Car of The Year 2021

SKODA Octavia Combi

What do you get when you hammer in on practicality unflinchingly, yet don't compromise on style? The Skoda Octavia Combi raises its electric tailgate confidently. This handsome wagon is typical Skoda fare, meaning an umbrella in the driver's door and phone pockets behind the front seats are standard starters. That's before we get to the never-ending rear head and legroom, and 640-litre boot. As dessert, there's also a twin-panoramic sunroof and rear aircon vents. But this is no slouch too, with a 1.5-litre turbocharged mild hybrid engine producing 148bhp and 250Nm of torque. No compromises? No problem.

What defines a stationwagon?

If the answer to this question was practicality alone, the Skoda Octavia Combi already blows the competition out of the water.

Let's start with its boot, which is class-leading at a cavernous 640 litres (expandable to 1200 litres), and replete with useful hooks and tethering points to tie stuff down to. Space in the rear is also encroaching on full-sized luxury sedan territory; even NBA players could get comfortable here with the acres of leg and headroom available.

But what makes the Octavia Combi special is that it goes on to offer more.

A 1.5-litre turbocharged engine churning out 148bhp and 250Nm of torque provides more than enough power for our roads. This is coupled with a 48V mild-hybrid system that optimises both fuel efficiency and refinement.

The equipment list is also generous. You get a twin-panoramic sunroof and a suite of safety features on top of Skoda's standard goodies - a pint-sized umbrella in the driver's seat as well as specially cut out handphone slots in the seat pockets - to arrive at the sort of charm that is uniquely Skoda. An electric tailgate then rounds off the rear.

Is the car terribly fun to drive? Not really, but it's definitely above average. Is it very stylish or luxurious? Again, not really, but it looks sufficiently smart, and its build quality is impeccable, especially at the front, where most touchpoints are cushy and yielding. Yet to pore over these questions would be to miss the point. Wearing its crown as the king of space first, this wagon then proceeds to tick many other boxes, and tick them well enough.

Perhaps then, this should be the question: What defines a great stationwagon? Our answer is the Skoda Octavia Combi.