany and is the company's most lucrative market today, followed by the Czech Republic, and then the UK.

Skoda has entered the Australian marketplace with two new models - the Octavia and Roomster. The first is a mid sized car and the second model is a small people mover. The Octavia is nothing dramatically new, but the Roomster certainly grabs your attention with its tallboy looks and innovative interior.

The Skoda of today is unlike the company that last sold cars here in 1983. It's a European brand with European levels of design, fit and finish, but can be considered a bona fide rival for the cheaper Japanese end of the market when you look at the price tag. Jutta Dierks, MD of the Volkswagen Group in Australia, said that the launch of the Skoda brand in Australia was a momentous event for the company. "This is a very important day for Volkswagen and VW Group Australia, the official Skoda importer for Australia."

She added that launching an entirely new brand in one of the world's most competitive new car markets was one of the most rewarding milestones of her career. "We have worked hard for it and I'm really excited about what the brand can do. We have a clean sheet now, to come into a highly competitive market and they want to prove a point."

Many people relate the Czech republic with its medieval capital Prague, tennis ace Ivan Lendl, their top flight FIFA football team and perhaps some of the world's most beautiful super models. Now you can now add a fully fledged car maker to the list:

Skoda Roomster: The first leg of the Skoda launch had the gathered Australian motoring media eyeing off a garage full of Roomsters, and I'll be honest, I thought they looked odd. Now, having spend some time with the Skoda Roomster, I still think they look a bit odd yet in a stylish and somewhat endearing way.

The design will be one of the Roomster's biggest talking points and people will ask what it is, and what does it do? Well, it's got a van-like body but is very much a passenger car, with seating for five people and an impressive amount of rear seat room and a large boot. 

Asked about the new Roomster, Jutta Dierks described it as funky but functional. She said the vehicle was designed not to suit a certain car type or genre, but was designed for people, for families. "It has nothing to do with the designers... [instead] they find out what is nice for the people who drive the cars. It's a unique approach."

With a smooth European front end design the Roomster's face seems to work well, as do the aviation-inspired Saab-esque front windows that contrast with the much larger rear doors and windows. At first it looked a bit weird with these mis-matched windows and high roof, but after a few days the car started to grow on me. Call me crazy, but I actually think it looks pretty cool now.

Sitting inside the Roomster, there's a real sense of space thanks to the tall body and high roofline. The rear doors are much larger than the front doors with cleverly placed handles that make getting in and out of the rear seat effortless and it's the little details like this that make you smile at the Czech design.

Some of the Roomsters other features include twin glove boxes, an iPod/MP3 audio jack, air conditioning, six airbags and ESP as standard, lap sash seat belts and head restraints for all passengers and a full sized spare wheel. But the main highlight is the Varioflex seating.

The three rear seats can be reclined slightly if the back passengers want to snooze, plus they can slide fore and aft and have a 40/20/40 split folding function. Furthermore, the impressive (for a small car) 450 litre boot space expands to 1555 litres when the seats are folded forward, which takes about 12 seconds to do. It's a very easy-to-use folding system. Better yet, the seats can be completely removed by flicking simple catches, which expands boot space to a whopping 1780 litres, comparable to some large wagons.

Though we didn't have a bicycle to test the theory, we reckon it'd fit a full sized bike without needing the removal of any wheels, such is the cavernous cargo area in the Roomster.

The Roomster is doing big business in Europe because of its compact size, large interior and versatile layout. Priced from $26,990 for the 5-speed manual petrol model, the Skoda Roomster doesn't really have any direct rivals in Australia. Skoda used the Renault Scenic as an example competitor, and also included vehicles like the Honda Civic and Subaru Impreza but its van body and passenger car interior - not to mention the quirky styling - ensure that the vehicle will stand out of the crowd.

Though it looks like a small van, it drives like a car. Powered by either a frugal 1.6-litre petrol engine or a 1.9-litre turbo diesel mill the Roomster drives quite well. It's no sports car, but provides ample power for the duties it will tasked with.

