The Octavia was awarded four stars out of five by Euro NCAP for adult occupant crash safety. That’s a reasonable score but many newer hatchbacks have received the maximum rating. However, the Octavia comes with all the safety equipment you’d expect including ESP traction control to prevent the car losing control in a skid, driver and passenger front and side airbags plus active front headrests to protect the front occupants spines minimising the effects of whiplash injuries in the event of a rear end collision.

Curtain airbags are optional.

Few performance cars at this price offer as much room as the Octavia. Unusually, it’s available as a five-door hatch or as an estate and both are hugely practical. The boot is easy to access in both bodystyles thanks to the large tailgate and wide opening. The load area in the hatch is 560 litres – larger than the Vauxhall Insignia VXR. The estate version boasts 580 litres and folding down the rear seats increases this to a cavernous 1,620 litres, giving it the ability to cope with large amounts of flat pack furniture or two bikes.

There are also lashing eyes for a cargo net and a folding hook. Up front there’s plenty of storage including large door pockets, a cubby on the dash top and a deep box between the two seats.