The first one is a trick question. The second one isn’t. If you’ve ever driven the new Skoda Octavia RS, you’ll know what I mean. You simply can’t relate the rather unpretentious number in question to the overwhelming quantum of power its latest 2 L turbo baby generates. The engineers at Plzeň have spent many lives tuning and fine-tuning the seemingly slight four-cylinder engine of the Octavia. Step on it first for a deceptively gentle thrust – soon to be thrown off guard as you push your luck a wee bit harder to unleash the 280 Nm of turbo-torque that has you roaring at 100 km/h in 7.3 sec.
Despite the meticulously timed gearshifts from the DSG transmission (Direct Shift Gearbox), the Octavia RS gives the pleasure of driving a manual car. What I liked about the RS is the way it grips the road. On its 18” alloys, it doesn’t get swept away by a sharp cornering feat or an accidental wheel spin. Sport enthusiasts who expect a hard drive aligned with smooth handling will not be disappointed. At this point, if your thoughts turn to a Golf GTI, think about this – you can lean back more in an Octavia RS with nearly ten grand left in your pocket!
More adrenaline. Less gasoline.
You can’t expect a power-packed turbine to be all too silent, can you? But I found this Octavia’s sound an auditory complement to the sporty experience. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said about a constant drone from the rear wheel well that your back-seat passengers might disapprovingly point out. Chances are, the driver could still remain plain deaf to that, lost in the hum of his own adrenaline rush!
The best part about the RS is that it quenches your thirst for monstrous power, like some of the larger engines on the road, without itself being too thirsty for high-octane refreshment. Open the throttle on a turbo-spin and it laps up a litre for every 2 km but generously makes up on cruising speeds to return a highly efficient 9.5 km / litre.
