Volkswagen Golf 90TSI Comfortline vs Skoda Octavia Ambition Plus

Never better in this respect but one in which it commends itself to Carsguide's Car of the Year judges. The step up from basic 90 TSI is surely enough car for most. There are 16-inch alloys, rain-sensing wipers, auto headlights, dual-zone climate, front and rear parking sensors with visual warning and reversing camera. Capped servicing matches the Octavia for duration (extended warranty available).

Skoda's no longer VW's budget brand, yet struggles for definition and recognition. Tangibly it's sound - a bigger Golf with pricing that slips between the German variants. The basic Ambition is basic indeed. The Ambition Plus in liftback/sedan form with DSG has three-year warranty ($1650 for two more) and six-year/ 90,000km capped annual servicing. The wagon's $1650 extra.

This take on the 1.4 direct injection turbo four is good for "only" 90kW/200Nm yet it's ample for a 1233kg hatch. Independent rear suspension makes a noticeable difference, as does the extended differential lock - a front-axle device that under hard cornering brakes the wheel with least traction. Claimed fuel use is, strangely, slightly greater than the Skoda at 5.4L/100km.

Octavias with VW's 1.4-litre turbo four get the full tune - 103kW/250Nm. For a VW with that you need the $32K Golf Highline. The drivetrain is a good decade ahead of most Japanese cars. The claimed 5.2L/100km is worth the premium unleaded. But only the top-drawer Octavia 132TSI gets independent rear suspension, the rest make do with a basic back end.

In this respect the twins under the skin are least compatible - we're talking compact hatch and family-size car. But then no hatch so comfortably seats a burly, tall fellow in the back. You don't get this headroom in some bigger sedans. The choice comes down to luggage space - the Golf has a hatch average 380L seats up and 1270L down.

Clean, dignified lines define Euro design. The interior is a step up on the previous car. Evidently greater use has been made of sound-deadening materials. Mighty storage - 568L with rear seats up is more than a Falcon sedan; 1558L folded flat approaches a Commodore wagon.

Shares the full five-star rating from ANCAP, with seven airbags - the standard six plus a driver's knee bag - within the high-strength steel bodyshell. There's a fatigue detection setup, which monitors driver concentration based on your behaviour and sounds a warning if you appear to let attention wander.

No reversing camera at any price - even optionally - is a strike against a $30K car. Otherwise the active safety equation emulates the Golf with which it shares a platform and drivetrain, not least in its solid, predictable, confidence-enhancing on-road stance.

Joshua Dowling at COTY: 'If Rolls-Royce made a hatch this would be it." The refinement is otherworldly -yet this is classed as a small car. It's no GTI in terms of thrust or handling but the humbler Golfs have never been closer to the iconic range topper. The seven-speed DSG is superb, with low-speed response clearly improved.

To a great extent it shares the refinement of the MkVII Golf. There's the mildest hesitation from the seven-speed DSG but the 1.4 turbo is immediately responsive, summoning all its torque from low revs and pulling little more than 2000rpm at freeway speeds. The rear suspension falters on rougher surfaces and blunts the handling.