Skoda Octavia test drive since 2008 -

Attractive Octavia

Speaking directly, Skoda is a VW at an honest price. Of course, this opinion is subjective, I do not dare to impose it only to take into account. Cars of the Czech company again, in my opinion, are in no way inferior, and in some articles they are superior to maternal products. First of all, this concerns the reliability and cost of owning a Skoda machine against the background of the same VW models. In addition, it is difficult not to notice that obvious competition has long been traced inside the VW concern: take the Fabia and Polo, Roomster and Caddy Family, Seat Leon and VW Golf, Ibiza and all the same VW Polo. But, in the end, this is Volkswagen. Today I want to dwell on Octavia with a new 1.8 TSI engine in full configuration, and even with the AU, Passat and Jetta navigation system! ..
Turbo savings
It is about, as motorists were already able to guess, about the new version of Octavia with a 4-cylid gasoline engine with direct fuel injection and turbocharged, which with a volume of 1.8 liters offers a driver of 160 hp. Power and, especially pleasant, 250 nm of the maximum torque. And since all this is combined with a 6-speed manual transmission, I assure you, dear reader, Skoda Octavia is a very dynamic, fast car.
You understand this right away, you should move off. The turbine picks up almost idle, so the first moments are enough to take a breath. Immediately with your back you evaluate the successful profile of the seat. Although it, the seat, is not without sin: the pillow is too littered, it is possible to reduce the angle of its inclination only by raising the entire chair above the floor. And I somehow do not want to reduce the space above the head until the collision of the crown with the ceiling ... However, this is a trifle, it all depends on the habit. In all other respects, the driver's place completely suited me. And the steering column, which is regulated both in height and by departure, removes all issues related to the correct and convenient landing at the wheel. Moreover, this is important, since the new engine literally spurks, forcing him to go faster and faster.
The characteristic of the motor is such that in any position of the tachometer arrow under the right foot there is a supply of traction. It is more than enough to quickly overtake another car or briskly rebuild. The 6-speed mechanical gearbox helps to maintain the desired rhythm of movement, which pleases with the clarity of switching and not too large moves of the lever itself. Only now the clutch pedal is not too informative and endowed with too long for my taste. There are no other complaints about the running qualities of Octavia with a new engine.
Yes, the front drive wheels are skip quite often, and not only at a quick start from the place, but also when switching to the second, and sometimes to the third step. But this does not interfere, since everything that happens is clearly noticeable on the steering wheel, which has not only a progressive characteristic, which is why with an increase in the speed of the steering wheel, it is noticeably heavy, but has intelligible feedback. Therefore, after several kilometers passed in an active drive mode, you begin to intuitively understand the car and feel its maximum capabilities.
Of course, always on guard the ESP stabilization system, which is standardly installed on this version of Octavia. However, this electronic collar can be completely turned off by simply by clicking on the corresponding button on the central console. In this case, there is a chance to enjoy very good suspension settings. They are quite hard, the rolls of the body in vihi are barely noticeable, but, nevertheless, provide a proper level of comfort. Road irregularities do not bother too much, and when you quickly ride with the whole body, you feel how the pendants try to maintain the contact of all four wheels with asphalt. Moreover, Octavia has typical front -wheel drive habits with distinctly traced insufficient rotation. But throwing gas in the bend still does not have the skid, in this case, is provided. But with proper circulation, all reactions, even in the most difficult situations, are absolutely correct and understandable.
At the same time, Octavia has very good smoothness and excellent sound insulation. Which, by the way, can play a bad joke with its owner. It seems that you are not going at all fast, but you look at the speedometer and immediately realize that you do not lose your right to lose. Fortunately, with deceleration in Octavia, things are no worse than with overclocking. The power of the calipers is enough, the ABS and the system of distribution of the brake forces will insistence from possible wheel locks, which is also installed on the model in the basic configuration.
And finally, summing up the weekly Octavia weekly operation with a new engine, I can’t help but note that even with my very aggressive and, therefore, by no means an economical driving style, the car pleased the car with a relatively small fuel consumption of about 13.5 liters per hundred km, which , taking into account the inconsistent dynamic potential, seems to me a good result.
In order not to get lost
Another innovation of the tested car was a navigation system that has long been available to European customers, but only now I got to Russia. The absence of electronic cards that appeared recently. The system works very well, however, like any regular navigation in a good German car. However, there are some features.
For example, introducing the destination, the system will offer at least three options for the route indicating the kilometer and estimated time on the way. You can not pay attention to the last parameter, since the plugs of navigation do not take into account such a service in Russia for standard systems yet. But the ability to independently choose the most suitable route is useful, since you can rely on your own knowledge of the most typical metropolitan traffic jams and choose the one that is the least dangerous by freezing. True, the entire interface is English, and the name of the street must be introduced in Latin letters. But everything is displayed on the screen in three -dimensional form, as if you were watching a little on top, and when entering the next denouement, a picture arises with a clear and understandable image of the road and what is required of the driver. In addition, the screen has good graphics, thereby ennoizing the interior. Moreover, it is sensory, which best affects ergonomics as a whole.
In conclusion, I will say that the appearance of a new engine in the Octavia range will undoubtedly help this model in our increasingly competitive market.
Andrey Osipov
Photo Skoda
 

A source: Magazine Automobile Izvestia [October 2008]