Škoda has today launched a new performance version of its Fabia hatchback, designed to celebrate 130 years of the Škoda brand. The Škoda Fabia 130 uses the same 1.5-litre turbocharged four cylinder found in other variants of the car, but thanks to uprated components - it now makes 26bhp more.

While this isn't the Fabia vRS that some were calling out for, the exterior and interior design does add a lot of touches to make it feel special. For example, there is a new front splitter, 18-inch alloys, twin exhausts, aggressie splitter and a smattering of 130 stickers. Inside new stainless steel pedas can be found as well as some electrically adjustable bucket seats.

In terms of the engine and the increased power, the car has 174bhp, which is 26bhp more than the standard models. It comes with a dual-clutch automatic gearbox only, with no manual option and is front wheel drive only too. The gearbox on the 130 has been tweaked though, designed to hold gears for a bit longer to allow to rev higher and make more power - as the full amount of the engine's grunt comes on song between 5750rpm and 6000rpm.

All this means though, that despite not being called a Fabia vRS, it is very comparable to the Fabia Mk2 vRS. That car could do 0-62mph in 7.3 seconds, whereas this can handle it in 7.4 seconds.

Škoda will start taking orders later this month on 30th October, with procession starting at £29,995. The brand hasn't mentioned this version being a limited run model.