Skoda Octavia vRS review

The Octavia’s performance is assertive rather than aggressive. This isn’t a guts ‘n’ glory hot hatchback that’s learned its trade on the Nordschleife and allows you to throw out the aircon if you’re a trackday nerd. It’s a hot hatch for people whose lives have moved on, and now involve putting little people in the back of their car.

It puts usability above thrills, but whereas a similar approach has led the Mk8 Golf GTI (and, to be fair, every advancement of the GTI since the superb Mk5) to underwhelm some quarters of the TG office, it's an approach that feels expertly judged in something a little more saloon-like wearing Skoda badges.

It’s more mature, then?

Don’t get us wrong, the vRS is still an excellent thing to drive – lovely damping, sharp steering, incisive reactions that are faithful to your every input – there’s just no wild side that'll drop anyone’s jaw.

That’s even more so the case now since the facelift is equipped with an ‘electrohydraulic’ differential lock to provide more grip and less slip, and it does a good job of keeping the nose straight when you get back on the power. Speaking of which, the extra 19bhp makes a noticeable difference in a car like this. There’s a hint of lag lower down, but you get a good kick beyond 2,000rpm.

The DSG ‘box is great too, it’s keen and reactive, especially if you can resist pulling the paddles. It’s pretty smart left to its own devices and in relieving yourself of gearchanging duty, your pulse will subsequently lower and you’ll relax into driving at the sort of brisk-but-tidy pace it absolutely relishes.

And it’s so much more preferable to a sporty SUV thingy, which is doubtless the step many will tend towards when they outgrow a hot hatch. Dropped as low to the ground as a Civic, Megane or i30N, you get a good two-thirds of the experience in the Octavia with far fewer drawbacks in day-to-day life. Please, unless a high driving position is top of your criteria, consider a vRS estate as your family holdall instead of a comparably dopey crossover.

Are the running costs going to rinse my wallet dry?

Shouldn’t do. The Octavia vRS claims a half-decent 40.8mpg WLTP, which is better than most full fat hot hatches and still palatable day-to-day. In more spirited driving we saw 27mpg, but if you get that number any lower we suspect it won’t be long before you’re greeted with the sound of sirens and blue flashing lights in your rearview mirror.