We don’t hear about Skoda much here at CarThrottle. I believe this is mainly due to the lack of public awareness on this pretty decent budget brand that’s part of the VW Group. Although it could be to do with the unglamorous name and slightly stained image the brand seems to be stuck with. But it should change, especially as Skoda has won this year’s Intercontinental Rally Challenge (IRC) Championship with the Skoda Fabia RS. And in line with its title winning celebration, Skoda has come out with a 200 unit limited edition special edition of the Fabia RS.

The Skoda Fabia RS can be said to be a Volkswagen Polo supermini in drag. Based on the previous generation Polo but clothed in a Skoda specific body the Fabia RS comes with Volkswagen’s fine 1.4-litre twin charged (turbocharger and supercharger) engine. It makes 180bhp and 250Nm (184lb/ft) of torque from the tiny engine. It allows this ‘budget Polo’ (as Skodas are usually priced below VW) to reach a maximum speed of about 140mph and a 0-62mph time of 7.3seconds. This supermini actually rocks.

The Fabia RS special edition comes with the same 1.4-litre engine above unlike the IRC regulation based 2.0-litre normally aspirated engine of the rally car. It however comes with the rally car’s race colors. The 17inch alloy wheels are painted white instead of the usual silver and the body now comes in Skoda rally green with stickers from the IRC S2000 car. It does not have the rally car’s arches though. If it did, more motoring enthusiasts would certainly head towards the nearest Skoda showroom. I would.

Somehow this is a (minor) problem I face with most cars in VW Group’s lineup. They are slightly bland looking compared to some other brands and in fact the Fabia reminds me so much like the previous generation Suzuki Swift with a big chrome grille added upfront. Especially those C-pillars and its overal stance. From what I’ve come to observe with most new Skodas, they have good build quality for their price range even though they might look slightly bland. But imagine a Fabia with those rally arches. I’d go buy one in an instant.

Anyway, Skoda have not released any details on its availability and prices for this Europe-only special at the moment. Expect it to be sold out, even if it is only a Skoda.