The Coronavirus pandemic masked a lot of changes made by car-makers last year and the SEAT Ibiza was one of them. SEAT was well advanced with giving the highly popular Ibiza family hatchback a mid-term make-over before the pandemic virtually paralysed production and it has raised the bar for the car against more expensive rivals. There is a new look to the car front to back with revised apron … [Read more...]
Weekend roadtest: SEAT Arona 1.0 TSi Xperience Lux
SEAT broke new ground for itself when launching the Arona subcompact crossover in 2017 slotting beneath the slightly larger Ateca, and it's just strengthened itself with a completely new look outside and in together with a host of technical upgrades. The industry has been falling over itself to bring in crossover models between MPVs and hatchbacks due to their wider practicality and … [Read more...]
VW Group pull off most towcar awards
The SEAT Leon Estate FR 1.5TSI 150PS has won this year’s overall trophy and also triumphed in the Caravan Weight 1100 – 1200kg category in the 39th Caravan and Motorhome Club Towcar of the Year Competition. Winning for a second year in a row in the 1100-1200kg caravan weight class, Leon Estate proved it was not only best-in-class for towing, but worthy of earning the prestigious title of … [Read more...]
Weekend roadtest: Cupra Formentor V2 e-Hybrid 204ps
The head-turning Cupra Formentor e-Hybrid is a genuinely new model in the booming family SUV sector where its stablemate SEAT brand has done so well. Formentor’s the first model designed and developed for the brand and this spring picked up the highly valued five-star safety award from Europe’s toughest crash testers. This new brand formerly launched with the Formentor last December as the … [Read more...]
Newslines 6 August
SEAT has upgraded specifications on its latest Ateca and Tarraco SUVs. Improved pre-crash assist safety comes to the Ateca Xperience Lux while the Tarraco SE now features Connect and Adaptive Cruise Control with prices from £24,560 and £30,080 respectively. Hyundai has launched a new all-in-one monthly subscription service for its line-up of hybrid, plug-in hybrid and fully electric models. … [Read more...]
Newslines 23 March
SEAT want to build an electric battery plant outside Barcelona to supply a new city car for the company in 2025 at a rumoured £17,000. The plant will be built with Spanish and EU funds and probably supply other small cars in the VW Group. Toyota, Nissan, Honda and other Japanese carmakers are assessing the impact production after a fire at a Renesas Electronics chip plant in north-east … [Read more...]
Newslines 2 March
Land Rover has launched the powerful Defender V8 as part of a range of enhancements to its unstoppable and award-winning 4x4 family. The new 525HP Defender V8 and flagship Defender V8 Carpathian Edition use engines made at the Ford Bridgend Plant before it shut down last autumn to provide a unique combination of performance and capability, with bespoke chassis settings delivering new levels of … [Read more...]
Sunday drive: SEAT Arona Xcellence 1.0 TSI
In the much-troubled year of 2020 new car sales across the globe stalled and even the must-have Crossover/SUV styled vehicles saw their sales flatten, writes David Miles. According to JATO Dynamics reliable new car sales figures, although such vehicles still accounted for 40% of all cars sold in Europe there was no growth. They added ‘Over the last six years, SUVs have been a consistent driver … [Read more...]
Rare and rarer & ready to be picked up for peanuts
There are some of Britain’s true automotive gems. And we don’t mean the obvious one-offs and models that were launched so long ago there are only one or two left. Where’s the fun in that? CarleaseSpecialOffers said you might think Ferrari owners enjoy exclusivity, but you’d be wrong. Sort of. Even the Ferrari 812 Superfast – a 6.5-litre, 789bhp grand tourer – isn’t as rare as the Fiat … [Read more...]
Newslines 4 December
Travel between Wales and T1 or T2 areas in England is permitted from 6pm tonight. But the Welsh Government ban remains for T3 areas, which include Bristol and Birmingham, while London and Liverpool are in the lower tiers. The Cupra Formentor range of engines is expanding this month. The entry-level 150ps comes in at £27,395 from the New Year , the PHEV version is due Spring 2021 while the … [Read more...]