Skoda Fabia S 1.2 12v 69ps 5dr Car Review - February 2012

Inside the cabin, finding the perfect driving position is easy thanks to the two-way adjustment on both the steering wheel and driver’s seat. Forward visibility is excellent due to the thin design of the windscreen pillars. The dashboard is well laid out, logical and the controls are simple to use.

This Fabia S version came fitted with a 70bhp, 1.2-litre 3-cylinder, 12-valve petrol engine, which while offering decent pulling power of 82lb-ft of torque, a top speed of 101mph, 0-62mph in 14.9 seconds and average fuel economy of 51.4mpg, isn’t the best engine in the range by any measure.

You could spend a bit more and get the potent four-cylinder 1.2 turbo version or the vRS supercharged 1.4-litre petrol version. There is also a 74bhp, 89bhp or 104bhp, 1.6-litre diesel engine to opt for.

By supermini standards the Fabia is quite large, but still compact enough to be perfect in city traffic. The ride is decent, away from bumpy surfaces, although out on the open road you’ll notice a bit of body lean while cornering and the steering and gear-change could benefit from being a bit more precise.

The level of Refinement depends on which model you choose. Road noise and suspension noise are reasonably well suppressed, but on the motorway you will become aware of the wind noise. The 1.2 turbo engine is the smoothest but the entry level 1.2-litre engine can be noisy when being worked hard and the diesel engines can be clattery at times too.

The Fabia has undergone some tweaking and now boasts a new front end including a new grille and 3D-shaped headlamps. It’s still handsome and is an appealing car thanks to its fuss-free and modern styling.

The S trim (entry-level) cars come with remote central locking, electric front windows and CD+MP3 connectivity. The SE trim adds air-conditioning, body-coloured electric door mirrors and halogen headlights, while the SE Plus comes with a multi-function steering wheel, climate control and electric rear windows. The Elegance version gives you extra speakers on the CD/stereo system, alloy wheels and curtain airbags.

The Fabia is generous with its space, especially in this supermini class. Headroom and legroom are good, both in the front and rear, and there’s enough space for four adults easily. You can even get five in it on a shorter journey, but obviously it will be a bit less comfortable.

The boot is well shaped and quite deep, offering 315-litres of space with the rear seats in position and there’s an impressive 1,180-litres available with them folded down – more than enough for a typical baby-buggy or the weekly shopping.

EuroNCAP awarded the Fabia a rating of four-stars overall in their crash-tests. All models have front and side airbags fitted as standard, but curtain airbags only come with the Elegance trim option. Anti-theft measures include an immobilizer, but sadly, there’s no alarm on entry level cars.

Skoda’s reputation for reliability is excellent and the Fabia feels like it’s well put together even though some of the plastics used maybe aren’t that appealing. Skoda offer their standard three-year, 60,000 mile warranty with the Fabia and regular service intervals are every 10,000 miles.

The Fabia doesn’t seem particularly cheap anymore with a price of £10,420, but there are some good discounts to be had from dealers when buying new. It’s got lots of space and it’s really practical as well as being reasonably economical to run; group 4 insurance and CO2 emissions of 128g/km (VED band D for Road Tax). However, in this class it has rivals such as the Ford Fiesta and Vauxhall Corsa which are better value all round.

A good option may be the special eco-friendly Greenline model which has CO2 emissions of only 109g/km and averages 69mpg – that would certainly give it an edge over its competitors for the same price.