New Skoda Octavia - In Detail

Press Release

Harald Ludanek, the Manager of Å koda Auto's Technical Development on the new Å koda Octavia

Right from its launch in 1996 the Octavia has been extremely popular with customers. The car's strengths include its attractive and timeless design, which is outstanding even today, robust technology, high reliability, perfect workmanship and top quality. These strengths coupled with its advantageous price/performance ratio make it attractive for many drivers even in the current intensely competitive environment. The car's perfect concept is proven by its success on numerous markets. How can we further enhance such an excellent car without adversely affecting the price/performance ratio? This was a question that was very frequently asked and discussed at the beginning of the development. The answer is the new Octavia, which has now been presented to journalists and the public after three years of development and countless test-drives. Using maximum effort and Škoda's tradition of one hundred-years of engineering ability, the expert team in Mladá Boleslav created the new Octavia that can satisfy the safety, reliability and flexibility requirements of highly demanding customers at an attractive price. Technological developments in the concept of the chassis and steering, new material concepts, new knowledge of ergonomics as well as new legislation on the safety of cars and the protection of the environment have all been taken into consideration from the very beginning of the development of the new Škoda Octavia. In addition, a number of sophisticated details including storage compartments, hooks for shopping bags and additional indicators on the radio display have been used. Because of this the new Octavia can meet customers' requirements for safe, reliable mobility and flexibility of use. The new Škoda Octavia, which is the key model of Škoda Auto, will again satisfy its owners with its excellent quality, reliability, proven technology and favourable purchase price and operating cost. As with the current model, the new Octavia stands out because of its more than ample space. Rear seat passengers have more leg room and increased comfort because of the 66 mm longer wheelbase. The luggage compartment has been increased by 36 litres to 560l and is notable for many well-designed storage features. Dimensionally, the new Octavia has been deliberately placed at the edge between categories A and B. This complies with the key strategy of Škoda to deliver an "an extra bit of car" at a value similar to its competitors. This is why the new Octavia will again become an attractive family car and a car for leisure use with its eye catching progressive design that will help it hold its value. Its high quality and perfect manufacturing guarantee the lasting, long-term value of the car. The new Octavia is a completely newly developed car to which the latest technologies have been applied. This can be demonstrated by the following examples:

• New petrol engines with direct injection which simultaneously give lower fuel consumption and greater power;
• Active multi-element rear axle;
• The electromechanical servo steering has many functions including the steering booster and a self-centring steering wheel.

The new Å koda Octavia is available with four petrol engines, two of which are fitted with direct fuel injection in addition to two diesel engines with high-pressure fuel injection using injector units with the pump-nozzle system (TDI-PD). The range of engines with various displacements and outputs will adequately fulfil the various demands of customers. In addition to manual transmissions the petrol engines can be fitted with the new six-gear automatic transmission. A unique DSG transmission with direct gear changing is offered with the diesel engines. This transmission is revolutionary technology in transmission manufacture. It uses a two clutch principle, which results in an extremely efficient manual transmission with the comfort of an automatic transmission. DSG transmission allows convenient, quick and precise gear changes without interrupting the driving force, which is a feature previously used only in motor sport. The electromechanical steering helps the driver to keep precise and safe control of the car. The servo steering is a system that adapts to the actual driving situation. A significant effort was made to ensure that the steering wheel returns to its central position when driving straight. The servo steering has been designed to respond in accordance with the actual speed and the required turning angle. This produces the best feeling of accurate steering control in driving situations both at high speeds on motorways and when parking in the city. The new steering helps to keep the correct direction even when driving straight on banked roads or in a cross wind. In addition, the multi-element rear axle also ensures active and safe control of the car. Lateral and longitudinal forces are absorbed independently of each other and they have been optimally adjusted using transverse and longitudinal arms. This sophisticated design gives safe driving characteristics and, at the same time, a high degree of comfort. With its new Octavia model Å koda again offers a visually attractive and a technically advanced product that fulfils customers' growing demands for increased safety, economical operation and attractive design. The entire Å koda development team firmly believes that with the new Octavia they have again created a successful car for the future and for our customers - a car that will be a reliable partner in everyday use. In fact, everyone will have to experience the advantages and improvements of the car on their own to fully appreciate them. We wish you and our customers many enjoyable test-drives and we are eagerly awaiting your opinions which we plan to use as input for model updates. Yours Harald Ludanek
Manager of Å koda Auto Technical Development