Skoda Octavia RS 245 2018 Review

Brains and brawn are a fickle combination in the passenger car segment, especially now.

With locally-produced performance vehicles out of the frame, and more manufacturers bowing to the popularity of SUVs, finding a sedan or wagon that is a) genuinely practical, b) fun to drive and c) affordable, is easier said than done.

Cue the Skoda Octavia RS 245.

The newly-anointed flagship of the Czech brand’s mid-size range arrives in Australia at an interesting point in time. It will appeal to buyers of said Commodores and Falcons, albeit with half the cylinder count, and will also make a neat counter argument to the new twin-turbo V6 Kia Stinger.

And refreshingly, it’s not an SUV.

Priced from $43,390 plus on-road costs, the Octavia is available in liftback ‘sedan’ or wagon body styles, the latter adding a $1500 premium. Manual and automatic transmissions are available, the self-shifter adding a $2500 charge. Our pricing story has the full run down here.

On the performance front, the 245 figure in the Octavia name designates the number of ponies under the bonnet: 245 horsepower, or 180kW in our money. Torque from the familiar VW-sourced EA888 2.0-litre turbo four, the same as that used in the VW Golf GTI Performance Edition 1, is rated at 370Nm.

Though, granted, it needs to lug around a sizeable 1500kg kerb weight in this application; roughly 100kg more in wagon form.

The front-drive RS 245 will cost you $4500 more than the garden-variety 169kW Octavia RS, though it piles on an additional 11kW/20Nm for the premium, along with a mechanical limited-slip front differential, a seven-speed automatic (rather than a six speed), power-adjustable sports seats, folding wing mirrors, 19-inch alloy wheels, blackened exhaust tips and requisite RS interior trinkets inside.

Ultimately, you’ll also gain added bragging rights at the pub. The RS 245 claims a 6.6-second 0-100km/h time in sedan form, or 6.7 seconds in the wagon. That’s 0.1 seconds faster than the donor car.

Smart and practical
There’s no sign of the VW Group’s ubiquitous digital instrument display (Skoda says we need to wait for the upcoming Karoq SUV for that update), but the Octavia’s interior presentation is clear and concise nonetheless – and certainly doesn’t feel ‘last generation’ against the latest VW offerings.

Use of premium materials, including plenty of soft-to-touch plastics, imbues the Skoda with a rock solid feel. A 9.2-inch touch-screen projects the car’s key driving and infotainment functions, including Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, operated easily via touch or through buttons on the steering wheel and centre fascia.

The Octavia presents itself as a liveable proposition in terms of space. You’ll fit four adults over moderate journeys, and cargo space is admirable in both liftback (568 litres) and wagon (588 litres) forms. Both are capable of swallowing a couple of large suitcases.

Odds and ends storage is similarly strong, thanks to myriad cup-holders and cubbies, an in-car rubbish bin and even an integrated umbrella. Very clever.

You could argue the Octavia’s face is beginning to feel its age, though from a safety point of view the RS is where it needs to be: nine airbags, a five-star crash rating and the latest driver aid acronyms including automated emergency braking up to 210km/h.

Kiddies are well catered for thanks to installation of three child tether points, including two ISOFIX connections.

Furthermore, the Octavia is backed by a five-year, unlimited-kilometre factory warranty and set servicing prices. For example, you can lock in the first three years or 45,000km of servicing for $1300, Skoda says.

‘Road’ test
Our drive of the RS 245 is limited to a private test track on the Central Coast of NSW, so a full brief on the car’s bump compliance and long journey amenity will have to wait for now.

On the 22-corner facility, the Skoda showed its mettle as a warmed-up passenger car. However, a bona fide a boy racer it ain’t.

First thing’s first, the engine. It’s a neat little device, one that finds power early in the rev range and delivers thrills in spirited, user-friendly amounts.

There’s no rorty exhaust note or blats between upshifts to speak of, but the rush to triple figures is still both endearing and enjoyable.

Getting the most out of the engine requires some forward thinking out of corners: keeping the revs above 2500rpm to truly keep the engine on the boil. From this point, the RS shows no sign of waning until it touches on the soft circa-7000rpm limiter.

The six-speed manual transmission is fluid and well-spaced in its shift pattern, helping to cultivate a more involving driving experience.

By comparison, the seven-speed automatic soon becomes a source of frustration, surprisingly so for one of the VW Group’s much-vaunted DSGs.

Upshifts are occasionally slurred and the seven-speed box often finds itself in between ratios: either placing the car too low in the rev range to keep the engine on the boil through corners, or too high to truly carry the momentum.

Doubtless, you’d probably forget this was the case driving on ordinary public roads, but it was an interesting observation at our private complex.

Elsewhere, the Skoda feels competent and sure-footed, if a little underdone dynamically.

The sedan is the better of the two on track, owed in part to its lighter 1371kg kerb weight. There’s less squirreling under hard brakes, it hunkers down confidently through corners and generally feels lighter on its feet.

That said the wagon is no klutz – by any measure. It turns in admirably, shifts its heft effectively over quick changes in direction and feels competent at speeds approaching 165km/h.

Provoking controllable oversteer is easier said than done, and even lifting off throttle aggressively into corners, the Skoda never truly feels comfortable.

In both models, patience is key to mastering tighter turns; push too hard, too fast and the Skoda will simply default into understeer mode. Play the waiting game and the vehicle rewards with decent though not blinding progress. This is not a supercar, after all.

During turn-in, apex and power down the RS 245’s mechanical front diff really shows its wares, endowing greater turning response and allowing the engine to ply down its grunt in a way the regular Octavia RS cannot.

Czech, mate
Granted, there are other options at this sort of money, some boasting considerably more power (Volkswagen Golf R, Ford Focus RS and Honda Civic Type R immediately spring to mind). However, none really offer the practicality and smarts seen in the Octavia.

Kia’s new twin-turbo V6 Stinger looms as the most likely rival, a car that offers considerably more snot and character from its engine and rear-drive dynamics.

But then, there’s something to like about the Skoda. It’s different, it’s Czech and it’s not an SUV; here we have both brains and brawn in an effective little package.

2017 Skoda Octavia RS 245 pricing and specifications:
Price: $43,490-$47,390 (plus on-road costs)
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol
Output: 180kW/380Nm
Transmission: Six-speed manual, seven-speed automatic
Fuel: 6.7L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: N/A
Safety rating: Five-star ANCAP