On 05/01/2025 at 12:46, BA Baracus said:

I prefer the aero covers on as will be easier to clean with sponge!

 

I think for the facelift, I feel as though I can just jump in the car and get going without having to wait for the entertainment system to reset, boot up and then switch off various settings because your preferences wouldn't be retained as in the pre-facelift.  In the facelift a few button presses and I am good to go.

 

Thank god the sound generator thing has gone because I would always select economy previously to get it switched off - now I just drive in normal mode and life is good and quiet with some sporty noises from the exhaust.

 

Wireless charging and Apple CarPlay is fab - just put your phone down and it will charge, sync etc etc. and it doesn't need to be positioned in an exact sweet spot.

 

I have Canton - difficult to tell the improvement over the stock system, must be better but bass doesn't shake the car or anything - probably more clear with additional speakers - would I get it again? probably.

 

I also got a sunroof - not getting much action right now but really like it in spring/summer so glad I got it.

 

Winter pack is great - obvs using it right now for heated screen and steering wheel.

 

Infotainment system works very well and has had a significant improvement from previous version - responsive and screen a lot bigger.

 

This is my 5th vRS estate and do miss the LED strips in the rear doors - I know this has gone for a wee while but just looks cheap and naff with the front doors having LED strips and then it just goes pitch black on the rear doors - am sure the bean counters could have afforded this in a £40k car.

 

Can't think what else could be better but this is about it - so can't be all bad.  No regrets about buying another vRS estate as I get no hassle from the dealer when buying new or servicing and Octavia's have not given me any grief over the years.

 

Glad I bought this and not a Golf GTI - see ya VW!

 

 

I too think the aero covers look OK. Guessing a small mpg improvement & less road noise.

Also, the red looks stunning in the pics!!

On 09/04/2025 at 20:51, whippersnapper said:

Up to about 1,500km in my race blue combi now so almost time to give launch control a test although launching a FWD car is always a lesson in futility.

Absolutely loving the car every time I get in it and the few friends who have been in it have all been amazed at the interior quality, styling and how it drives. Like most people, Skoda is not really a brand you think of much and few have any better than a neutral impression of it until they see for themselves.

I have found, even though you can cycle through the drive modes easily enough with the button, that putting the drive mode option permanently on the screen is quite helpful as I often change it preferring normal most of the time in the city, comfort for a bumpy road, sport or individual when having a play and eco when just sitting on a motorway letting the car mostly drive itself.

The canton stereo wasn’t that impressive to me at first but a combo of breaking it in and adjusting it to use less of the immersive sound shows it is actually pretty good with a good sound stage. It reminds me of the best stereo I’ve had previously which was the Harmon Kardon upgrade in an E90 BMW. Infiniti Bose and Subaru Mcintosh were nowhere near as good despite supposedly impressive stats on paper.

I continue to love the Race blue, just so nice to have a car in an actual colour which is so rare today outside of sports cars and Supercars.

Did you remove the aero covers & notice any increased road noise.

Your feedback on the Canton makes me think I should maybe tick this option. Heard lots of mixed reviews.

On 15/08/2025 at 22:40, GSD said:

Hey all. Very useful thread and wanted to share that I collected my vRS last week. Look forward to contributing to the forum 😊

Loving the Race Blue, another one to add to the maybe option 😅

On 17/08/2025 at 20:26, GSD said:

Agree. They’re designed for fuel efficiency, but car looks 100x better without them and on my last motorway run I even reached 45mpg. Not bad for the running in period 😂

Seems like we’ve got quite the Race Blue gang on here.

Great mpg too!

The Race Blue, is 100% a grower for me.

1 hour ago, rapport25 said:

Just see this thread, and had a really good read. Thanks all for the input & @arturp for creating it.

I'm currently in the process of pushing the button on an Octavia vRS estate.

I'm really undecided on what colour & options to go for..

So far, I'm thinking the following colours..

Colour

Velvet Red, looks stunning. Only ever seen one in the flesh. And WOW!!

Graphite Grey, was my original choice, but I have had far to many grey cars over the last 10 yrs. A great colour for flying under the radar.

