The Škoda’s Fabia Monte Carlo starts at €19,425 & is available with a 1 litre engine building 75bhp. It’s a 5 speed manual which is €190 to tax. You’ll love the looks, the design touches are nifty and the boot is decent for a small hatchback.
In Monte Carlo spec, it’s an eye catching 5 door hatchback with economy in mind. I love the optional Panoramic roof (which is one of the cheapest at €575 to spec of any car I’ve seen, do it!). You don’t notice the pano roof from the outside as it’s brilliantly hidden using the piano black theme running around the car and stretches over the tinted glass roof. Even when you stare straight at it, it’s hard to notice. Only when you sit inside do you notice the airiness the glass roof brings to the interior. It also comes with an interior cover if you’re not feeling the skylight vibes. More of Škoda’s neat little design touches include the split parcel shelf, parking ticket holder & umbrella stashed under the passenger seat, which make the little Škoda stand out from it’s competition (Fiesta, Ibiza, Polo etc).
The interior is solid Škoda, the piano theme continues throughout the cabin. The seats can be optioned with either grey, black or red upholstery. The Comfort Pack (€758) comes with height-adjustable front seats, and the sport seats are a zero cost option. There is limited rake and reach adjust but no matter what configuration of these settings I used, I could not get comfortable in heavy commuter traffic. While cruising motorways or nipping to the shops, it ‘s great. I noticed a lot of ’empty’ space to the right side of the driver and how the pedals are further to the right in the footwell but the seat is slightly to the left. So just make sure that you can get comfortable in any car before buying and that it stacks up to your requirements. Getting comfortable in a car can make a huge difference to your quality of life, especially if you are depending on it up to and above 2 hours a day (road warriors take heed).
For a small hatchback the space is commendable and the use of space is excellent. With all Škoda’s, there are neat little design touches throughout the cabin. The arm rest is optional at a cost of €135 but it includes two USB ports for the rear seat passengers. It’s multi flexible and has storage space for a bottle underneath as well. It comes with Smartlink for your mobile phone if you don’t feel like ponying up for options like DAB radio and Sat Nav. Similar to VW’s Polo, you can get decorative inserts for the dashboard but the standard material is durable and much improved over previous generations of Škoda’s.
Škoda’s Fabia Monte Carlo is a great looking little car with a lot of ability and the engine will surprise you once you wind it up. The cabin is well laid out and excellent materials are used throughout. It’s one of the better small hatches out the for the price and one that’s absolutely worth considering.
Special mention : The fun factor for a car with a 1.0 TSI 110 hp engine. It’s light on it’s feet and reasonably fuel efficient if you don’t hold it in the rev range for too long.
Needs work : The adjustability of the seats is a little limited.
Specs:
| Max Power 110 hp | Petrol / Manual |
| 0-100 km/h in 9.6s | Road Tax € 190.00 |
| Fabia starts at €15,600
Monte Carlo from €19, 425 Model as specc’d €21,285 |
Boot Space 330 litres/ 1,550 litres |
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OMIBzOhvPO0&w=560&h=315]