Skoda Octavia vRS Review & Prices

The Skoda Octavia vRS is the high-performance hot hatch that you can convince your family is a practical everyday car. That’s because it really is a practical everyday car, with a huge boot and lots of space in the back seats. However, when you start to inspect the spec — as much power as a Volkswagen Golf GTI, uprated brakes and suspension — it’s like meeting Mary Poppins and finding out she’s been hitting the gym and is singing about a scoopful of protein. There’s power behind the practicality.

To turn the Octavia into a vRS, there’s been some re-styling, with a more aggressive front bumper design featuring more of the honeycomb detailing so beloved of the makers of hot hatchbacks. There are also little open air vents in the front which create an ‘air curtain’ effect around the front wheels, for better aerodynamics. While the vRS gets the same new, slightly more angular headlights as the rest of the Octavia lineup, you can spot the sporty one thanks to the black door mirrors, the minimalist flick-up boot spoiler, and the unique 19-inch alloy wheels. Oh, and the violently coloured ‘Hyper Green’ paint, of course which is actually a no-cost option. You’d have to be brave, though…

Inside, the Octavia’s smart cabin has been smartened up further with red stitching everywhere, and a pair of sporty — and very comfortable — high backed bucket front seats. Those, as well as the seats in the back, get diamond-quilted centres, just like a Bentley. However, the seat materials are nothing like those of a Bentley, and actually feel pretty cheap which is a bit of a let-down.

Elsewhere in the cabin, the big touchscreen looks impressive, but as with so many such systems proves annoyingly fiddly to use, not helped by the fact that the Octavia vRS misses out on the handy rotary controllers that you’d find in the bigger Superb and Kodiaq.

One thing you can absolutely say about the Octavia vRS, though, is that it’s practical. Really practical. There’s loads of legroom and headroom in the back seats, and the vRS gets all of the usual handy Skoda touches — the umbrella in a compartment in the front door, the ice-scraper in the boot, the cupholders that allow you to twist the top off a bottle with one hand. In the boot — which holds a whopping 600 litres up to the luggage cover, and 1,555 litres if you fold the back seats — there are useful foldaway luggage hooks and velcro-secured boot dividers. It’s all so handy, but it’s a shame that the rear seats don’t fold fully flat.

The Octavia vRS has had a recent power upgrade to 265hp — the same as the Golf GTI with which it shares so much of its bits and pieces — and that means 0-60mph in a claimed 6.4 seconds (and it will actually probably do better than that). However, unlike the Golf — and equally unlike the related Cupra Leon — there’s no option to have the vRS’ engine upgraded to a more muscular 300hp. There’s no four-wheel drive version either, so the pricier Golf R is a better all-weather machine. Currently, only this engine option is available. The diesel version has been discontinued, and the plug-in hybrid hasn’t yet made a return either.

Skoda has uprated all of the Octavia’s mechanical parts to make it a vRS too. There are more powerful brakes — which haul you down from 60mph with commendable speed — and lower, stiffer suspension. You will want to specify the optional DCC adaptive suspension dampers, though, or the suspension gets a bit too stiff. Either way, tyre noise is a problem on longer journeys.

Thanks to its clever electronic front differential, the Octavia vRS is quite brilliant on tight and twisty roads, sniffing out loads of grip for the front tyres, and proving to be both sure-footed and agile. It’s fun, but there are alternatives — notably the Golf R and the Honda Civic Type-R — which are sharper and more rewarding to drive. They are both more expensive, however, and it’s still just about possible to buy a Ford Focus ST, which is also quicker and more fun, and just a little bit cheaper. It’s nowhere near as practical as the Skoda, though.

So if you like your hot hatch with a good dose of space, look no further - you’ll find all the best Skoda Octavia vRS deals here on Carwow, as well as great deals on used Skoda Octavia vRS models. You can also browse other used Skodas for sale, and when the time comes to change your car you can even sell your car through our network of trusted dealers.

The Octavia vRS is priced just fractionally under the £40,000 mark, which is good news if you’re trying to avoid the expensive car supplement on your yearly road tax, but that does mean having one entirely devoid of options. It is a little cheaper than a Volkswagen Golf GTI with the same engine, though, and the Golf is above that VED barrier. A Cupra Leon (mechanically similar) is more expensive again, but does come with the more powerful 300hp engine. A Honda Civic Type-R is more than £10,000 extra — ouch! — but is, again, more powerful (312hp) and way more exciting to drive. If you’re quick, you can nab one of the last Ford Focus ST models —slightly cheaper than the Octavia, so you can have an optional paint without busting your tax bill — which has more power (280hp), sharper handling, but a much cheaper interior and nowhere near as much space.

Then again, for the price, nothing can match the Octavia vRS’ combo of performance and practicality. It might be better value to lease than to buy, though – check out Carwow’s leasing deals to see if you could save.