Space Violet, looks a bit different. Not seen one in the flesh, but worried with some of the dealer pics it looks a bit light & washed out. And the complete flip side, another dealer has one & this colour looks beautiful.

Options

Winter Pack

DCC

Pan roof, unsure

Simply Clever Package Premium, simply for the boot net, when the dog is in the boot.

If you could choose again. Which options are a must & what would you avoid?

I know you don't by a vRS for fuel economy, but would be interested to hear if 35-40mpg is achievable in real world driving?

Many thanks!!!

My car was available as stock at the time, and my dealer did an incredible cash deal on it. They knew I wanted zero options to keep road tax under the £40K limit, so bear in mind any options you select will cost you a lot more over your term than just their quoted price.

My RS4 was specced to the heavens. The only option I kind of miss is a heated steering wheel, but not a deal breaker. My must haves are fitted as standard (ACC, heated seats, rear camera, auto high beam assist and sports exhaust). Living in the countryside I’m surrounded by bumpy b-roads. The stock suspension is absolutely fine even with tyres at 39psi, and not once have I felt it’s uncomfortable. The stock speakers aren’t great and I may replace with focals at some point, but not a priority at the moment.

My GSD rides comfortably in the boot. I got a custom boot mat made for £55 that’s fits perfectly. Assuming you’ll have a separate boot liner so check if this doesn’t make the boot net option redundant.

MPG improving with age. My 50 mile motorway trip this morning returned 48mpg idling at 65mph for most of it. Mixed driving you’ll see 35 mpg ish. Not sure if it’s an option, but would love a larger fuel tank.

Colour - always a personal preference. The VRS needs a colour IMO … you’ll appreciate it when you drive past the sea of whites, greys and blacks on the roads. But don’t overthink the colour, just get the best deal possible and start driving the damn thing asap.

I think the base vRS is £41k now on Skoda website. Was just under the £40k with no options in March when I got mine.

1 hour ago, GSD said:

My car was available as stock at the time, and my dealer did an incredible cash deal on it. They knew I wanted zero options to keep road tax under the £40K limit, so bear in mind any options you select will cost you a lot more over your term than just their quoted price.

My RS4 was specced to the heavens. The only option I kind of miss is a heated steering wheel, but not a deal breaker. My must haves are fitted as standard (ACC, heated seats, rear camera, auto high beam assist and sports exhaust). Living in the countryside I’m surrounded by bumpy b-roads. The stock suspension is absolutely fine even with tyres at 39psi, and not once have I felt it’s uncomfortable. The stock speakers aren’t great and I may replace with focals at some point, but not a priority at the moment.

My GSD rides comfortably in the boot. I got a custom boot mat made for £55 that’s fits perfectly. Assuming you’ll have a separate boot liner so check if this doesn’t make the boot net option redundant.

MPG improving with age. My 50 mile motorway trip this morning returned 48mpg idling at 65mph for most of it. Mixed driving you’ll see 35 mpg ish. Not sure if it’s an option, but would love a larger fuel tank.

Colour - always a personal preference. The VRS needs a colour IMO … you’ll appreciate it when you drive past the sea of whites, greys and blacks on the roads. But don’t overthink the colour, just get the best deal possible and start driving the damn thing asap.

Thanks for the detailed reply. Very helpful!!

Have you drive one with & without DCC to compare?

I'm not to bothered about the £40k limit, but I want to add the options that a worth it. Not expecting B&O quality as in my Audi. But a step up from the stock system, sounds like it is needed.

The Blue, Red or Purple are now up for discussion

Edited 22 December, 202522 Dec by rapport25

Great problem to have! I love that Skoda offers colours. Before I got my race blue RS I was looking at Cupra and just couldn’t stomach the various shades of depression they offered. I’d say velvet red if you like red, I’ve never seen the purple but that would also likely be a marmite choice affecting future resale if you care about that.

Originally I wanted a pan roof just for the extra light and a heads up display and the quieter thicker glass in the front doors. In the end i took a car from stock that had majority of what I wanted.

