Styling
There are but four colours for the new Skoda Fabia 130, and the reason for this limited selection is that this sporty model has a lot of gloss-black exterior detailing. So the quartet of hues chosen by the manufacturer are primarily designed to show this contrast stuff off to best effect, although that means you'll probably want to avoid Black Magic pearl as a result. The other three are Moon White, Race Blue and Velvet Red, and the only one of these which'll cost you anything extra on the 30-grand asking price of the 130 is the last option, as it qualifies as an exclusive colour at £410.
The dark detailing on the most-powerful Fabia, then, amounts to the roof plus the A- and B-pillars, as well as the chunky spoiler on the bootlid, and also the LED headlight surrounds, the radiator grille, the front splitter, the door mirrors and the rear diffuser area. Even the 18-inch 'Libra' alloys, which are model-unique to the 130, are smoke-coloured, but perhaps the best feature of the fast Fabia is that decal stripe either side of the rear registration plate. It's supposed to evoke thoughts of the Fabia Rally2 cars and it really gives the 130 lots of presence from the rear-three-quarter view; as one observer said on this event, the styling tweaks on the Skoda don't go quite as far at the front as they do at the rear, which is a very minor aesthetic gripe.
Just to wrap up a few final points, the Fabia 130 has good stance because it is based on the Monte Carlo and so has the 15mm-lower sports suspension set-up which hunkers the car down nicely to the road. At the back, a dual-tipped exhaust is bespoke for this variant. And finally, of course, are the distinctive model insignias: blue-and-red '130' decals to be found on both front wings and on the right-hand side of the tailgate. Intriguingly, these stickers include a V-like shape in them, linking to Skoda's motorsport history and, most pertinently for the UK market alone (and the opening of this piece), looking like the company's fabled 'vRS' emblem...
Interior
Most of the main interface in the Skoda Fabia 130 is no different to any other model, which means a ten-inch Virtual Cockpit instrument cluster and a 9.2-inch central infotainment display. In the main, these work brilliantly, even if they're starting to show their technological age with 2026 just around the corner, but we've got no real problem with the ergonomics or easy usability of the Fabia Mk4's cabin.
The differences within amount to some lovely bucket sports seats up front, complete with integrated head restraints, contrast white stitching (replicated on a dashboard replete with silver trim details and panels of carbon-look leather too) and that funky five-stripe pattern, centred on a red belt with grey and white outer flanking bands. It's a theme repeated in the rear seats, while a three-spoke multifunction sports steering wheel with dimpled leather grips, some stainless-steel pedal covers, and black-aluminium door sills with the 'Fabia 130' emblems on them further help lift the cabin ambience of this Skoda.
Practicality
The 130 treatment in no way affects the overall practicality of the fourth-gen Fabia hatchback, which - as you'd expect of any self-respecting Skoda - is one of the roomiest and most practical cars in its class. Leg- and headroom in the second row of the Fabia are as good as, if not better than, any competitor vehicle at a similar price, while the 380-litre boot with all seats in use is almost the same size as that found in a regular version of the
Mk8 VW Golf; a model from the segment above the Skoda, don't forget.
Performance
Right, this is where things get interesting, and also potentially mildly disappointing if you're hoping for 'big things' from the Fabia 130. It doesn't, for instance, borrow some lightly detuned version of the venerable EA888 2.0-litre turbo four engine, and therefore push beyond the 200hp barrier. In fact, it deploys the very same 1.5-litre TSI Evo2 engine as found in the next model down the Fabia tree, the 150hp/250Nm Monte Carlo.
The 130 does have more power, though. Roughly 18 per cent, because the peak output has been raised to 177hp, offered up in a 250rpm band from 5,750 to 6,000 revs. The torque is no different to the Monte Carlo, so it's best you gear yourself up for this being a warm hatch, rather than an out-and-out hot one.
That said, the company's proud to say this is more than a simple ECU reflash of the 1.5. Skoda's Technical Development team changed the four-pot motor's intake plenum, vibration damper and its rocker arms to gain the extra horses, and the 177hp iteration of the TSI Evo2 is now a unique-to-Skoda specification of this turbo petrol engine in the entire VW Group.
Furthermore, the 130 has a retuned seven-speed DSG 'box (yes, we know, sad times: there is no six-speed manual transmission option for the fleet-footed Fabia) with higher shift points for quicker acceleration, double-clutch downshifts in Sport mode for smoother gearchanges, and modified braking logic for punchier re-acceleration. Skoda also says it has worked on the exhaust system to give the Fabia 130 a beefier voice than a regular 150hp 1.5.
Incredibly, while you might think this is a mild power upgrade, and we've already talked about the lack of a vRS motif, the 130 nevertheless takes the title of the 'fastest road-going production Fabia' yet seen. It's not quite as quick from 0-62mph as the 180hp Mk2 vRS, because that old-timer could manage a 7.3-second run, a tenth quicker than this newcomer's 7.4-second sprint. But the 130 will top out at 142mph, 3mph quicker than the Mk2 vRS and thus landing it the 'fastest-ever' crown (if you're wondering, the 1.9-litre TDI Mk1 vRS, with just 130hp but a honking great 310Nm of torque, had an official V-max of 128mph with a 0-62mph time of 9.5 seconds, although contemporary road tests when it was new indicated that Skoda might've been sandbagging that time, as it could apparently get into the 7-8 seconds bracket).
