SKODA has unveiled the fourth generation of its best selling model ever, the Octavia.

The new version, available as hatchback or Combi estate is longer and wider than before and available with four powerplants; petrol, diesel, mild hybrid and plug-hybrid.

Skoda has sold more than 6.5 million Octavias since production began in 1959; none of them offering the amount of interior room or luggage space as the newcomer.

It is also available with first-in-a-Skoda features like head-up display for the driver or especially back-friendly Ergo seats.

At 4,689mm, the new Octavia Combi is 22mm longer than its predecessor, while the hatchback has gained 19mm (also measuring 4,689mm in length). At 1,829mm, they are both 15mm wider.

The Octavia's increased length and width mean more interior space, with an extra 5mm knee room in the rear - now 78mm. The Combi's boot capacity, which Skoda claims is the largest in the segment, has increased by another 30 litres to 640litres. The hatchback can now hold 600litres - 10 more than before.

Interior treatment features a dashboard with large free-standing central display. The optional head-up display projects the most important information such as speed, navigation, detected traffic signs and activated driver assistance systems directly onto the - optionally heated - windscreen.

Optional, particularly back-friendly Ergo seats, which among other things offer an electric massage function, are available for the first time in a Skoda. In the top version, they can also be ventilated and bear the seal of approval of the German Campaign for Healthier Backs.

For the first time, the engine line-up includes a plug-in hybrid, the OctaviaiV.

Some of the petrol engines are now equipped with innovative mild hybrid technology, while the diesel engines come from the latest EVO generation and emit up to 80per cent less nitrogen oxide.

In the Octaiva iV, a 1.4TSI petrol engine and an electric motor deliver a combined power output of 204 horsepower. With a capacity of 37Ah providing 13kWh of energy, the high-voltage lithium-ion battery allows for an all-electric range of up to 34 miles.

The eTEC variants fitted with latest EVO-generation 1.0TSI or 1.5TSI petrol engines feature mild hybrid technology when equipped with DSG automatic transmissions.

Using a 48-volt belt-driven starter motor and a 48-volt lithium-ion battery, it is possible to recover brake energy, support the combustion engine by providing it with an electric boost, and to coast with the engine completely switched off.