I don’t miss the pan roof even though my last car had a sunroof and I’m not sure I’d choose one if I did it again because of the extra weight up high and all the nightmares you hear about blocked drains and leaking issues. The heads up display is like to try but not a deal breaker.

I got the Canton stereo and the suedia seats that look great and really lift the cabin ambience but they don’t seem to be a common choice in the UK (I’m in New Zealand).

I love the DCC and use it all the time.

Fuel economy. It’s going to depend on how you drive a your mix of city traffic vs motorway. I can get 40mpg plus on a motorway cruise but more like 28-30 if it’s no motorway work. I drive mostly in normal mode, comfort on bumpy roads and sport or the custom option with ESC Sport when I’m having a play down a twisty road.

Enjoy your new car when you get it. They are great.

5 hours ago, rapport25 said:

Did you remove the aero covers & notice any increased road noise.

Your feedback on the Canton makes me think I should maybe tick this option. Heard lots of mixed reviews.

My car was delivered with the covers off so I can’t say for sure but I doubt it would make much difference. Most noise is from the tyres and the covers are just used to eek a tiny bit of extra mpg..

5 hours ago, whippersnapper said:

Great problem to have! I love that Skoda offers colours. Before I got my race blue RS I was looking at C

5 hours ago, whippersnapper said:

Great problem to have! I love that Skoda offers colours. Before I got my race blue RS I was looking at Cupra and just couldn’t stomach the various shades of depression they offered. I’d say velvet red if you like red, I’ve never seen the purple but that would also likely be a marmite choice affecting future resale if you care about that.

Originally I wanted a pan roof just for the extra light and a heads up display and the quieter thicker glass in the front doors. In the end i took a car from stock that had majority of what I wanted.

I don’t miss the pan roof even though my last car had a sunroof and I’m not sure I’d choose one if I did it again because of the extra weight up high and all the nightmares you hear about blocked drains and leaking issues. The heads up display is like to try but not a deal breaker.

I got the Canton stereo and the suedia seats that look great and really lift the cabin ambience but they don’t seem to be a common choice in the UK (I’m in New Zealand).

I love the DCC and use it all the time.

Fuel economy. It’s going to depend on how you drive a your mix of city traffic vs motorway. I can get 40mpg plus on a motorway cruise but more like 28-30 if it’s no motorway work. I drive mostly in normal mode, comfort on bumpy roads and sport or the custom option with ESC Sport when I’m having a play down a twisty road.

Enjoy your new car when you get it. They are great.

upra and just couldn’t stomach the various shades of depression they offered. I’d say velvet red if you like red, I’ve never seen the purple but that would also likely be a marmite choice affecting future resale if you care about that.

Originally I wanted a pan roof just for the extra light and a heads up display and the quieter thicker glass in the front doors. In the end i took a car from stock that had majority of what I wanted.

I don’t miss the pan roof even though my last car had a sunroof and I’m not sure I’d choose one if I did it again because of the extra weight up high and all the nightmares you hear about blocked drains and leaking issues. The heads up display is like to try but not a deal breaker.

I got the Canton stereo and the suedia seats that look great and really lift the cabin ambience but they don’t seem to be a common choice in the UK (I’m in New Zealand).

I love the DCC and use it all the time.

Fuel economy. It’s going to depend on how you drive a your mix of city traffic vs motorway. I can get 40mpg plus on a motorway cruise but more like 28-30 if it’s no motorway work. I drive mostly in normal mode, comfort on bumpy roads and sport or the custom option with ESC Sport when I’m having a play down a twisty road.

Enjoy your new car when you get it. They are great.

Agreed. A big Audi fan boy of past but would not spend a penny on the new shape A5 & A6 Avants. Audi have lost the plot, replacing lightweight materials with cheaper heavier materials.

Looked at brand new Golf R estates & used RS4 Avants, but want another new to me car. I think the Octavia vRS, ticks a lot of my wants in a car.

The Race Blue, I originally discounted. But I have changed my mind now. Agreed about the purple. The wife has said no to this colour & that we can't have two red cars. Not that it's my car.

Your reasoning for a pan roof, both good & bad echo my exact thoughts. I may save the cash on this, thanks.

No option on the seats in the UK. Full cloth only.

