Skoda’s Octavia has always been a Jack of all trades.
Spacious, comfortable, refined, fairly reliable, relatively inexpensive…the list goes on.
There’s a good reason why in any taxi rank at least five out of 10 cars are Octavias. Taxi drivers are shrewd operators and know a good car when they see one.
The fourth generation of the car was launched in 2020 and, as is becoming the norm these days, is available with electrified power. The hybrid Octavia starts at just over £30,000 and my high spec SE L model cost £33,150.
I spent a week with the plug-in hybrid version of the car, which pairs a 1.4 litre petrol engine with a 13kWh battery and 85kW electric motor. Combined output is just north of 200bhp, meaning it will complete the 0-62mph sprint in a swift 7.7 seconds.
When the battery is charged it will run on electric power alone, unless you ask the car for a lot of acceleration, in which case the petrol engine springs into action.
Skoda claims an electric-only range of 43 miles. You might get close to this if you do all of your driving in town – the battery is more efficient at low speeds – but if you take the car up to 60mph you’re looking at a 25-30 mile range.
That was still enough to get me from Dundee to Arbroath and back with a little bit of battery left over.
You can charge up using a standard domestic socket, a home wallbox, or public rapid chargers.
The Octavia is a roomy beast, with plenty of space for adults front and rear, and an enormous 600 litres in its hatchback boot (the estate version has 640 litres).
Ride quality and refinement are both excellent, and the Octavia handles nicely as well.
The latest version comes with a 10in touchscreen, which is clear and easy to use – though in my opinion buttons are still easier to operate without taking your eyes off the road and should be essential at least for the heating controls.
Over a week with the car I used battery power for the vast majority of journey, only dipping into the petrol tank for a longer round trip from Dundee to Dunfermline and back.
Keep the battery charged and running costs will be extremely low, but the petrol engine means there’s no range anxiety on long trips.
There’s very little not to like here.
