The facelifted Skoda Fabia is priced from £12,840, with the entry-level car getting a 25% bump in power, from 59bhp to 74bhp.
Leading the updates of the Fabia, which was first unveiled in facelifted form at the Geneva motor show, is the removal of a diesel option from the car’s engine lineup - the only engines available are 1.0-litre three-cylinder engines, with between 74 and 109bhp. The 1.4-litre diesel from the current Fabia will no longer be an option, post-facelift. The entry-level car's power bump is also accompanied by a price hike - The new entry-level car is £2340 more than the entry-level, 59bhp, S-trim outgoing Fabia.
The same range of specs will appear as the pre-facelift version, with S at the bottom and Monte Carlo and Colour Edition cars at the top. Currently, the range-topping Fabia is the £17,950 1.0 TSI SE L estate, although the new range-topper is the most powerful 109bhp, DSG gearbox-equipped Monte Carlo-spec hatch, at £18,435.
The two higher-powered engines are particulate filter-equipped TSI units, while the lower power engines are naturally-aspirated MPI engines. The highest-power engine can be equipped with a seven-speed DSG automatic gearbox.
Skoda claims that the petrol engines are as frugal and cheap to run as their diesel counterparts, hence the petrol-only engine options. Diesels typically sell in far smaller numbers in the supermini segment, so slow sales has also influenced the decision. 98% of Fabia sales are currently petrol, while just 2% are diesels.
Higher-spec technology has trickled down from Skoda’s larger models into the Fabia, which now includes a blind spot monitor, rear traffic alert system (which alerts the driver of approaching traffic when reversing) and automatic high beam assistance.
In addition to the tweaked front-end design and tech, the new Skoda Fabia gets a refreshed interior, with two-tone seats and new interior strips. The instrument cluster has been redesigned, and Skoda’s signature ‘Simply Clever’ features have been updated, including a tyre tread depth measurement tool integrated into the filler-cap-stowed ice scraper. The Fabia estate gets an LED torch in the boot, while both cars are available with rear-seat USB ports.
The infotainment system has been given a boost - it’s now a 6.5in system with Apple Carplay and Android Auto integrated, as well as real-time journey data when equipped with sat-nav.
The Fabia is Skoda’s second-best-seller in the UK, with 19,275 registered in the UK last year, compared with 20,493 Octavias.
UK deliveries are set to be a few weeks later than European deliveries; first customers will receive their cars in September.
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