It's not so much the off-the-line acceleration which stands out in the Fabia 130, though, but its added muscle in the midrange and its keenness to rev. Not only has Skoda reduced the 0-62mph time by 0.4 seconds from the 150hp model, but it has also trimmed the 37-62mph flex to 3.8 seconds (an improvement of three-tenths from the Monte Carlo), while 50-75mph is half-a-second quicker at 4.8 seconds too. And you can really feel these gains out on the road.
Without trying to hoodwink you into believing the Fabia 130 is stupendously rapid, it unquestionably feels like a zingier and more enjoyable car to thrash than any other Mk4 model. It's nice and urgent from about 4,000rpm onwards, while even the DSG 'box doesn't feel like an impediment to the delights of making this Fabia go fast. Admittedly, we couldn't discern much of a difference to the supposedly bolstered exhaust note, and we're still curious enough to wonder what the Skoda would've been like with a more daring 200hp/300Nm output instead, but the way the Fabia 130 accelerates and brakes is more than fine with us.
Ride & Handling
It's not just sporty looks and an additional 27 horses the Fabia 130 benefits from - as we've already said, the suspension is 15mm lower to the ground than most other cars in the range, but the springs and dampers have their own state of tune to reflect the larger, grippier contact patches of the 18-inch wheels (Monte Carlo Fabias run 17s as standard), while the steering has been modified to provide better feel and response in both Normal and Sport modes of the drive functions.
Skoda has even gone as far as to introduce a two-stage dynamic control system for the Fabia 130, with the ability to both completely deactivate the anti-slip regulation (ASR), or select a balanced 'halfway-house' ASR Sport + ESC Sport mode for a bit more handling freedom, without the complete downing of tools by the electronic assistance systems.
Again, these changes aren't transcendental for the 130, but they're enough to elevate it into a realm where it can properly merit the term 'warm hatch'. The key weapon in this Fabia's armoury, and a happy by-product of sticking with the 1.5 engine instead of upgrading to a 2.0-litre affair, is that the car is light; around 1.3 tonnes in its rolling trim. This means the Skoda makes the most of every last ounce of grip and balance its chassis possesses, as it enjoys being flung into both tight, low-speed bends and higher-pace, higher-commitment sweepers with equal aplomb.
True, it's not the most raw of driving experiences and our one observation is that a VAQ-type, diff-mimicking front axle could've helped the car with improved traction out of sharp bends and a greater feeling of mid-corner adjustability, but those are perhaps traits better reserved for a full-on B-segment performance car, like the wild
MINI John Cooper Works or the even wilder
Toyota GR Yaris.
What you're getting here is, in a way, refreshingly old-school and all the more invigorating as a result: a light, rev-happy, fizzy little car of highly approachable nature, that you can easily cane the living daylights out of without smashing all public-roads speed limits to smithereens, and which'll also respond well to being hurled into the twisty stuff like you're 19 and a newly qualified driver once again. It's sort of more engaging for
not attempting to be 'hot', because then you cut it some slack when you ascertain that is understandably isn't the most involving nor thrilling vehicle in the world. Managing expectations, and all that.
Brilliantly, on the flipside of the lively and tidy handling, the 130 still works as a Fabia. By that, we mean it is comfortable and easy to manoeuvre in town, it's nippy and nimble for the cut-and-thrust of extra-urban roads and countryside routes accordingly, and it feels serene, planted and secure at motorway speeds. Sure, there's a little road noise filtering through the chassis and some wind-ruffle evident at the Skoda's door mirrors, but for a car competing in this supermini class, it's one of the more grown-up, comfortable and refined machines you can pick, with ample ride comfort all across the board.
Value
There is one unavoidable issue we have with the Fabia 130, and that's the price and availability - although the restriction of the latter goes some way to justifying the former. Anyway, this Skoda hatch is £29,995 before options, which is a hefty £3,040 price walk from the 150hp Monte Carlo 1.5 TSI. Worse yet, although almost all other B-segment hot hatchbacks have died out by 2025, there is one in-house relation which muddies the value waters of the Fabia 130 yet further. Dully competent it may be, but the 200hp/320Nm
VW Polo GTI, with its 6.7-second 0-62mph time, is still clinging onto life in the German firm's price lists, where it retails for a basic £31,415. That's just another £1,420 for a
bona fide, 2.0-litre hot hatch, over and above the 177hp Skoda.
However, the limited-build status of the Fabia 130 might just be enough to tempt you. Only 650 examples of this car are coming to the UK, so it'll be a rare and special sight on the roads. Also, it has a lot of kit as standard, being based as it is on the already-well-stocked Monte Carlo and with a few choice items added on top to the spec, just for good measure. Sure, the 130 would've been more of a no-brainer choice at, say, £27,995, but Skoda has taken the decision to make it something of a speciality item. At least it didn't stray beyond the £30,000 barrier, we guess.
Verdict
Could Skoda have gone a bit further with the Fabia 130 and given us a long-awaited third entry into the
vRS canon for this supermini contender? Maybe. Does the 130 do enough, for keener drivers, to fill the gaping voids in the pocket-rocket world that have been created by the demise of some stunning cars in the form of the
Ford Fiesta ST,
Hyundai i20 N and
Renaultsport Clios, to name but a few? Maybe not.
But judge it fairly and accept this is not trying to revive the cult of the B-segment hot hatch, and you ought to then be able to admit Skoda has done a cracking job here. All it has done is taken a pre-existing model, the 150hp Monte Carlo, and then subjected it to what, on the face of it, look like a series of fairly modest tweaks. But these multitudinous small additions add up to a far greater whole. No, this isn't a Skoda Fabia vRS v3.0; in fact, the Fabia 130 is its own confident, well-sorted and deeply likeable little machine. And it's all the better for it, in our opinion.
