Skoda Octavia Estate
GOODBYE
£26,230 OTR/£30,655 as tested/£367pcm
WHY IT’S HERE
Can Skoda still do practicality at an attractive price?
DRIVER
Adam Waddell
I DON’T REMEMBER A TIME WHEN MY FAMILY DIDN’T HAVE A CORTINA, Granada or Sierra estate on the drive, so I felt a twinge of sadness when Ford announced that it is ditching the concept of large family cars. As of next March the Mondeo will be no more. Thankfully, for those who still see the virtue of a keenly priced, practical family estate, Skoda launched the latest Octavia last July. Technically, it competes with the Focus, but to my mind the Tardis-like interior makes it more of an alternative to the Mondeo.
Everything in the cabin is well thought out and put together. The touchscreen controls work well and the microsuede fabric feels luxurious. Plus there are dozens of smart design features that must cost pennies, but make me smile. Stuff like the umbrella concealed in the driver’s door, the ice scraper with a tyre tread gauge in the fuel filler flap, the windscreen washer tank cap that folds out to create a funnel and the ‘snow mode’ head-up display that shows data in blue so you can read it against a snowy background.
Thanks to the lockdown, I’ve managed fewer than 4,000 miles in our six months together, but that’s been more than enough to learn that while the Octavia won’t be winning awards for performance and handling, it’s both a capable motorway cruiser and agile enough around town. There have been no technical problems to report other than electronic glitches with the nav and voice control, both of which were quickly sorted by a software reboot.
The Octavia Estate starts at £22,215 but the SE L First Edition is towards the top of the range and our test car came in at a tad over £30k. Personally I’d have splashed out an extra £1,200 for the vRS version with bags more performance and less vanilla exterior styling. Interestingly, Skoda has announced a new Sportline trim level will be available later this year. It’ll be cheaper than the vRS and share many of that model’s styling, including black detailing and sports seats. I’ve enjoyed my time with the Octavia though. Fear not Mondeo Man – there really is a viable alternative out there.