Get up close and personal with the liftback and Europe’s most popular wagon.
It’s a known fact Skoda has become a veritable cash cow for the Volkswagen Group and it is primarily thanks to the Octavia. Even though SUVs are all the rage these days and the Czech brand has three of them in its European portfolio to fully capitalize on the customers’ insatiable thirst for high-riding vehicles, the Octavia remains at the core of the brand.
A new generation of an automaker’s best-selling product is always a big deal, especially since the model’s origins can be traced back to the late 1950s. Since then, more than 6.5 million units have been sold and 2.5 million cars were delivered over the course of the previous generation, despite the questionable facelift with split headlights launched in 2017.
Revamped for 2020, the Octavia is featured in a couple of videos putting the spotlight on both the liftback and the Combi a.k.a. the most popular wagon in Europe. Longer and wider than its predecessor, the fourth generation blends design traits from the Scala and Superb in an attempt to inject some pizzazz in a practical and spacious package the Skoda brand is known for.
It also bundles a surprisingly high amount of tech on a par with the Volkswagen Golf 8, but in a far more family-friendly way as the Octavia is considerably larger than its cousin from Wolfsburg. Taking into consideration its position in the VW Group hierarchy, the Skoda will be slightly cheaper than the equivalent VW. The decision to push the Czech car more upmarket could eat into the Golf’s sales furthermore, but it appears the Group doesn’t have an issue with the Octavia cannibalizing sales of its star car – the Golf.
Millions and millions of sales for both brands have proved the two cars can peacefully coexist, and we have confidence the VW Group knows what it’s doing despite what may seem to be a product overlap. There’s also the sleeker SEAT Leon and the posh Audi A3 to consider, which are both due to switch to the next generation in 2020. Also next year, the Octavia lineup will grow to include the Scout and the RS, while the Golf family will expand with the GTI, GTI TCR, GTD, and the R.
Gallery: 2020 Skoda Octavia
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