The 1.6-litre petrol engine outputs 77kW of power which works well with the 5-speed manual and can be coaxed along at a fair clip. The dash plastics and interior layout are easy on the eyes: there's a two-tone dashboard, classy looking dials and colourful seats. 'Jazzy' was a word that sprung to mind when looking at the interior for the first time.

It has good levels of ride comfort soaking up pot holes and lumps in the road effectively and was right at home in mid-morning Sydney traffic. The brakes were up to the task, if a little soft, and everything felt pretty good. There was a real sense of quality about the interiors particularly the dash plastics, and rear seat room was surprisingly good. Even with the front seats moved right back there was ample leg room for adults and the with copious amounts of headroom due to the tall roof there's a real sense of spaciousness in the rear of the car.

The manual 1.6-litre petrol performed well, but I thought the 6-speed auto version ($29,290) was lacking. The cars weigh between 1175 and 1260kg, fairly light, and with just the driver the 77kW engine began to run out of steam, so with a full contingent of passengers and luggage I imagine the auto would struggle. It has a tiptronic mode which is useful and having six ratios is good, particularly going uphills as our test vehicle couldn't keep up with the manual versions.

We also punted the Skoda Roomster through some choice corners and it didn't do too badly - no worse than any other small car or people mover on offer. The suspension is a bit soft, but this keeps the ride nice and smooth.

The final model in the Roomster range, the 1.9-litre TDI ($28,990) is the torquiest model with the most pulling power. Delivering 77kW and 240Nm, it feels far more lively than the petrol Roomsters when you flex your right foot. At the moment you can only buy the Skoda Roomster TDI with a 5-speed manual in Australia, but the shifter is quite nice to use and with a light clutch pedal you won't be expending too much energy swapping cogs.

• 1.6 Petrol
  77kW @ 5600rpm
  153Nm @ 3800rpm
  Fuel Economy: 7.0L/100km (7.7L/100 for the 6-speed auto)
  Gearbox: 5-speed manual or 6-speed auto

• 1.9 Turbo Diesel
  77kW @ 4000rpm
   240Nm @ 1800rpm
  Fuel Economy: 5.3L/100km
  Gearbox: 5-speed manual

At first, I thought the entry-level price of $26,990 was a bit steep, but after driving the Roomster - and sitting in rear and also discovering it has a 5-star NCAP safety rating - it's actually a fair price considering the standard features list. The styling could be a sticking point for some buyers, but it could also be a positive attribute when people start seeing them on the road and how much attention they attract.

Skoda Octavia: Though I don't think the Octavia has the standout design that some of its European siblings share, I quickly forgot about it after driving Skoda's new mid-sized sedan and wagon. Feeling a bit like an Audi A4, the Octavia is a sporty vehicle European sedan and wagon with surprisingly good build quality, high levels of safety, and an involving drive. 

Like the Roomster, the Skoda Octavia gets six airbags and ESP as standard across the range, and the range is expansive. There's both wagon and sedan models, diesel, petrol, and even a top-end turbocharged petrol sports model, plus the wagon can be ordered with AWD. 

The budget models are the Skoda Octavia 'Ambiente' variants, which begin at $29,990 for the 1.9-litre turbo diesel. The luxury models are the 'Elegance' variants which are priced from $30,990 to $38,990. The range-topping RS models, which get the same acclaimed engine used in the Golf GTI and Audi TT, are priced from $37,490.

The cheapest petrol model is the new Skoda range is the 1.8-litre turbo for $30,990 and was probably my favourite model. It's well priced, well equipped, and though only available with a 6-speed manual at the moment, the 1.8-litre TSI engine delivers strong acceleration - 118kW and 250Nm - while keeping emissions low. The gear shifter also deserves a mention as it has silky smooth movements between the gates and is happy to be thrashed or thrifted.

We even got to test the sporty RS and the 1.8-litre turbo model on the race track, and the latter did surprisingly well for itself. But more on that later. 

