The Fabia RS was the first hot hatch sold exclusively with a diesel engine, a 130 PS 1.9 TDI.
Lead trim: 1.0 8V (50 PS) · up to 113 hp
Škoda Fabia Mk16Y · 1999–2008
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FactThe Fabia RS was the first hot hatch sold exclusively with a diesel engine, a 130 PS 1.9 TDI.
Presented at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September 1999 with production having started in July, and the Combi estate following at the Paris Motor Show in September 2000, the first Fabia was the first model on the Volkswagen Group A04 (PQ24) platform, shared with the Polo Mk4 and SEAT Ibiza. It won What Car?'s 2000 Car of the Year in the UK. The range started with the 1.0 8v Classic, cheaper than VW's 3-door 1.0 Lupo, up to a 2.0 Elegance; the only non-VW traces were the pushrod 1.0 and 1.4 MPI engines, modifications of Škoda's own 1.3 from the 130 and Favorit, which ended in April 2003 after the arrival of the Czech-built three-cylinder 1.2 (HTP). A summer 2004 facelift added the Sport model. The Fabia RS (vRS in the UK), introduced in 2003, was the first exclusively diesel hot hatch: the 1.9 PD TDI with 130 PS and 310 N·m, a six-speed manual and a 128 mph top speed; it was Scottish Diesel Car of the Year 2003, the last one was built in March 2007, and 1,000 vRS SE special editions were built for the UK in 2007. Saloon, hatchback and Combi bodies, plus the Fabia Praktik panel van for Eastern Europe.
Collectors Spotted in the Škoda Fabia Lineage
No member has published a public street spot of the Škoda Fabia yet — the First · Worldwide stamp is wide open.
Trims & Figures
12 published trims in the catalogue. A blank is a figure not recorded, not zero.
| Trim | Years | Engine | Power | Torque | 0–60 | Drive | Gearbox | MSRP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.0 8V (50 PS) | 1999–2000 | 1.0 L Inline-4 | 49 hp | 62 lb-ft | — | FWD | — | — |
| 1.2 HTP 12V (64 PS) | 2003–2007 | 1.2 L Inline-3 | 63 hp | 83 lb-ft | — | FWD | — | — |
| 1.2 HTP 6V (54 PS) | 2002–2007 | 1.2 L Inline-3 | 53 hp | 80 lb-ft | — | FWD | — | — |
| 1.4 16V (75 PS) | 2000–2007 | 1.4 L Inline-4 | 74 hp | 93 lb-ft | — | FWD | — | — |
| 1.4 16V AUB / BBZ (101 PS) | 1999–2007 | 1.4 L Inline-4 | 100 hp | 93 lb-ft | — | FWD | — | — |
| 1.4 16V BUD (80 PS) | 2006–2007 | 1.4 L Inline-4 | 79 hp | 97 lb-ft | — | FWD | — | — |
| 1.4 MPI (60 PS) | 2000–2003 | 1.4 L Inline-4 | 59 hp | 87 lb-ft | — | FWD | — | — |
| 1.4 MPI (68 PS) | 1999–2003 | 1.4 L Inline-4 | 67 hp | 89 lb-ft | — | FWD | — | — |
| 1.4 TDI 6V BNV diesel (80 PS) | 2005–2008 | 1.4 L Inline-3 | 79 hp | 144 lb-ft | — | FWD | — | — |
| 1.9 SDI 8V diesel (64 PS) | 1999–2006 | 1.9 L Inline-4 | 63 hp | 92 lb-ft | — | FWD | — | — |
| 1.9 TDI PD 8V diesel (100 PS) | 2000–2007 | 1.9 L Inline-4 | 99 hp | 177 lb-ft | — | FWD | — | — |
| 2.0 8V AZL / BBX (115 PS) | 2000–2007 | 2.0 L Inline-4 | 113 hp | 130 lb-ft | — | FWD | — | — |
Owning one
We don’t estimate running costs for a car like this. What it costs depends on its condition, its specialist and how it is driven, and an average would mislead.
Owners’ builds
Nobody has claimed one yet.
Photographs
Škoda chased aerodynamics hard on this Fabia, cutting its drag coefficient from 0.32 to 0.28 — a figure the company claims is the best in the entire small-car class.
By 2020, barely six years into its run, Škoda had already built a million third-generation Fabias — a huge number for what's usually dismissed as just a budget supermini.
A budget Czech hatchback embarrassed a premium badge: this Fabia RS was clocked quicker than a similarly priced MINI Cooper around both Top Gear's and Fifth Gear's test tracks.
An Austrian economy driver nursed a Fabia GreenLine to 2,006 km on one tank — 2.21 L/100km, nearly triple the official combined-cycle figure.
This Fabia RS wasn't just a diesel hot hatch option — it was the first hot hatch ever sold with NO petrol version at all.
The Fabia RS was the first hot hatch sold exclusively with a diesel engine, a 130 PS 1.9 TDI.
Rivals
Same body, same money, other badges — tap any card to flip.
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