Seat have revealed a long-awaited SUV before its official debut at the Geneva Motor Show next month. It will be released in September this year just in time for the new registration and will join the fiercely contested family crossover market alongside vehicles such as the Renault Kadjar and Volkswagen Tiguan.
First off, the car is distinctly SEAT. That means it has many features that have been borrowed from the brands other incredibly successful models including the Leon and Ibiza. In fact the tail-lights and front grille look almost identical to the Leon's although they have obviously been shaped up for SUV Size. To give an idea of size, the Ateca has been reported to be 10cm shorter than the Renualt Kadjar and slightly smaller in overall appearance to the bulky Tiguan.
The interior has a 5" display version in the most basic models but this can upgraded to a more attrave 6.5" and 8" in higher-specced models. As with many modern vehicle releases, there is no shortage of the extra interior options and connectivity for the vehicles interior. We expect SEAT to confirm more of these in the future, but we do know that Apple CarPlay, AndroidAuto and wireless charging will also feature as well as the flagship SEAT Full Link which gives further smartphone integration.
There is a 510-litre boot size on offer for those that choose front-wheel drive and moving to four-wheel drive only brings that down a fraction to 485-litres. That's still 13 more litres than the Kadjar and should provide acceptable enough load capacity.
Taking a look at the engines and the front-wheel drive 1.6 diesel offers 114bhp and competitive CO2 emissions of 112g/km. The 2.0 diesel will have an output of 187bhp or 148bhp which sets the Ateca fairly high up the scale among the competition and for those completely power-hungry then there will be a furious four-wheel drive engine which will still only emit 131g/km of CO2. Its already been suggested that SEAT could give the Ateca the Cupra treatment which has offered a performance option for many SEAT drivers and has been incredibly successful.
In terms of the petrols, a 1.4-litre engine with three-cylinders producing 148bhp will partner the standard 1.0-litre turbo three cylinder engine which is on offer which will provide 114bhp.
Focusing on the vehicle's offerings for safety and extra technology features the Ateca will offer parking sensors, a 360-degree parking view, blind spot detection and traffic sign recognition. Alongside Emergency Assist and a feature called Traffic Jam Assists which gives the potential to drive itself in stop-start and jammed traffic.
