Skoda Fabia test drive since 2007 -

Czech bag

The rebirth of Skoda Fabia can now be considered complete. Following the Hetchbeck of the Czech company, the COMBI variation of COMBI is a compact station wagon for those for thirty.
 

The funny thing is that this is not a joke. Since the recent newcomer Roomster took the youth niche in this segment, the second interpretation of Fabia Combi, according to the nominal idea of \u200b\u200bthe manufacturer, is addressed to those who have already seen something in their lives.
 

As in the case of a hatchback, metamorphoses that occurred with a station wagon is not restyling, but a real rebirth. The Czechs seriously took up a radical revision of their own image. From strict, almost Volkswagen laconicism, there is no longer a trace. The car got catfroll headlights with external corners slightly flowing to the wings, completely different in mood by a radiator grill (with an obligatory nameplate in its upper part), with new bums. The back optics also changed. Add modern forms here, bold designer strokes and combinations, a dynamic body profile and a potential bestseller will appear in front of you. It is a bestseller, since there are few similar offers in the B-class on our market, to put it mildly.
 

However, the internal atmosphere remained the same: the salon of the novelty is absolutely unemotional. The Skodovites, without adhesion, preferred a good better. Significantly rethinking the appearance of the main parts of the interior, they only observed tradition. As before, the dominant role is assigned to ergonomics. All operating elements that the driver may need during movement are located exactly where you expect them to see or feel. Along the perimeter, various boxes, cup holders, niches, holders but no liberties in the design. The only thing that designers allowed themselves, the contrasting execution of the front panel, which definitely added the interior of solidity.
 

Naturally, the Czechs did not begin to move away from the already established tradition and only slightly increased the size of the body: in particular, the station wagon became 7 mm longer and 46 mm above the predecessor, which, by the way, allowed to significantly revise the organization of the internal space. This metamorphosis, of course, influenced the comfort of the front passengers extremely slightly, but the obvious progress in improving the living conditions of the rear riders here was definitely outlined. The Czech capacity of the C-class in this case, of course, could not achieve, but they still approached the standards (plus 42 mm above the head and 33 mm between the rows). As a result, the average COMBI driver with a height of 175180 cm will calmly accommodate itself. But with the middle passenger, it is better not to experiment to three on the back sofa too closely.
 

The cargo compartment did not go unnoticed. Given that the designers had to look for an acceptable compromise between the placement of baggage and passengers, from this situation they were able to squeeze the maximum. Despite the fact that the nominal volume of the compartment increased by only 54 liters, the same parameter after the transformation showed a rather decent 235-liter increase and eventually made 1460 cubic decimeters, which, by the way, is comparable to the same Skoda Roomster. There is a suspicion, however, that the Czechs measured the volume of the trunk of the novelty after the second row is completely dismantled, which in the new Combi cannot be made categorically freed after pressing the pair of the corresponding keys, despite all the efforts of the author of these lines, and remained hanging on the seat belt. However, it is unlikely that the potential owner of the car will reach such experiments.
 

On the road, the Czech station wagon, as expected, is an exact copy of the hatchback of the same name. A dense suspension excellently behaves on the asphalt, providing the machine with decent stability both in direct and during maneuvering. It is worth noting that the same behavior is characteristic of the car and at high speeds, but in this case it basically depends on the quality of the coating. It is better not to jump in bumps on bumps to a minimum. I liked the quite informative steering wheel, but the 1.6-liter 105-horsepower engine that was under the hood of a test station wagon was somewhat disappointed. It starts in general decently, travels well around the city, but at medium and high rods of traction for a relatively heavy station wagon is already not enough. As a result, the car accelerates on the highway with some lazy, even despite the fact that the motor is aggregated not by an automaton, but by an ordinary handle. In general, your correspondent, ceteris paribus, would prefer Combi with an already familiar 1.4-liter engine, since the buyer will have such an opportunity.
 

By the way, as before, for Fabia a very wide selection of power units is proposed, both gasoline and turbodiesel. In the first case, a 1.2-liter engine remained the base, depending on the settings of the developmental 60 or 70 hp. An alternative line will consist of a green turbodiesel with a volume of 1.4 liters, consuming a hundred of a slightly more than 4 liters of diesel fuel, as well as a 1.9-liter 105-horsepower engine traditional for any product of the Volkswagen group.
 

The initial cost of COMBI in our country will be 369,000 rubles. Thus, the novelty will be located exactly between the related hatchback and the Roomster compactway. True, the first commodity machines will appear in the salons of domestic dealers no earlier than April.
 

Vladimir Zhidkov
 
 

Source: Mkobil magazine [December/2007]