Confirmed: the new Skoda Octavia RS will be presented at Geneva with hybrid technology

The rumours were true, and Skoda will be the first member of the Volkswagen Group to offer a sporty vehicle with hybrid technology. That’s right, ladies and gentlemen: the Czech brand will offer an RS model powered by two engines: one combustion and one electric. This move should come as no surprise since, besides the many rumours pointing towards this bet by Skoda, the PHEV variants of both the Superb and the Octavia gave us a hint of the direction its model line-up would take.

And so the new Skoda Octavia will take advantage of its acclaimed RS variant to introduce a hybrid system, a type of powertrain that is not only more committed to the environment but is also capable of delivering more combined power. With this premise, it will only be a matter of time before some of its cousins adopt this combination, such as the Volkswagen Golf R or the CUPRA León.

However, for now Skoda has chosen to keep the intrigue surrounding this sporty version of its flagship saloon. In this way, the Czech brand has only revealed that the iV badge will be present on the Octavia RS, a version that could also be offered with more modest power and only combustion engines.

If so, Skoda would broaden the range of options in the RS family, which until now had been represented by petrol and diesel engines. If this comes to pass, future buyers of the Octavia RS could opt for a top-of-the-range model with iV technology or, otherwise, more modest variants powered by petrol and diesel engines.

Either way, this new Skoda Octavia RS will combine a turbocharged four-cylinder engine with a second electric motor, which will also allow its users to drive in EV mode. Thanks to this combination, we could be talking about a combined output of 290 CV, a figure equivalent to the Golf GTi TCR, a model that could also make use of a hybrid powertrain.

For now, this is all we can reveal about this new sporty saloon coming from Skoda. It will be at the next Geneva Motor Show where the Czech house will unveil all the news brought by the upcoming Skoda Octavia RS, a model that will mark a before and after in the brand’s history.

Technical specifications of this car

HatchbackSkoda Octavia24 versions · from 35,200 €