Skoda WRC car in Malta

An added attraction at this year's Extreme Car Concept Fair at Hal Far next weekend is the Skoda Octavia World Rally Championship car that will be on display on Stands No. 21 and 22.

From the early days of motorcycle races to the Octavia WRC, Skoda has become synonymous with motorsport successes.

Skoda's association with motorsport dates to the turn of the century when company founders Laurin and Klement first began racing their motorcycles by entering factory worker Narcis Podsednicek into the epic Paris-Berlin race for automobiles and motorcycles.

By 1902 Podsednicek became something of a hero among early motorcyclists, winning event after event for the burgeoning Laurin & Klement marque, and the following year coming away with 32 victories out of 34 races.

The late 1940s saw Skoda's forays into circuit racing with a series of vehicles entitled Skoda Sport and Skoda Supersport. With engines ranging in capacity from 1.1 to 1.5 litres, the most powerful versions developed 180 bhp with the assistance of twin superchargers and could deliver a top speed of around 260 km/h.

One of the un-supercharged cars was entered into the Le Mans 24-hour race in 1951, leading its category until just past half the full distance. According to the coefficients at the time, it was the joint leader along with the Aston Martin that went on to win the race.

As time went by Skoda were to concentrate their efforts more and more on rallying. With well over 5,000 trophies to date, Skoda has one of the most successful histories in motorsport.

One of the first Skodas to attract international competition acclaim was the original Octavia. Benefiting from independent suspension and an ingenious three-bearing alloy block engine, both novelties in their day, the Octavia became a sporting star in the early Sixties.

It was followed by a succession of rugged rear-engined rally cars, including the 110, 120, 130RS and 130LR models which used their legendary levels of rear-end grip on slippery surfaces to score countless worldwide victories throughout the Seventies and Eighties.

The RS range was based on the road-going Skoda S110R Coupé and was fitted with a variety of engines ranging from Skoda's legendary 1,289 cc unit producing a remarkable 143 bhp as well as two 1.8-litre engines and a 2.0-litre unit.

The RS was used in track racing as well as rallying and it was one of the 1.8 litre track racing cars that gave the highest power output of 238 bhp through the use of fuel injection. That car had the engine mounted in the front and its power gave it the nickname "Grenade".

The winning car carried a version of Skoda's versatile 1,289 cc overhead valve engine, which was to bring the marque much success both in the back and the front of future competition cars. The 1994 World Cup included the winning Favorit and the giant-killing Felicia 1.3- and 1.5-litre Kit Cars!

Skoda drew on points with BMW at the end of their championship-winning year but, once the results were examined, the title was awarded to Skoda as their results in the individual races were better than those of the German marque.

Towards the end of 1997 Skoda were to make another important step in their competition history with the launch of the 2.0-litre 20-valve Octavia Kit Car, which would put them on a level with the other 2.0-litre runners. The Octavia Kit Car was initially overweight but an intensive development programme saw significant improvements in all areas and Emil Triner was able to win the European Cup for Drivers in 1998, driving the unique five-valves-per-cylinder machine.

The Octavia Kit Car however was only to be used as a stepping stone to the Octavia WRC, a four-wheel-drive turbocharged 300 bhp beast, which gave Skoda a machine capable of running at the front of the World Rally Championship leaderboards.

The Extreme Concept Car Festival in collaboration with Max Power, held between Thursday and Sunday at the Hal Far Raceway, gives rally car enthusiasts the unique opportunity to see up front the Octavia WRC.

Event programme

Thursday
6 p.m. Opening, scrutineering, car fair area
9 Top local DJs and live entertainment
10.30 Closing of car fair and competition area

Friday
6 p.m. Opening of car fair area
7 Sound competition (Stock Division)
9 Live band and entertainment
10.30 Closing of car fair and competition area

Saturday
11 a.m. Opening of car fair area
Noon Sound competition (Advance and Ultimate Division), Sound installation competition, Body kit competition, Engine bay competition, Interior competition
9 p.m. Fresh DJ Agency (top local DJs)
10.30 Closing of car fair and competition area

Sunday
10 a.m. Opening of car fair area
Noon Sound competition (finals), Sound installation competition (finals), Body kit competition (finals), Engine bay competition (finals) Interior competition (finals)
6 p.m. Bikini competition
8 Trophy presentation
9 Live bands, DJs and live entertainment
The event will be equipped with bars, Farsons beer gardens, and food stalls, toilets, kids area, and car shows.