A wild, fun ride through 2019

There’s a lot more to the ŠKODA brand than just news from motor shows that was covered in the last article.

Some of the stories covered by ŠKODA Storyboard included a report from the first competitive start of the modernised ŠKODA FABIA R5 evo in the World Rally Championships. You could follow the brand new rally special on its journey from its home works at Mladá Boleslav to the Portugal Rally podium.

At the end of the season, the crew of of Kalle Rovanperä / Johne Haltunnen celebrated victory in the WRC 2 Pro category. The factory team also came first among brands. This video sums up the moments that will never be forgotten by all those involved.

Another unforgettable story was the test drive that another first-class ŠKODA Motorsport driver, Jan Kopecký, took in the ŠKODA KODIAQ RS. “The KODIAQ RS seriously surprised me on the tarmac. It’s very sure of itself, has quick response and is much more sporty than I'd expected,” he said, describing his main impressions.

A look at the paint shop and fire fighters

Manufacturing plants are obviously an indispensible part of the ŠKODA brand. Thanks to a ŠKODA Storyboard report, you could take a guided tour of the new paint shop at Mladá Boleslav as well as seeing what work is like for our company’s fire fighters.

Storyboard explained the differences between driving on the left and on the right and why one third of the world’s countries have their steering wheels on the right. You've also watched a three-part series about cooking in the wild, made by ŠKODA and Almazan Kitchen, influencers with 3 million YouTube followers.

It was not just lovers of toy cars who enjoyed the article about ABREX, a firm that makes metal models of ŠKODA cars under licence. There was even 10 tips for using your air conditioning the right way. By the way, in winter, when few people turn it on, automatic air conditioning will help ventilate the car when you’ve got in it from the ski slopes in clothes covered in snow. Equally useful is the advice from the pros helping you both at the steering wheel and on your bicycle.

Genuine passion for bikes

Inspiring stories also had a good reception. One of the strongest focused on Vladimír Vidím. On a replica SLAVIA bicycle he completed a 135 kilometre stage of the Tour de France. It took him 17 hours and 17 minutes to finish the stage, covering 4,563 vertical metres and three steep climbs. Even though everyone else finished long before him, Vladimír was the hero of the day for spectators and pro riders alike. Take a look why.

Exploring the world of number plates

Did you know that Polish number plates never include the letter Q or that Russian ones use the Latin alphabet and not Cyrillic?  Did you know that the King of Spain has a golden crown instead of a number plate? In India, you can tell by the colour of the number plate if the car is privately owned, a company car, a rental or, say, an electric vehicle.

That was just a fragment of the interesting facts you could learn from the Deciphering Number Plates series.

Ideas, vision and courage

The pages of ŠKODA Storyboard also introduced you to the sporty two-door pick-up ŠKODA MOUNTIAQ. Only one has ever been produced. It was created as part of the Azubi Car project involving 35 students from the ŠKODA ACADEMY.

In the year that’s just ending, ŠKODA Storyboard cast its eye over history to investigate the fates of some original concepts from the recent past. Find out about the concepts ŠKODA TUDOR, YETI and JOYSTER.

Courage is what pushes humanity forwards. When ŠKODA Storyboard brought together a drone pilot, a longboard surfer and the ŠKODA SCALA, a daring plan to film amazing footage using a drone was born. This video shows you the result:

In 2020 the ŠKODA brand will celebrate its 125th birthday. And ŠKODA Storyboard will continue to bring you lots of inspiration, fun and practical advice.