The interiors are typically Volkswagen - soft touch dash plastics and good quality fittings, and the cabin is suitably ergonomic; you never have to stretch or strain to reach any of the controls.

The full Skoda Octavia line-up was a bit confusing at first, as there are two diesel models (1.9- and 2.0-litre), and three petrol models, with a range of different gearboxes thrown into the mix, from a 5-speed manual to a 6-speed DSG automatic. But what wasn't confusing was the value. The new Skoda Octavia is packed with the kind of features you'd expect on far more costly European cars.

Electric windows and mirrors, ESP, a full compliment of front and rear airbags, advanced German engines, active head restraints, chilled glove and jumbo box, leather steering wheel, automatic air conditioning, alloy wheels, iPod/MP3 player audio input and CD stereos are standard across the range. The Elegance models add things like dual zone climate control, larger alloy wheels, an improved stereo with 8 speakers and light-me-home headlight assistance.

With five engines types on offer, Skoda has put itself in a good position to appeal to a wide range of buyers, from those who want top fuel economy with the diesel motors, to drivers who want flat out performance with the range-topping 147kW turbo four. Here are the Octavia's engine types:

• 1.9 TDI (Ambiente models)
  77kW @ 4000rpm
   250Nm @ 1900rpm
  Fuel Economy: 6.1L/100km
  Gearbox: 5-speed manual or 6-speed DSG

• 1.8 TSI (Elegance models)
  118kW @ 5000-6200rpm
  250Nm @ 1500-4200rpm
  Fuel Economy: 7.7L/100km
  Gearbox: 6-speed manual

• 2.0 TDI (Elegance models)
  103kW @ 4000rpm
  320Nm @ 1750-2500rpm
  Fuel Economy: 5.6L/100km
  Gearbox: 6-speed manual or 6-speed DSG

• 2.0 FSI (Elegance models)
  110kW @ 6000rpm
  200Nm @ 3500rpm
  Fuel Economy: 8.0L/100km
  Gearbox: 6-speed automatic

• 2.0 TFSI (RS models)
  147kW @ 5100-5700rpm
  280Nm @ 1800-5000rpm
  Fuel Economy: 8.1L/100km
  Gearbox: 6-speed manual

Skoda expects the new Octavia will rival the Mazda6 and Subaru Liberty, and provides safety and performance levels bettering its Japanese rivals. The front-wheel drive vehicles were fairly quiet during our highway drive with relatively compliant yet firm suspension. The 1.8-litre turbo TSI model had a surprising amount of acceleration, even at higher speeds. Overtaking is effortless, and please, no jokes. Skoda claims it'll do the 0-100km/h dash in 7.7 seconds, but at times it felt quicker than that and most models hadn't even been run in properly. 

The diesel engines both felt very strong low in the rev range, and as the only models to be offered with the automatic DSG (direct shift gearbox) they will change the way a lot of people think about diesel passenger cars. Smooth, quiet, and rather sporty, they also return very impressive fuel consumption figures.

Though it outputs the lowest power for any of the petrol engines, the 110 kilowatt non-turbo 2.0-litre FSI engine is nevertheless a refined engine and when paired with a traditional 6-speed automatic it performs admirably. As mentioned the turbo 1.8-litre petrol engine is my personal favourite, perfectly combining performance and economy, while the range-topping 2.0-litre turbo is easily the quickest model and can dispatch the 0-100km/h dash in just 7.3 seconds. 

Indeed, the Octavia RS is the hot shoe model and like the rest of the range is available in both sedan and wagon body styles. It rides 15mm lower than the other models and has a firmer ride for better handling response, and outputs 147kW and 280Nm of torque. There are two unique colours for RS - race blue and spring yellow, and it gets extra items like a tyre pressure monitoring system, rear parking sensors, heated front seats, and automatic rain sensing wipers. Priced at $37,490 for RS sedan, it's cheaper than the Golf GTI but gets the same engine, larger wheels, and more luxury features. It's probably not quite as agile as the VW GTI, but it comes close and appears to represent far greater value.

