New-Gen Skoda Octavia Arrives At Dealerships Ahead Of Launch

The next-gen Octavia is expected to be priced from around Rs 20 lakh (ex-showroom), and will directly rival the Hyundai Elantra in the country

The fourth-gen Skoda Octavia is all set to be launched in the country by the end of this month. Production has already begun at Skoda’s Aurangabad facility, and now, the car has started reaching dealerships ahead of its launch. This also means that test drives are expected to start soon.

The new-gen Octavia’s styling follows an evolutionary approach, rather than a revolutionary one as compared to the previous-gen model. Some noteworthy changes have been made on the outside to bring it in line with Skoda’s latest global models including its bigger sibling, the Superb facelift.

Upfront, the two-piece headlamp design of the previous-gen model has been replaced with conventional yet sharp-looking LED headlamps with optional full-matrix LEDs. The signature butterfly grille has been retained but is now bigger in size. Also, the new-gen Octavia gets a slightly lower roofline, which gives it a coupe-like stance.

The rear-end features new angular LED tail-lights, while the Skoda emblem has been replaced with the ‘SKODA’ lettering, placed on the upper part of the boot lid, just like all other new Skoda cars. The new Skoda Octavia is built on the Volkswagen Group’s MQB EVO platform, and is 19 mm longer than the previous model, despite having the same 2686 mm long wheelbase.

The Skoda Octavia will likely be a petrol-only model, and is expected to be offered with Volkswagen Group’s 2.0-litre four-cylinder TSI turbo-petrol engine that belts out 190 PS of maximum power and 320 Nm of peak torque. This is the same engine that is offered with the Superb, and will be offered with the Octavia with a 7-speed DSG.

It is yet to be seen if Skoda will introduce the 1.5-litre TSI engine option with a 6-speed manual transmission for the sedan. The car’s equipment list will likely include a large free-standing touchscreen infotainment system, a new two-spoke multi-function steering wheel, a panoramic sunroof, a digital driver’s display, Android Auto & Apple CarPlay, connected-car tech, electronically adjustable front seats and so on.