Skoda Octavia Estate VRS 230

Overarching VW Group strategy means Skoda models often don’t get the power they could. But there is a remedy

WHILE THE OCTAVIA’S 227bhp is a commendable amount of shove, it’s some way short of the 280bhp-plus that the hottest Volkswagen Golf and SEAT Leon models deliver, yet all these cars use essentially the same 2-litre turbo engine. With the VRS 230 sporting an electronically controlled limited-slip differential and adaptive chassis control, just like those more potent Golfs and Leons, I reckon it would cope well if given, say, 25 per cent more go.

So this month I’ve looked into some of the remap options that are available – the kind you might want to consider if you own a VRS – and it turns out the figures that can be achieved for quite modest amounts of money are eye-widening.

One of the more affordable offerings is from Superchips, who for £399 will increase the VRS 230’s peak power by 59bhp and torque by 68lb ft, taking the totals to 286bhp and 326lb ft.

DMS Automotive, meanwhile, takes things a little further. Its remap lifts power to 305bhp and torque from 258lb ft to 332lb ft. The price for this is £690, but it does include an individual mapping session in one of the company’s dyno centres.

Finally, there’s Revo Technik, a company whose wares this magazine has experienced before in the form of a 371bhp Golf R capable of cracking 60mph in 3.7sec (see Driven, evo 204).

Revo offers upgrade packages that comprise electronic changes alone or include further hardware modifications. Its Stage 1 package for the latest Octavia VRS is purely electronic and results in a scarcely believable 319bhp (as a minimum, apparently). That’s more potency than a Golf GTI Clubsport S.

The company’s development Octavia, fitted with a Stage 1 pack, has posted a 0-100mph sprint of 11.2 seconds. The cost? £599, or £7 per extra horsepower.

Any of these remaps would make the Skoda a very quick car, and as some of these tuners claim, the difference in fuel economy when driving steadily should be negligible if not non-existent – something that our experience of the more powerful factory versions of this engine would confirm.

Pretty enticing, isn’t it? Sadly, though, my hands are tied, as evo’s Octavia is owned by Skoda, not us. But if any Octavia owners out there have had an aftermarket power hike, do get in touch at fastfleet@evo.co.uk – I’d love to hear about your experience.