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In-depth reviews

Skoda Octavia - Reliability and safety

The Skoda Octavia gets a top Euro NCAP score because it has plenty of safety assistance tech as standard

Reliability and safety rating

4.5

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£26,775 - £38,670
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The Skoda Octavia didn’t feature in our latest 2024 Driver Power customer satisfaction survey, but Skoda as a brand hasn’t wowed its customers according to the manufacturer rankings, taking a below-average 23rd-place ranking out of 32 manufacturers table of the 2024 Driver Power survey. While owners are happy with the boot space and rear legroom of their cars, feedback on the infotainment and safety systems is much less positive. 

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Euro NCAP tested the Octavia in 2022 and awarded the family hatchback its maximum five-star crash safety rating. The Octavia received strong scores for adult and child passenger protection of 89 and 84 per cent, respectively.

The Octavia offers good levels of safety kit, with top-of-the-range cars featuring front and rear parking sensors, adaptive cruise control, blind-spot detection and a head-up display. Optional safety technology on lesser models includes the Assisted Drive Package Plus, which adds blind spot detection, park assist and speed assist.

Key standard safety features

Euro NCAP safety ratings

  • Five out of five stars (2022)
  • Adult occupant protection - 89%
  • Child occupant protection - 84%
  • Vulnerable road user protection - 68% 
  • Safety assist - 81%

Warranty

Skoda provides a three-year, 60,000-mile warranty as standard, which is par for the course within the VW group. This can be extended to five years/100,000 miles at extra cost, but rivals such as Hyundai and Kia offer more extensive standard coverage. 

Skoda does include three years’ of breakdown cover with every brand-new model, though. That’s two more years than some rival models, including the Volkswagen Golf, can offer.

Servicing

Service intervals for the Octavia are every 12 months or 10,000 miles, and the manufacturer offers fixed pricing for all servicing and maintenance work.

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Which Is Best

Cheapest

  • Name
    1.5 TSI SE Technology 5dr
  • Gearbox type
    Manual
  • RRP
    £26,775

Most Economical

  • Name
    2.0 TDI SE Technology 5dr
  • Gearbox type
    Manual
  • RRP
    £29,320

Fastest

  • Name
    2.0 TSI vRS 5dr DSG
  • Gearbox type
    Semi-auto
  • RRP
    £38,670
Chief reviewer

Alex joined Auto Express as staff writer in early 2018, helping out with news, drives, features, and the occasional sports report. His current role of Chief reviewer sees him head up our road test team, which gives readers the full lowdown on our comparison tests.

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