Canton, Winter Pack & DCC seem to be the must options now.

MPG, is pretty much what I was hoping for. Low 20s high 10s never again!!!

14 hours ago, rapport25 said:

Just see this thread, and had a really good read. Thanks all for the input & @arturp for creating it.

I'm currently in the process of pushing the button on an Octavia vRS estate.

I'm really undecided on what colour & options to go for..

So far, I'm thinking the following colours..

Colour

Velvet Red, looks stunning. Only ever seen one in the flesh. And WOW!!

Graphite Grey, was my original choice, but I have had far to many grey cars over the last 10 yrs. A great colour for flying under the radar.

Space Violet, looks a bit different. Not seen one in the flesh, but worried with some of the dealer pics it looks a bit light & washed out. And the complete flip side, another dealer has one & this colour looks beautiful.

Options

Winter Pack

DCC

Pan roof, unsure

Simply Clever Package Premium, simply for the boot net, when the dog is in the boot.

If you could choose again. Which options are a must & what would you avoid?

I know you don't by a vRS for fuel economy, but would be interested to hear if 35-40mpg is achievable in real world driving?

Many thanks!!!

Velvet Red is a good shade but costs extra here in NZ (along with the Orange), making it a rare choice. I have a Mk4 is this shade and it has stopped passers by commenting on the sharp looks when kept clean. We don't seem to have Space Violet yet as an option but I guess it will come through later. Just be careful that it may not prove popular as a used car choice, so resale value could be slightly impacted.

As for options, the pano roof is recommended as the interior can be too dark for some tastes with a black headliner.

Winter pack definitely (I presume your country spec is for heated front and rear seating and steering wheel?).

DCC - do a test drive with the normal set up and see if you can live with it as the Mk4.5 sits a little lower and rides 19" wheels as standard. I've got it and swapped out the dealer opted 19" rims when they specced the car from the factory for the 18" Comets and the ride is less jarring over potholed streets.

35 - 40 mpg is definitelt doable in mixed driving - I get anything between 12 - 14 km/l.

Enjoy your new ride.

Picked up my third MK4 VRS today (previously 2020 Meteor Grey, 2023 Race Blue).
Ordered the Space Violet, and thought it might be of interest to those on the fence about the colour - it looks almost black when in the shade, but even on an overcast day in the light it looks pretty purple...have feeling it will look even more purple in the sunshine. Very happy to have something a little outside the norm!

..and keeping on thread, it feels a little sharper than the previous two cars, but the real difference is in the screen and how it all works faster and better than the 2023 car (and the less said about the buggy 2020 car, the better!).

Ordered in August as soon as I saw the colour was available, and no options other than Canton.
Here's an untouched pic on an overcast day, no coating or treatment. Just as it came from the dealer.

13 minutes ago, Chucker said:

Picked up my third MK4 VRS today (previously 2020 Meteor Grey, 2023 Race Blue).
Ordered the Space Violet, and thought it might be of interest to those on the fence about the colour - it looks almost black when in the shade, but even on an overcast day in the light it looks pretty purple...have feeling it will look even more purple in the sunshine. Very happy to have something a little outside the norm!

..and keeping on thread, it feels a little sharper than the previous two cars, but the real difference is in the screen and how it all works faster and better than the 2023 car (and the less said about the buggy 2020 car, the better!).

Ordered in August as soon as I saw the colour was available, and no options other than Canton.
Here's an untouched pic on an overcast day, no coating or treatment. Just as it came from the dealer.

Nice, thanks for sharing. Colours is one of the ways that Skoda is showing up the other VAG brands.

2 hours ago, Chucker said:

Picked up my third MK4 VRS today (previously 2020 Meteor Grey, 2023 Race Blue).
Ordered the Space Violet, and thought it might be of interest to those on the fence about the colour - it looks almost black when in the shade, but even on an overcast day in the light it looks pretty purple...have feeling it will look even more purple in the sunshine. Very happy to have something a little outside the norm!

..and keeping on thread, it feels a little sharper than the previous two cars, but the real difference is in the screen and how it all works faster and better than the 2023 car (and the less said about the buggy 2020 car, the better!).

