Skoda models awarded best in class by Parkers

The Skoda Octavia has retained its crown as ‘Best Family Car’ from respected consumer buying guide Parkers.

Expert judges from Parkers were faced with a tricky decision when working out which car deserved to be the best ‘Family Hatchback’ in its annual awards.

After crunching the numbers in both the ‘Under £18,000’ and ‘£18,000-£25,000’ price brackets, one of the two category winners would claim the overall title. It was an easy decision to make for the judges, however, as the Skoda Octavia finished top in both!

In the lower price bracket the Octavia 1.6 TDI S came out on top, and in the higher it was the Octavia 1.6 TDI Elegance with DSG transmission. After considering each model’s merits, the judging panel settled on the entry level S-spec as the UK’s number one ‘Family Hatchback’.

It’s a second triumph in a row for the popular Skoda, as the Octavia S 1.2 TSI won in the ‘Family Car’ category last year.

Parkers’ Car of the Year awards are unique in ensuring that price bracket wins are entirely fact-based. Using Parkers’ Cost of Motoring Tool, depreciation, road tax, showroom tax, first registration fee, servicing costs, breakdown cover and even fuel bills for three years/30,000 miles are all taken into account.

Kieren Puffett, Editor of Parkers, commented, “As every family motorist knows, you not only need a car that is hugely practical, spacious and comes well-equipped, but it must be cheap to run and deliver the most car for the money. Skoda has consistently delivered this with the Octavia and it’s clearly demonstrated with the car coming top in both price brackets in the category for being best value.”

Skoda models also came top in two other price brackets. In the ‘Premium Executive Car Under £30,000’, the best performer was the Superb 1.6 TDI CD S GreenLine II. The Fabia 1.6 TDI S five-door came up trumps in the ‘Family Estate Under £16,000’ catergory.

Chris Horrell, Product Marketing Manager at Skoda UK, commented, “We’re delighted that Skoda has delivered an exceptionally strong result in this year’s awards. With the calculations based on facts alone, it’s reassuring for customers to know Skoda delivers outstanding value for money across the range.”

Posted in: Award,Best Family Car,Car of the Year,Chris Horrell,DSG Transmission,Editor,Family Hatchback,Kieren Puffett,Marketing Manager,Parkers,S-spec,Skoda,Skoda Octavia,Skoda UK,TDI Elegance