The Octavia departs our fleet as it picks up a latest award. John Challen reports.

The Octavia picked up the Best Estate accolade in the UK Car of the Year Awards 2021

In my last report on the octavia, I mentioned that I believe that it is the ideal family car.

Fitting then that in the UK Car of the Year Awards 2021 – co-chaired by yours truly – the standard car picked up the title of Best Family Car.

Not to be outdone, the booted version you see here was named Best Estate.

And no-one should be surprised because it’s a hugely practical, comfortable and impressive vehicle. Some elements might be a bit basic for certain drivers who like almost everything to move electronically – and there is still a bit of badge snobbery – but you cannot help but be impressed by the octavia.

Lockdown meant that long journeys were few and far between, but the ones we took were made easier by a spacious cabin, a decent stereo and a pretty efficient powertrain, given the size of the vehicle surrounding it.

However, reflecting on the now-departed KY20 MLN, it wasn’t without its bugs. On more than one occasion, an internal alarm would sound, rendering all of the infotainment lifeless and with no way of turning it off.

The racket subsided after about 10-15 minutes, but it was still a little annoying.

And I’ve mentioned the infotainment system, which still seems overly complicated. Maybe it’s designed for you to use voice commands, but the menu system would probably be improved with more buttons.

Škoda has recently added the Enyaq to its growing range of SUVs – there are now a choice of four – as the company moves with the times and branches out from its legacy core models.

As one of the oldest names in the company’s current range, here’s hoping that the Octavia continues to stay relevant and picking up awards as it goes.