Ordered in August as soon as I saw the colour was available, and no options other than Canton.
Here's an untouched pic on an overcast day, no coating or treatment. Just as it came from the dealer.

Merlin purple vibes. Looks fabulous. Drive in good health.

3 hours ago, Chucker said:

Picked up my third MK4 VRS today (previously 2020 Meteor Grey, 2023 Race Blue).
Ordered the Space Violet, and thought it might be of interest to those on the fence about the colour - it looks almost black when in the shade, but even on an overcast day in the light it looks pretty purple...have feeling it will look even more purple in the sunshine. Very happy to have something a little outside the norm!

..and keeping on thread, it feels a little sharper than the previous two cars, but the real difference is in the screen and how it all works faster and better than the 2023 car (and the less said about the buggy 2020 car, the better!).

Ordered in August as soon as I saw the colour was available, and no options other than Canton.
Here's an untouched pic on an overcast day, no coating or treatment. Just as it came from the dealer.

Thank you, love it!! I had hoped it was darker mmmmmmm. Please post some pics when you can. Really appreciate you posting one outside vs showroom pics 👍👍

Edited 23 December, 202523 Dec by rapport25

53 minutes ago, GSD said:

Merlin purple vibes. Looks fabulous. Drive in good health.

Agreed. Looks bloody brilliant!!

@Chucker  agreed. A machine polish & coating, it will look stunning 😎

Aero covers, going or staying?

Edited 23 December, 202523 Dec by rapport25

1 hour ago, rapport25 said:

@Chucker  agreed. A machine polish & coating, it will look stunning 😎

Aero covers, going or staying?

Staying for now. I don't mind them at all, and think they go well with the dark body colour......might think different if I had hyper green or white though?

5 hours ago, Chucker said:

Picked up my third MK4 VRS today (previously 2020 Meteor Grey, 2023 Race Blue).
Ordered the Space Violet, and thought it might be of interest to those on the fence about the colour - it looks almost black when in the shade, but even on an overcast day in the light it looks pretty purple...have feeling it will look even more purple in the sunshine. Very happy to have something a little outside the norm!

..and keeping on thread, it feels a little sharper than the previous two cars, but the real difference is in the screen and how it all works faster and better than the 2023 car (and the less said about the buggy 2020 car, the better!).

Ordered in August as soon as I saw the colour was available, and no options other than Canton.
Here's an untouched pic on an overcast day, no coating or treatment. Just as it came from the dealer.

Congratulations on your new VRS, the color is fabulous.

Could you tell me which hardware and software version you have in the infotainment system? Thx

12 hours ago, Chucker said:

Staying for now. I don't mind them at all, and think they go well with the dark body colour......might think different if I had hyper green or white though?

I'm in the same boat. I think they look OK.

They remind a little of the RS4 alloys, which I like.

Please post some more pics when the sun is out. I'm really pleased the colour is darker. I'm 99% sure I will be joining Space Violet club. Looking to push the button in January.

Just need to decide if I need DCC or not!!

Very nice indeed and also rare making it stand out even more 👍

I like the space violet- I saw one in the showroom when I Picked up my red one- it looked really good. Enjoy!

13 hours ago, MRSOFT said:

Could you tell me which hardware and software version you have in the infotainment system? Thx

Hardware H11

Software 2768

Display unit / control panel hardware H24

Display unit / control panel hardware 266

More pics in the sun as requested.
We've had a good number of VAG group metallic over the years, this is the most interesting for sure - it looks pretty dark most of the time, even in the direct sun, but when it hits an angle it can really change. Tried to capture it in the pics.....

2 hours ago, Chucker said:

More pics in the sun as requested.
We've had a good number of VAG group metallic over the years, this is the most interesting for sure - it looks pretty dark most of the time, even in the direct sun, but when it hits an angle it can really change. Tried to capture it in the pics.....

SOLD!! 👍

Just shown the wife & we are both in agreement, this is the colour we will be going for.

As you have had 3 mk4 vRS what was you reasoning for the Canton? Is the basic system really that poor?

Have you had or driven one with DCC?