Skoda Fabia Monte Carlo is an often overlooked hatch in the market, but one that deserves more attention. With good looks and quality build, Brianna and Alex take it for a drive and see how it fits the urban lifestyle.
Fit for purpose-
Brianna: Fabia is for a young couple or family, ideal to run around town for errands or just to work and back. It wouldn’t be bad on small trips for just two and being able to use the boot and back seats for luggage space.
Alex: A high quality hatch back type car with a wow factor type design, great flashy car for a young guy or girl who wants to drive it around town and have that sporty car to show off without needing to spend a whole lot.
Design-
Brianna: The car certainly had a sporty sleek look to it both exterior and interior, which I find is rare with a hatch back. The interior was modern and followed the sleek outside with a great looking dashboard and multimedia system. However I found the middle console and drink holder area to have not been thought through with the space being nonfunctional.
Alex: Fabia has a unique looking exterior with the bright red colour. A sleek bonnet and stylish head lights and a very cool set of black chrome rims that looked great against the red. Interior was very high end complimented by leather seats and a modern and functional multi media panel. My only gripe was the undersized drink holder department that didn’t fit a regular water bottle size and could barely fit wallet or other for that matter.
Performance –
Brianna: While Fabia is a good car to drive, I wouldn’t say it was very smooth ride and the stop start was annoying at times especially when it turned the air con off. I couldn’t work out how to turn that system off when after spending good twenty minutes trying to figure it out. Would be pretty good for long trips on a highway however I didn’t love it in peak hour traffic.
Alex: I found it had a surprising amount of power for the size of the engine and at the same time felt exceptionally smooth and well balanced. However the transmission was very jerky and an awkward feeling and there was a massive delay when you needed to accelerate fast off the spot which felt a bit dangerous at crucial points when driving at roundabouts and so on.
Comfort –
Brianna: Found it fairly comfortable to sit in for both the driver and passenger, however with the hatch it didn’t have a great amount of space in the back seat, good for maybe young children where they don’t need a lot of leg space. The boot was decent and great for weekend luggage and shopping. I wouldn’t mind if I was in it for long drives. The Aircon was a little poor, which was annoying as we had a few hot days driving around and wanted to cool down, however the multimedia and sound system was well received.
Alex: Great level of comfort in the seats due to the leather and leg space. Key points are: excellent visibility from all the mirrors, electric seat adjustors, amazing sound system and easy connectivity to Bluetooth all added to the entertainment factor and overall driving experience.
Verdict-
Brianna: Overall I would say it was an adequate car, with a stylish look to it but drove ok, I would say I didn’t hate it nor did I love it. However it would fit the right type of person or couple out there that want a small, nimble sporty car that is easy to maneuver through a city
Alex: If you want to splash a little bit of money on a high quality hatch back this is your vehicle to have that sleek look mixed with what a hatch back offers.
Model: Skoda Fabia Monte Carlo
- Model Price: $26,990 MLP*
- Engine: One-litre, three-cylinder turbo petrol
- Drivetrain: 7 -speed DSG
- Power: 81kW @ 5,500 rpm
- Torque: 200Nm @ 2,000 – 3,500 rpm.
- Safety: 5 Star ANCAP
- CO2 Emissions: 109 gms/km
- Economy: 4.7 l/100km(ADR comb)
- Servicing: Fixed price
- Warranty: 5 years Unlimited KM 1 Yr Roadside
*MLP – Manufacturers List Price includes GST and LCT but excluding statutory charges, dealer costs and dealer delivery. See your dealer for RDAP. Does not include price of any options.
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Rating
Summary
Skoda Fabia Monte Carlo is an often overlooked hatch in the market, but one that deserves more attention. With good looks and quality build, Brianna and Alex take it for a drive and see how it fits the urban lifestyle.
