The news that the latest Octavia vRS would instantly achieve power parity with the updated Golf GTI was predictably well received (or at least on PH) when we talked about it back in February. It was predictable because a) the Octavia vRS is considered a no-nonsense performance car that prioritizes practicality, and we like that; b) it has more equipment than ever before, so an extra 20bhp probably wouldn’t hurt it; and c) there’s still the feeling that the car overall offers quite a lot for the money.

At the start of the year we didn’t know how much money we were talking about – but now we do. The new Octavia vRS will be available from £38,670 as a hatchback and £39,775 as an estate. That means the difference between it and the Mk8.5 Golf GTI is about the size of a mosquito’s wing: the lowest price you can pay for the latter is £38,900. Of course, much of what matters about the cars has remained the same, although VW insists the GTI is still half a second quicker (at 5.9 seconds) to 62mph than the vRS (Skoda claims 6.4 seconds for the hatchback and 6.5 seconds for the estate).

As before, there’s no vRS with all-wheel drive or with performance to rival the Golf R or Cupra range. But you do get the 2.0-litre EA888 engine, seven-speed DSG, front-mounted electro-hydraulic VAQ differential lock and a chassis that sits 15mm lower than standard, with 19-inch Elias alloy wheels in anthracite setting it off nicely. There’s also some styling confetti in the form of a new grille surround, diffuser and exhaust – all in black.

That theme continues inside, where the vRS interior includes a three-spoke sports steering wheel, standard sports seats and aluminum pedal pads. The updated model gets a larger 13-inch infotainment screen. There’s no diesel vRS per se, but Skoda has tried to fill the gap by introducing a 150bhp 2.0-liter unit in the SportLine trim level, which sits just below the range-topping model. At 8.5 seconds to 100km/h, it probably won’t make your hair stand on end, but it looks sporty enough and a combined WLTP figure of 60.6mpg sounds very old-fashioned to us. And that’s what the Octavia is all about. If that sounds like your style, you can order from tomorrow.