Skoda Octavia celebrates 20 year run

One of the most successful models Skoda, Octavia is celebrating completing 20 years. The sedan made its debut on 3rd September 1996, at the hands of former Czech President, Mr Vaclav Havel at a special event.

Since then, there have been a total of 5 million units produced to date which is an average of 4,00,000 units per annum. The latest generation Octi has already amassed over 1 million happy customers across the globe.

20 years ago, the Skoda Octavia was a simple sedan powered by two FSI petrol engines and one 1.9 liter TDI engine. 1998 saw the introduction of the Octavia Combi, a much needed variant for customers in Europe, while all wheel drive came in 1999. November 2010, when first generation Octavia production came to an end, there were 9,70,000 sedans and 4,70,000 estates (Combi) in circulation.

From 2004 to 2013, 1.6 million units of second generation Skoda Octavia were produced. As on date, there are many more variants and engine options with the most powerful of the lot being the RS230 powered by a 2.0 liter turbo engine also seen on the Golf GTI.

Today, Skoda Octavia is considered the company’s best seller. It gets a Haldex AWD system, adaptive suspension and hydraulic operated trunk while pricing has increased considerably. It is the Skoda Octavia that has been recipient of over 50 international awards in recent years.

Skoda Octavia is produced from assembly lines in Czech Republic, China, Russia, India and Kazakhstan while the maximum number of units has been produced from the company’s main plant in Mladá Boleslav.

This article first appeared on Rushlane.com