ABSOLUTELY FAB?

Skoda's 130 special is the most powerful new Fabia you can get. How does it shape up against MINI's Cooper S?

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SKODA FABIA 130 vs MINI COOPER S 5-DOOR

Skoda marks L&K's 130th anniversary with sportier supermini

BIRTHDAYS are often a time of celebration, and most car makers won't miss an opportunity to cash in on an anniversary by launching a special edition. There are extremes, such as the Ferrari F40 and F50, or there's Volkswagen with its Edition variants of the Golf GTI that appear when another decade has clocked up.

For Skoda, the anniversary it's currently celebrating is 130 years since the founding of its Laurin & Klement predecessor at the end of 1895, and to mark this occasion, it's launched a special-edition Fabia that adds some sporty style to its supermini. There are racier looks inside and out, while the 1.5 TSI petrol engine has been uprated to 175bhp, so the 130 comes close to matching the last Fabia vRS for power output.

Skoda is far from being the first car maker to pump up its supermini with go-faster goodies. In fact, it's a cornerstone of MINI's existence. Although the company's range has expanded, the core supermini remains an upmarket small car, while the five-door model gives it some added practicality. But which sporty small hatch manages to deliver the perfect mix of fun and functionality?

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DON'T be misled by the name: the Fabia 130 doesn't have 130bhp - that would make it less powerful than the 1.5 TSI Monte Carlo model on which it's based. Instead, Skoda has turned up the wick and given it 175bhp, which is 28bhp more than standard.

There are visual upgrades too, with new wheels, lowered suspension, dark-chrome exhaust tips, unique interior trim, 130 branding and a black strip running between the taillights. The Fabia 130 is £3,000 more than the next model in the range, at £29,995.

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