Skoda Octavia wins 2022 Drive Car of the Year Best Medium to Large Car

Expectations for medium to large passenger cars are high: they must offer space, refinement, and a level of equipment to help them both stay safe and easy to drive, and also to ensure they feel just a little bit special for family buyers.

This year, no other car ticked all those boxes as well as the Skoda Octavia, or 2022 Drive Car of the Year Best Medium to Large Car.

When it first arrived in Australia in 2007, the Skoda Octavia was a bit of a dark horse. Smaller than most mid-size rivals, from a barely known brand at the time, but sharply priced and packed with features. It didn’t take long to win critical acclaim.

Fast-forward to 2021 and the new third-generation Octavia to be sold in Australia (the fourth internationally) has grown in size and features. It’s also developed a robust reputation as stellar family transport.

As clichéd as it may sound, the inbuilt Skoda-isms – things like tablet holders on the seatbacks, bag hooks in the boot, rear window blinds, and more – make the Octavia an ideal companion for any situation.

Judges were in agreement on features like the digital driver’s display described as “everything a modern dash should be – easy to read with information configured to taste”.

More important than the bells and whistles, though, under the skin the Octavia offers a range of engines, from an efficient 110kW 1.4-litre four-cylinder turbo petrol with a hybrid-like 5.7L/100km fuel claim, up to a more menacing 180kW 2.0-litre turbo in the performance-focused Octavia RS. There’s also a 140kW 2.0-litre model in between – so there’s something for everyone.

Similarly, a choice of liftback sedan and traditional wagon offers a cargo solution just right for your needs. Pricing from $36,490 drive-away up to $55,490 drive-away (at the time of testing) puts the Octavia range within reach of a broad spread of buyers.

Buying even the base model doesn’t mean missing out, with a minimum of seven airbags, autonomous emergency braking with pedestrian and cyclist detection, 10.0-inch touchscreen infotainment, wireless phone charging, dual-zone climate control, adaptive cruise control, and more.

The buyer protection of a five-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty and available pre-paid servicing from as little as $1550 for five years (or $2000 on Octavia RS models) also helps.

If anything, we’d like to see a few more interior and car control functions have dedicated buttons instead of being buried in the infotainment. Wagon versions betray a little too much road rumble on some surfaces and have a slightly high load lip too. Relatively minor grumbles, all told.

On-road fluidity is hard to fault. The torque-rich engine and snappy transmission response make the Octavia a delight around town, as does the stable roadholding on the open road. 

Read more about the Best Medium to Large Car category

Read about all the other 2022 Drive Car of the Year categories and winners