The Octavia vRS is fun to drive, secure and agile, and it’s easy-going around town and on the motorway. You will need the optional active dampers though, and tyre noise is an issue

In town

The Octavia vRS gets, as you might expect, lower, sportier suspension than the regular Octavia. In fact, it’s 15mm lower and that makes it much firmer and bumpier when you’re driving on poorly made urban roads, or over speed bumps. If it’s a bit too much for you, then it’s worth spending the extra on the optional DCC electronically controlled suspension dampers. These have the usual Sport, Comfort, and Normal modes, but if you go into the setup menu on the big screen, you’ll discover that there are two settings which are actually softer than the default Comfort setting, which makes the sporty vRS feel really comfortable around town.

There is an uprated sports exhaust, which does allow the vRS to sound a little fruitier than a standard model, but it’s not loud enough to bother anyone around town. That’s arguably a good thing. The sportier steering seems to give the vRS a slightly wider turning circle, which isn’t great on mini roundabouts or when trying to park in tight spaces, but otherwise, the Octavia vRS is like any other Octavia in town — easy to drive, good visibility, and practical to use.

On the motorway

The Octavia vRS cruises very comfortably along a motorway, especially if you’ve gone for the optional DCC adaptive dampers and you’ve dialled up Comfort mode. The engine is pretty quiet, and if the front seats are bit cheap to look at, at least they’re comfortable for a long haul. However, there is quite a lot of tyre noise, a problem that seems to afflict most cars that use the Volkswagen Groups’ ‘MQB’ chassis (so that’s this, the Golf, the Audi A3, the Tiguan and Passat, the Skoda Superb, the Seat and Cupra Leon, the list goes on). It’s bad enough on tarmac, and worse on poorly maintained tarmac, but it’s downright deafening on concrete motorway sections.

Surprisingly for a car with 265hp, the Octavia vRS’ fuel economy is quite impressive. We averaged 34mpg including some high-performance testing, and getting better than 40mpg on a long run isn’t impossible.

There’s adaptive cruise control, which takes some of the strain out of longer journeys, although it can be occasionally confused by merging traffic, so make sure you’re paying full and proper attention.

On a twisty road

This generation of the Skoda Octavia vRS has 265hp from its 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo petrol engine, which is 20hp up on the previous model. Skoda claims a 6.4 second 0-60mph time, but we managed to do it in an even better 5.9 seconds, so in spite of its chunky size, this is a properly quick car. Even though it’s a front-wheel drive car (there’s currently no all-wheel drive vRS option), it manages its power very well, allowing you to find some impressive traction even on lumpy country roads, helped by the electronic front differential, which parcels out the power between the front wheels. That can really hook the front end up through and out of a corner, giving the vRS truly impressive cross-country performance.

The brakes, uprated over the standard Octavia, are also impressive, hauling the vRS down from 60mph in 35 metres, which is pretty well bang on the money. With the same DCC suspension menu that lets you set the vRS up for soft comfort around town, there are also firmer settings than mere Sport — there are 15 different suspension settings, in fact — so you can really tie the vRS down tightly for twisty road driving. Leaving it relatively soft is better for UK roads, though.

There’s no manual version of the vRS anymore, but you can take manual control with the paddle shifters, which change the gears rapidly on upshifts, but which can be a bit slow on downshifts. It’s annoying that you can’t hold the engine at the redline, even in manual mode, though — the seven-speed DSG gearbox always automatically upshifts.

The Octavia vRS is a really easy car to drive fast — it’s predictable, stays flat in bends, and it's responsive. The downside is that there’s not quite the feel, feedback, and adjustability of the Golf R, which is in fairness a more powerful and more expensive car. Equally, the Golf isn’t half so practical as the Octavia.

Practicality is the Octavia vRS’ middle name, and it has all the usual neat Skoda touches. The estate version is roomier still, though and the rear seats don’t fold fully flat, which seems like an odd omission

As with the regular Octavia, this vRS version majors on practicality in the front of the cabin. There are massive door bins, which are fabric-lined to cut down on rattles from anything that’s loose in there, and there’s more storage under the front seat armrest. The cupholders aren’t massive, but they do have handy pimpled surfaces, which grip the bottom of a bottle of water or fizzy drink and allow you to open it one-handed. There’s a retracting cover for the cupholders and you can make use of little inserts such as a rubber grip that neatly holds a mobile phone in place (only a small-screen phone, though).

There’s more storage in front of the little stubby gear selector, and that’s home to two USB-C sockets and a wireless phone charging pad. The glovebox is decent, and you get the handy little windscreen clip for holding pay-and-display car park tickets, although that’s possibly less useful now that everyone pays for parking on an app.

Space in the back seats

You want space? The Octavia vRS has got space, with acres of legroom and headroom in the back seats. In fact, that’s one of the Octavia’s defining features, and one which definitively separates it from the mechanically-related VW Golf, Audi A3, and Seat/Cupra Leon, none of which have anything like as much back seat space. There are big door bins back here too, easily capable of holding a big bottle of water, along with handy seatback pockets. There are cupholders in the rear seat armrest, and there’s even a clip-in storage box that fits on top of the transmission tunnel, where you’ll also find more USB-C sockets. The outer two rear seats get the same diamond quilting as the front seats, but the centre rear seat is on the narrow side, so not ideal for a third rear-seat passenger. Headroom is plentiful, though.

