The new ŠKODA Octavia RS is celebrating its world premiere at the sporty and traditional ‘Goodwood Festival of Speed’. Today ŠKODA fans, customers, media and motorsport enthusiasts witnessed the first public appearance of the new compact sports car. The third generation Octavia RS is the fastest production Octavia in history. The Octavia RS, the latest edition of ŠKODA's current model offensive, is capable of speeds up to 248 km/h.
The new ŠKODA Octavia RS is one of the stars at this year's ‘Festival of Speed’. After its exclusive world premiere before international journalists, ŠKODA is presenting the new model for four days in the ŠKODA Pavilion next to the race track. Just before the unveiling at the ŠKODA pavilion, a total of four brand new ŠKODA Octavia RSs lapped the legendary circuit at Goodwood. Thousands of enthusiastic motorsports fans could finally get an idea of how powerful the car really is.
"The ‘Goodwood Festival of Speed’ is a fantastic venue for the world premiere of the new ŠKODA Octavia RS," states ŠKODA CEO Winfried Vahland. "Tens of thousands of automobile enthusiasts will be there to experience motorsports up close and personal, and that is exactly what the new Octavia RS offers. Our latest model is not just the fastest Octavia ever, but it is also larger, roomier and more practical than ever before. The new Octavia RS is in a sporty class of its own," says Vahland.
The new Octavia RS boasts outstanding fuel consumption and performance. Customers can choose between a two-litre petrol engine with 162 kW (220 hp) or a two-litre diesel engine with 135 kW (184 hp). Compared to the second generation Octavia RS, the new engines offer both higher performance and up to 19 percent lower fuel consumption, and they can reach a top speed of 248 km/h.
Year after year the ‘Goodwood Festival of Speed’ attracts the ‘crème de la crème’ of the motorsports world as well as many celebrities and tens of thousands of motorsports enthusiasts to the grounds of Goodwin House in West Sussex. In addition to the race itself, visitors can admire racing and sports cars, racing motorcycles and rally cars from every era of motorsports history. A competition for rally cars has been held since 2007 on a U-shaped rally course: the specially-built 2.5 km long 'Forest Rally Stage'.
Largest model offensive in company history
ŠKODA is boldly continuing its largest model offensive in the company's history with the new ŠKODA Octavia RS. The goal is to raise its worldwide sales to a minimum of 1.5 million units per year by the year 2018. "2013 is the year of our new models," states Vahland. ŠKODA will be launching eight new or revised cars this year alone, completely revising its entire model line and expanding it in important segments by the end of 2015.
Under its 2018 growth strategy, ŠKODA has significantly increased its sales over the last two years, achieving a new sales record in 2012 (its eighth in a row) selling 939,200 cars worldwide. From the start of the year to the end of June, the brand sold 464,600 worldwide, down 5.8 per cent. "We expected that we would not achieve the previous year's sales in the first half of the year in light of the rampup of production for the new Octavia and the Octavia Combi. We also did not entirely escape the weakness in some individual markets," explains Werner Eichhorn, ŠKODA board member for sales and marketing. "We are cautiously optimistic about the second half of the year, however. The new models will give us new impetus," claims Eichhorn.
ŠKODA: Successful in motorsports
The RS is the Octavia range’s top-of-the-line model and the most powerful ŠKODA Octavia in production, permitting to experience the brand’s motorsport know-how in everyday life. For 112 years now, ŠKODA has been proving its rally capability on the world’s most demanding courses. Victories like at the 1977 Rally Monte Carlo and ongoing successes at the IRC Intercontinental Rally Challenge speak for themselves. Three consecutive wins from 2010 to 2012 and 27 individual victories since 2009 have made ŠKODA the most successful brand in IRC history. With the double victory in the IRC brand and drivers‘ standings and winning the title in the European Rally Championship, the Asia-Pacific Rally Championship and six national rally championships placed 2012 among the most successful years in the brand’s 112-year history in motorsports.
ŠKODA continues to accelerate in this year’s motorsport season, increasing its motorsports activities in the Asian-Pacific region. For the first time, the newly established Team ŠKODA MRF participated with full factory sponsorship and two driver crews in this year's Asian-Pacific Rally Championship, immediately taking first and second place in the season's first race in early May in New Zealand. In the season's second race in New Caledonia, a ŠKODA MRF Crew also made first place. The brand is also enjoying success in the European Rally Championship with ŠKODA's Czech driving duo Jan Kopecký and Pavel Dresler currently ranked number 1 overall in the FIA European Rally Championship (ERC). Thus ŠKODA continues along the path of success laid down in previous years.