Torque about this mighty little Czech, mate

By DAVID LINKLATER

The Audi A6 3.0 and Skoda's new Fabia 1.9-litre turbo diesel have something in common: 300Nm of torque. Actually, we're exaggerating a little - the Czech car outmuscles its six-cylinder sibling by 10Nm.

The $35,990 Fabia RS recently launched in New Zealand is notable for being Kiwiland's first diesel-powered warm hatch. While it may be considered something of an oddity here, in Europe it makes perfect sense: nearly 60 per cent of all Skodas produced are diesel.

The Fabia RS sports a six-speed manual gearbox and can reach 100km/h in 9.6 seconds. Top speed is 204km/h. However, independent European fuel consumption figures indicate that it's also capable of 5.6 litres a 100km in the combined cycle.

The Fabia RS features 16-inch alloy wheels on 205/45 tyres, sports suspension and a full body kit. Anti-lock braking with traction control is also fitted.

Standard equipment includes dual airbags (side airbags are an option), sports seating, cruise control and air conditioning that extends into the glovebox for keeping food and drinks cool.

Skoda is part of the Volkswagen Group and the Fabia is designed around the same platform structure as the Polo supermini.