Skoda may be a sensible, no-frills brand tailored to people looking for lots of space on a relatively tight budget, but the automaker from Mladá Boleslav does have a truly exciting model in its lineup. It’s called the Octavia RS and you can have it in 230- or 245-hp flavors either as a hatchback or as a wagon with a cavernous trunk. Many years ago, the VW-owned marque had a Fabia RS as well, but it did not live to see a new generation because Skoda was afraid sales would’ve been too low to justify the efforts.
Superb Facelift Is Out:
The Octavias will be joined sooner or later by the Kodiaq RS. This is more than just a rumor as Skoda has already confirmed it will give its big SUV the full-on RS treatment. One would be tempted to say the flagship Superb is more worthy of the badge than the Kodiaq, but the good news is there’s a distinct possibility it will happen as well. It hasn’t been green-lighted just yet, though.
Gallery: Skoda Superb Sportline with Dragon Skin paint
If it will, the Superb RS will sit above the hottest version of the midsize model, the Sportline (pictured above) powered by a 2.0-liter gasoline engine with 280 hp (206 kW) and 350 Newton-meters (258 pound-feet) of torque. That’s enough TSI punch channeled to both front and rear axles for a run to 62 mph (100 kph) in 5.8 seconds. Go all out and an electronic top speed limiter will kick in at 155 mph (250 kph).
An RS-badged would obviously have to top all of these numbers. The European-spec Golf R (sorry, America) now has a healthy 310 hp (231 kW) and 400 Nm (295 lb-ft) from its 2.0-liter TSI, which might find its way inside the hotter Superb — if there is actually going to be one. The all-paw hot hatchback from Wolfsburg needs a mere 4.6 seconds for the sprint and maxes out at 166 mph (267 kph), but a Superb RS wouldn’t be able to match that since it would be significantly heavier. Even so, it should prove to be at least half a second quicker in the sprint than the Sportline.
Should the Superb RS get the stamp of approval, it won’t share the engine with the Kodiaq RS since the latter will get a biturbodiesel 2.0-liter borrowed from Passat BiTDI where it pumps out 240 hp (177 kW) and a torquetastic 369 lb-ft (500 Nm).
Elsewhere in the Superb range, 2019 will be the year when the car is going to receive a plug-in hybrid powertrain, a first for any Skoda.
Renders: Automedia