Skoda Fabia vRS return hinges on success of new 130 warm hatch

Skoda isn’t ruling out a full-blown vRS comeback for the Fabia - despite the hot hatch having been axed in 2014 due to sluggish sales.

Sources have told Autocar that the recently unveiled warmed-up Fabia 130 (pictured below), producing 174bhp to mark the brand’s 130th anniversary, is being viewed internally as a proof-of-concept, adding that strong demand for this model could help justify the business case for a fully fledged vRS.

Behind the scenes, engineers are understood to be enthusiastic about the idea. A new vRS would give Skoda the chance to demonstrate the potential of the Fabia’s platform while tapping into the firm’s impressive motorsport heritage - which includes WRC2 Drivers’ Championship wins from 2015 to 2023.

A spokesperson for the Czech car maker told Autocar that a revival remains possible if market conditions swing back in favour of small performance models, adding that the brand will “continue to monitor customer demand”.

However, Skoda is well aware that Europe’s appetite for hot hatches has largely condensed to two core markets: the UK and Germany.

The Fabia 130 uses the VW Group’s 1.5-litre Evo2 petrol engine and a future Fabia vRS could push the 1.5 further with hardware borrowed from elsewhere in the VWG catalogue.

While the 1.5 can be paired with a manual transmission in standard Fabias, Skoda has indicated that any vRS-spec version almost certainly wouldn’t offer three pedals. The brand says demand for manual-equipped 1.5-litre Fabias is already minimal.

Indeed, Skoda could even opt for the 2.0-litre turbo used in the Volkswagen Polo GTI, a unit that delivers 204bhp and 236lb ft via a DSG gearbox.