With large 18-inch alloy wheels and a sports body kit, not to mention special sports seats and instruments, the Skoda Octavia RS is the halo model and proved its worth on the race track. It's sweet to drive with heaps of go, good torque right across the rev range and the Michelin Pilot Sport tyres provide good grip. Like most FWD cars however it does have a tendency to understeer if you push to hard into or out of a corner. But it rides fairly flatly, and the steering is quite precise.

However my pick for the best model goes to the 1.8 TSI model. It's not as quick or rorty as the RS models, but as the cheapest petrol model in the range (albeit only available in manual) it's quite remarkable. It gets the new generation 1.8-litre turbo petrol engine before even Audi gets to use it in the new A4!

Overall, the suspension tune for the Octavia models is far more sporty than the Roomster, giving the vehicles a significant amount of cornering ability. They don't wallow too much as they track through fast corners which was good to see, and even the entry-level models were happy darting through corners. The electro-mechanical steering provided adequate feedback to keep pushing confidently through twists and turns, but like most front-wheel drive cars the Octavia did tend to understeer and push wide through the tighter corners if you weren't careful. All told, the Octavia is a well-sorted piece of machinery, and will offer an involving experience for drivers keen to explore its potential.

The crazy part of all this was that the wagon versions felt just as nimble as the sedan variants, so opting for a 'family friendly' wagon needn't mean missing out on performance as all models are available in wagon form for an extra $2,000.

An interesting test was driving the cars on the skid-pan, which was a small concrete area covered in water. It showed just how good the Czech designed chassis and ESP system really are. With ESP turned off the cars would slip and slide all over the shop, but when ESP was switched back on it increased grip and predictability in the slippery conditions by orders of magnitude.

We didn't get to drive the Octavia models around town like we did with the Roomsters, but after missing a few turns we discovered that the vehicle has a rather tight turning circle. Rest assured we'll give the car a full road test in due course, to see how it handles commuting and urban driving.

Luggage space in the new Octavia sedan is 560 litres - the boot is huge! That's more than both the Holden Commodore and Falcon, and opens up to 1420 with the seats folded down, and the wagons have even more room again. Because the boot hinges from above rear window loading and unloading is made somewhat easier as well. There will also be an AWD version which uses the Haldex coupling, which sees use on a variety of vehicles including the Volkswagen Golf R32. There were no AWD Skoda Octavia wagons at the launch, so we weren't able to drive them.

Conclusion

Unlike the Skoda cars built from the 1970s and 1980s, these new models will not be the laughing stock of the auto industry. On sale from mid October, they drive well, they look good - if a little bit different - they have pleasantly modern interiors and are jam-packed with standard features. The six airbags and ESP as standard across the Skoda range is impressive, and together with tight pricing the Czech car maker could do quite well for itself.

As the fastest growing brand within the VW Group, Skoda has a proven track record in Europe. Some 25,000 Roomsters were built last year, and this year the quota has been upped to 75,000 units to cope with the demand. And the Germans love them, which says a lot about the quality and value of the cars. Though I think it may take a while for Aussie drivers to warm to the Roomster it's success overseas could be a sign of things to come. As far as we're concerned, it's unorthodox design and huge interior are fantastic.

As for the Octavia, it's a far more traditional vehicle that combines a serious European style with strong standard feature list and high levels of safety. It drives very nicely, which was quite a shock at first, and is competitively priced too. Skoda has two very solid products for Australian drivers, and now that the 103 year old car company has returned to Australia after 25 years, with a rich heritage to draw upon and underpinned by stout Volkswagen powertrains, it will interesting to see how it fares here.

Matthew Wiesner, the head of Skoda Australia, said the new cars have "...great German technology with Czech engineering" yet will be priced amongst the Asian brands. While Honda, Mazda and Subaru are becoming the European equivalent brands for budget-focussed buyers, Skoda is hoping to take them on at their own game while offering a truly European experience. If you're looking for a new car and don't want a 'me too' Japanese model, the new Skoda models will certainly be worth a look.