Fabia continues Skoda's new design direction which was first seen in Skoda Roomster, looking modern and current compared to its square-jawed predecessor. Fabia's nose is obviously shared with Roomster, while its black-coloured A and B pillars bring about a sleeker look from the front. If anything, Fabia Combi's extra length gives it a more flowing design compared to the slightly awkward-looking Fabia hatchback. The chassis is carried over from the previous Fabia but with additional strengthening. As a result, the overall driving experience feels rather similar to before. Winding roads are taken on with lots of grip and well-controlled body movements, but Fabia is not as responsive or agile to drive as class-leaders. Despite being accurate, the light steering could provide more feedback. The well-tuned suspension gives Fabia a composed, compliant ride over bumps and potholes. Cabin refinement is commendable, too. Road and wind noise are audible but never intrusive at cruising speeds. Drivers enjoy an excellent driving position thanks to plenty of driver's seat and two-way steering adjustments. The simple dashboard features logically-placed and clearly-labelled controls. The light driving controls and good all-round visibility allow for easy city driving. While Fabia's cabin is hardly the most stylish in the class, it boasts solid build quality with everything seemingly well put together. Most of the dashboard plastics are dull and hard to the touch, unlike the soft-touch materials found in class leaders. Skoda is not well-known in Malaysia, but it is in the overseas. Under Volkswagen's watchful guidance, Skoda has revamped itself with a series of mechanically dependable models including Fabia. With 84 bhp at 5000 rpm and 132 Nm at 3800 rpm, the in-line four 16-valve 1.4-litre is reasonably refined, keen-to-rev, and strong enough to deal with Fabia Combi's marginal weight increase over Fabia hatchback. The power is transmitted via a smooth, decisive four-speed automatic transmission through the front wheels. Fabia provides good head- and leg-room for four adults to travel in comfort. Those over 1.8 metres can fit in the rear with little problems. More significant than the increased interior room is the enlarged boot capacity; The 480-litre boot is already generous and the rear seats can split-fold to produce an impressive 1460 litres of loading space. Rear wheel arches intrude into the boot, however. Thanks to the small 1.4-litre engine, fuel bills will be affordable. Servicing and repairs should be reasonably priced, too. Depreciation could be very high, however, as the Skoda brand is far from established or desirable in Malaysia, and the fact that Fabia is an estate only serves to make the situation worse. Fabia rides smoothly and refinedly, and provides generous interior room and boot space. And crucially its pricing is more competitive than before, making it the cheapest estate in Malaysia. On the whole, Fabia performs decently across the board, although it suffers from a poor image and potentially high depreciation. But if you are seeking an estate, look no further than Fabia. Fabia has all the bases covered, including standard equipments such as alloy wheels, roof rails, electric door mirrors, electric windows, remote central locking, air-conditioning and radio/CD/MP3 audio system. Safety kit includes dual SRS airbags, Anti-lock Braking System (ABS), Electronic Brake-force Distribution (EBD) and Brake Assist (BA). Fabia is kind to the environment with its low fuel consumption and carbon dioxide emissions. The only blemish is that Fabia is fully imported, which would cause more pollution than if it is locally assembled.