£3,000 off? That'll be a Skoda

19:04, Jan 21 2009 Steve Hughes

SKODA has effectively slashed the price of its sportiest Octavia model by the equivalent of more than £3,000. An announcement heralds the introduction of a new limited edition version that costs £750 more than the standard model but comes with the equivalent of £1,900 worth of extra equipment. The company says it is paying the VAT, or to put it another way Skoda is reducing the price by 15 per cent. The bottom line is that the car comes with £1,900 worth of additional kit and costs £1,245 less than the standard Octavia vRS at a new low price of £16,295, which represents a total saving of £3,145. Just 500 of the Limited Edition models are on offer in the UK with anthracite grey metallic paint and distinctive 18-inch alloy wheels. Inside there are special Italian leather seats, a new touch-screen Bolero radio and CD autochanger, three-spoke leather steering wheel, revised dashboard trim, a Maxi-dot computer and red and black badges.