Refreshed Octavia launched in style

The Czech brand Skoda is hugely important to the country’s economy, accounting for around 10% of its GDP.

So when it revealed the latest version of its flagship model, the Octavia, you could be sure it would be a big event.

That’s why it gave it a glittering unveiling at the Czech National Gallery in the centre of Prague before the world’s motoring media and broadcast worldwide online.

Security was tight, not least because the audience included the Czech prime minister and many of the Skoda management board.

Then a few extras were thrown in, like a performance by the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, playing in an upper floor as the car was revealed in a blaze of strobe lights.

The fourth generation of the model comes 60 years after the first version, and so far almost seven million have taken to the road, reinforcing its reputation as one of the most reliable and best-value cars on the market.

It won’t appear in UK showrooms until well into 2020 and retains the distinctive familiar profile in both the saloon and estate versions, but with a more sophisticated look with a bolder front end.

Inside there’s a fresh, elegant, flowing dashboard behind a new two-spoke steering wheel and a short, stubby gear-change for the shift-by-wire technology – appearing for the first time in a Skoda.

The line-up now includes a plug-in hybrid, the Octavia iV and some of the petrol engines will have innovative mild hybrid technology.

Prices will be announced in the new year.

Skoda says it will still represent the core element of value for money.