Skoda brings us an official preview of its all-new Octavia vRS, which have a full debut at the Goodwood Festival of Speed on 10 July. New car launches are always accompanied by a raft of attention grabbing headlines and this new vRS is no exception, carrying the tag of “fastest Octavia everrrrr!”
Of course, the Octavia vRS has the luxury of nicking the drivetrain from the Mk7 Golf GTI which gives the car a great head start. Although, it’s interesting to note that in the Octavia vRS the 2.0 litre turbocharged four cylinder has been capped at 220PS (162kW); they’ve not been granted access to the extra 7kW made available in the GTI Performance Pack.
Fans of oil burners can also rejoice in the new Octavia vRS for it is also available with a 184PS (135kW) 2.0 litre turbocharged diesel.
You can choose from a 6-speed manual or 6-speed DSG with either engine and with the manual and 2.0 litre petrol boxes ticked you’ll reach 100km/h in 6.8 seconds.
As you’d expect the vRS model has the sporty bits bolted on, meaning uprated suspension running 12mm lower than the regular Octavia. Also featured is the XDS electronic differential lock, although it’s worth noting this is not the trick mechanical XDS+ from the GTI.
Safety features and driver aids get a good run in the new vRS as well. Things like Front Assistant with city emergency braking, Lane Assistant, Automatic Post Collision Braking System, Driver Fatigue Sensor, Adaptive Cruise Assistant, Intelligent Light Assistant and more can be had to help make your driving experience a safer and more pleasurable one. We do like the keyless entry system which has been titled KESSY.
For now we’ve only been given a handful of pics, but we like what we see. Some interior shots would have been nice, but we expect Skoda will come good with all the detail during the Goodwood FoS.
And we’ve saved the best for last, too, the Octavia vRS is available in estate form—and it looks fantastic! Be cool, buy the estate.