Boot space

There’s no two ways about it — the Octavia’s boot is massive. Compared to the Golf GTI’s 380 litre boot, the Octavia has 600 litres up to the luggage cover, which opens up to 1,555 litres with the back seats folded. You can do that easily, thanks to handles in the boot which release the seatbacks, but the seats don’t fold 100% flat when you do. This being a Skoda, there are also lots of practical touches in the boot, including fold-away luggage hooks, and even little boot dividers which velcro to the floor and allow you to stop luggage or shopping bags from sliding about. While 600 litres of luggage space is impressive, there’s always the faint whiff of disappointment that you didn’t go for the — frankly cooler — vRS estate, which has 660 litres of luggage space.

The Octavia’s cabin looks smart, and it’s very comfortable, but some of the materials are cheap and the touchscreen is awkward

The Octavia vRS’ cabin looks and feels basically the same as that of the regular model, but there are some visual upgrades over the standard Octavia. There’s a sporty three-spoke steering wheel with perforated leather around the rim and a prominent vRS badge, the digital dials get some subtle red highlights, and even the digital image of the car on the big central touchscreen has a vRS badge in the right place on the front grille. Neat.

There are more red highlights (even though green is theoretically Skoda’s sporting colour…) in contrast stitching on the soft dashboard upholstery, which is matched with some slightly weird fake carbon-fibre trim. There’s yet more red stitching on the high-backed bucket front seats, which also have diamond quilting, vRS badges, and even a slot for a supposed racing harness. Shame that the material used for the seats feels pretty cheap, even if they are very comfortable.

If you fancy a bit more style in your hot hatch, then perhaps a Honda Civic Type-R, with its bright red bucket seats, is a better idea. It’s significantly pricier than the Octavia, though.

One annoying thing is that the drive mode button is just part of a rank of other, identical buttons under the big screen. It would be much handier if it was on the steering wheel, allowing you to quickly shuffle between modes as the road conditions change. It’s also confusing as to whether you press the button or use the on-screen menu (it’s actually both, but that just adds to the confusion). The stability control is also almost impossible to turn off.

The touchscreen itself is pretty annoying. For a start, it seems too big for a relatively low-slung cabin such as this, and while Skoda has done some very good work improving the software and making the whole setup more responsive, it’s still deeply confusing and frustrating to use at times. It would help enormously if the Octavia were given the same multi-function rotary controllers as found in the bigger Superb and Kodiaq.

Equally — why is a rear wiper an option? True, it’s a no-cost option, but you do have to actively ask for it when ordering the car.

The upgrade to 265hp hasn’t affected the Octavia vRS’s emissions and fuel consumption all that much, so you’re looking at between 158g/km and 160g/km depending on options. That means a first-year VED road tax cost of £1,360 which is pretty stiff. It gets worse, though — the Octavia vRS’ price tag sits fractionally below the £40,000 cutoff above which you have to pay an extra £425 VED tax for the first six years of ownership, and just picking an optional metallic paint, for example, will push you over that threshold. BIK rates for business users start from around £240 per month.

Fuel economy is good, however, with an official figure of 40.8mpg which you’ll easily match if driving gently. Even making full use of the vRS’ performance, you shouldn’t duck below 34mpg.

Why are rear side airbags a £400 option? That seems mad, especially at a time when drivers are being given no choice but to accept a whole host of in-car bings and bongs for speed limits (which are usually incorrect) or have steering that can actively work against what you need to do if it detects a white line.

That aside, the Octavia vRS should be very safe. The uprated brakes and suspension will help you out of trouble, and if it all goes horribly wrong, then the Euro NCAP rating of five stars is reassuring. The Octavia scored 89% for adult occupant protection, 84% for child occupants, 68% for vulnerable road users, and 81% for its active safety systems.

The vRS comes with an alarm and immobiliser, but given its performance potential and its consequent desirability with car thieves, a tracking device is a must, as are more old-fashioned deterrents such as a steering wheel lock.

Generally speaking, the Octavia vRS should be just as solid and reliable as the standard Octavia, which is to say very. However, there have been reports of software issues over the past few years, which are usually more annoying than disastrous. Just be aware that the Octavia vRS’ extra power and performance will put more strain on brakes, suspension etc, and that its tyres will be more expensive to replace than those of a standard model.

The Octavia didn’t feature in the most recent Driver Power Top 50 Cars To Own customer satisfaction survey, but both the Karoq and Kodiaq — which use many of the same mechanical parts — did and both scored highly for quality and reliability. Skoda only finished in 23rd place out of 32 brands, with a reasonable 23% of customers reporting issues with their cars.