2024 Skoda Octavia revealed

The upgraded 2024 Skoda Octavia line-up has debuted in Europe ahead of its Australian arrival (now confirmed for early 2025), when the revised mid-size liftback and wagon will bring a new look, a raft of significant mechanical and tech upgrades, and more powerful Octavia RS flagships.

As seen in the abundance of teasers released over the past few months, the facelifted Octavia flaunts an all-new front lighting signature and now resembles the bigger Superb in terms of its front and rear ends.

Refreshed alloy wheels designs complete the new exterior, but very little has changed within the cabin – save for the new optional 13-inch infotainment interface. However, the Octavia’s multimedia operating system has been given an overhaul with an AI-based ChatGPT chatbot being integrated into the voice control system.

Other subtle changes include a new wireless charging box for mid-range variants and up, more powerful (45W) USB-C ports, a more proactive keyless entry system, revised interior trim choices now featuring more sustainably sourced materials, a new rear storage box and some extra hooks in the luggage compartment.

All variants will come with a 10-inch digital instrument cluster and dual-zone climate control as standard, however, Australian pricing and finer specification details are yet to be confirmed.

The biggest changes to the popular medium car, however, can be found under the bonnet, where every powertrain has been given a power bump and some sort of efficiency tweak, although all of the 1.5-litre choices in Europe – where they’re now available with mild-hybrid tech – are expected to be passed over in our market in favour of the familiar 1.4-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine.

But the flagship Octavia RS will come here with an enhanced powertrain, specifically armed with an extra 15kW (totalling 195kW/370Nm) courtesy of a new air intake, friction optimisation and more aggressive ECU mapping, while a ‘genuine sports exhaust’ has been added for some extra theatrics, especially on start-up.

A seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission remains the default option for the Octavia RS and the engine now adopts the Budack combustion cycle, though an exact benefit is yet to be detailed.

“Our customers rightly expect a lot from the Octavia and this refresh takes our best-selling model to the next level,” said Skoda Auto board chairperson Klaus Zellmer.

“Innovations such as a fully redesigned infotainment system, new safety systems, increased use of sustainable materials and more powerful headlights make it an even better fit for everyday explorers.

“I’m confident our latest Octavia will surprise and delight its drivers and passengers, confirming its place as our most popular car.”

The primary safety upgrade in question is a new ‘attention and drowsiness assist’ system that replaces the old driver alert suite and uses data from the power steering and other systems to monitor driver and vehicle behaviour, analysing the data to recognise short-term inattention (distraction) and long-term inattention (fatigue).

As with pretty much every model update these days, the new Octavia is expected to increase in price compared to its predecessor, in this case by up to a couple of grand or so, but the popular Czech mid-sizer will still be backed by Skoda Australia’s leading seven-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty.

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