With the Octavia, you can take your pick of turbocharged petrol and diesel engines. Another option is the naturally aspirated petrol engine. The power ranges from 81 to 150 kW (or as much as 180 kW in the Octavia RS), and is transmitted to the front or all wheels. You can choose from a 6-speed manual, 6- or 8-speed automatic and 6- or 7-speed DSG gearbox. Selected engines come with mild hybrid technology for even more efficient consumption. Another option is the iV plug-in hybrid drive, enabling the car to run purely on electricity.

You’ll get used to the Octavia in no time at all. On the road, you’ll quickly become accustomed to the newly designed multifunction steering wheel and DSG gear selector with shift-by-wire technology. A perfect overview is provided by the new head-up display and the freely programmable Virtual Cockpit. The Dynamic Chassis Control and Driving Mode Select allow you to go further in matching the car’s characteristics to your mood, offering several specific modes.

Occupants are protected by up to 10 airbags that work in tandem with the three-point seat belts. If an accident is unavoidable, passengers are prepared for impact by Crew Protect Assist, which closes the windows and activates belt pretensioning. After a collision, the Multi-Collision Brake prevents further uncontrolled vehicle movement by braking, thus reducing the risk of multiple collisions.

The Octavia features efficient full LED lights front and back. The main advantage of full LED headlights is their Matrix function, which, by lighting up and extinguishing the individual LED sources in sequence, prevents other road users from being dazzled. This means you can keep the powerful full beam on all the time on your travels so that you have a perfect insight into what is happening around you. A speciality of the Top full LED tail lights is their dynamic rear indicators.

The radar monitors the front area so that Front Assist can alert you or stop the car in the event of an imminent collision with another vehicle or a person. It also includes Collision-Avoidance Assist, which will help you to carry out an evasive manoeuvre so that you safely drive round an obstacle. Another new function is Turn Assist, which monitors an oncoming vehicle when you are turning left (in a left-hand drive). If there is an immediate danger, it brings the vehicle to a complete standstill.

When you buy the Octavia, all your parking worries are over. Park Assist 3.0 can park in and exit from parallel spots itself, and enter perpendicular spots forwards or backwards – you just work the accelerator and the brake. Rear Traffic Alert will help you exit a line of cars as it detects whether another car is approaching and alerts you in good time. Park Distance Control with Manoeuvre Assist makes sure you don’t hit any obstacles when manoeuvring the car in tight spaces.

When you’re on the motorway, systems are ready to help by taking over some of the driving for you. Travel Assist integrates several systems and functions to make driving a lot easier and increase travelling comfort. Once activated, Travel Assist can automatically stop and restart, keep the car in lane, follow other vehicles in a traffic jam, or show the surrounding traffic on a display in front of you. Assisted Lane Change enables the car to autonomously perform lane changes on motorway-type roads at speeds above 90 km/h when instructed do so by the driver.