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By Sarah-Jayne Harrison
First Drives
05 October 2010 16:43
The third in Seat's Ibiza range, the latest Ibiza ST estate operates in a niche very nearly all its own. It slots in between the five-door Ibiza supermini and a fuller-sized estate from the class above. Only Skoda and Renault compete in the supermini wagon market.
The Ibiza ST offers more boot space than the regular Ibiza hatch, without compromising the sporting lines penned by ex-Lamborghini designer Luc Donckerwolke.
We drove the Seat Ibiza ST in 1.6 TDI Sport spec, but from launch there will be the choice of two petrol and two diesel with outputs ranging from 74bhp to 103bhp, with the option of a five-speed manual gearbox or the dual-clutch seven-speed DSG auto.
The most economical of the bunch available is the 1.2 S, one of the most fuel efficient estates around with a combined 80.7mpg.
If you want excitement and a thrilling ride, this may not be for you. Back in the real world, it's a pretty convincing small estate car package. The Ibiza wagon delivers a comfortable, laidback stance on long journeys: comfortable seats, light steering, fluid easy gearchanges and of course a decent sized boot to carry the luggage - you really notice the extra 138 litres.
Our top-spec 1.6 diesel delivers enough power for overtaking, but isn’t the fastest car on the road. Road noise is well suppressed and even on a long journey (we drove halfway across France in it) it's a refined place to sit.
The Ibiza ST's cabin is a bit of a mix of textures and colours; a few too many patterns going on in there, for our liking. At least the colour contrast adds some lightness to the cabin, but the rooflining does remind me of the blue J-cloths I use at home, except in grey.
If the 430-litre isn't big enough, just flop the back seats down to boost the luggage space to 1164 litres. Although who really loads the boot fully to the roof?
One nifty feature is the Seat's docking station for your TomTom; rather than spend thousands on an official-fit sat-nav, Seat let you drop your handheld unit into the dock and away you go. Neat thinking.
Currently there's little choice if you want a supermini estate. The Ibiza ST provides a new alternative, and is worth considering if you don't need the space of a VW Golf or Ford Focus estates. It's a bit more stylish to boot, and errs away from the boxiness that blights some larger wagons.
With prices starting around £12,000 for the 1.2 TDI eco version, the Ibiza ST is a reasonably priced car. A shame the UK largely shuns mini estates; don't expect to see too many around on our roads.
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Seat Ibiza ST 1.6 TDI SE (2010) CAR review
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JamesDonovan says
RE: Seat Ibiza ST 1.6 TDI SE (2010) CAR review
As VW-Audi CEO Mr Martin Winterkorn has disclosed in a previous interview ( http://www.autonews.com/article/20030901/GERMANNEWSLETTER/309010778 ) it was SEAT that did actually develop in Spain the A3 sportback version for Audi. Taking this into consideration, it would not amaze me much a resemblance and for sure this could only be for good.
As VW-Audi CEO Mr Martin Winterkorn has disclosed in a previous interview
( http://www.autonews.com/article/20030901/GERMANNEWSLETTER/309010778 )
it was SEAT that did actually develop in Spain the A3 sportback version for Audi.
Taking this into consideration, it would not amaze me much a resemblance
and for sure this could only be for good.
13 October 2010 14:46
clickysteve says
Looks like another version of the Audi A3 sportback to me.
13 October 2010 13:00
Very simplified view IMO. Someone who gives £14,000 is interested in the overall package, seeking not only a people carrier of whatever taste and qualities, with a single demand, focusing on the most spacious boot possible, neglecting every other aspect in his investment. After all, with the same amount of money and those specific demands, he would easily go for something else, not for a supermini estate. The supermini estates are meant to cover the needs of the average consumer who finds it hard to fit those in the hatchback versions. Other than that, the main purpose of the estates gets accomplished no matter if it is some more or less lts of boot space. Compared to the 2nd gen Fabia's old PQ24 platform, the 4th gen Ibiza's newer PQ25 platform (apart from the fact it brings a quite theoretical in this case all-wheel drive compatibility for the supermini models based on it, i.e. the Ibiza Mk4/ Polo Mk5/ A1 ) actually means: -less weight, more balanced, better handling, more rigid -safer to the crash impacts, i.e. 5-star euroncap rating for the Ibiza (& Polo & A1) vs 4-star rating for the Fabia Mk2 -several upgrades, i.e. hydraulic steering wheel for the Fabia vs electro hydraulic for the Ibiza Another issue that could get interesting in the comparison, is that the Fabia estate 1.6 TDI 105bhp still uses rear drum brakes next to the rear disc brakes for the Ibiza ST. This horribly makes me suspicious of whatever else could have been left out in order to suppress the manufacturing costs and the price. I don't know but I am afraid that there might have been compromised more things that are not obvious.
Very simplified view IMO.
Someone who gives £14,000 is interested in the overall package, seeking not only a people carrier of whatever taste and qualities, with a single demand, focusing on the most spacious boot possible, neglecting every other aspect in his investment. After all, with the same amount of money and those specific demands, he would easily go for something else, not for a supermini estate. The supermini estates are meant to cover the needs of the average consumer who finds it hard to fit those in the hatchback versions. Other than that, the main purpose of the estates gets accomplished no matter if it is some more or less lts of boot space.
Compared to the 2nd gen Fabia's old PQ24 platform, the 4th gen Ibiza's newer PQ25 platform (apart from the fact it brings a quite theoretical in this case all-wheel drive compatibility for the supermini models based on it, i.e. the Ibiza Mk4/ Polo Mk5/ A1 ) actually means:
-less weight, more balanced, better handling, more rigid -safer to the crash impacts, i.e. 5-star euroncap rating for the Ibiza (& Polo & A1) vs 4-star rating for the Fabia Mk2 -several upgrades, i.e. hydraulic steering wheel for the Fabia vs electro hydraulic for the Ibiza
Another issue that could get interesting in the comparison, is that the Fabia estate 1.6 TDI 105bhp still uses rear drum brakes next to the rear disc brakes for the Ibiza ST. This horribly makes me suspicious of whatever else could have been left out in order to suppress the manufacturing costs and the price. I don't know but I am afraid that there might have been compromised more things that are not obvious.
09 October 2010 14:41
hbay4920 says
The Seat is of course, as all CAR readers know, built on a newer platform than the Skoda, and is arguably prettier on the outside, though perhaps tartier on the inside. The important thing though is that the Skoda is, with its less sloping tail, bigger inside. And isn't that the reason for an estate? With an identical engine and performance range, I think it's the better bet, which is why I'm on my second. Incidentally when I was in Russia two years ago I saw practically no Fabias - but an awful lot of Dacia Logans.
08 October 2010 20:26
@robinstp Man do you know anything about those cars you are talking about, i.e. the Ibiza and the Fabia? How can the skoda be a better car since it is based on a past vw group platform ? The Ibiza rides on the same platform (PQ25) with the latest Polo or the new Audi A1, which is a lighter and more rigid one. On the contrary, the heavier Fabia is based on the previous Polo/Ibiza platform (PQ24), with the same underpinnings used in the first gen Fabia for almost a decade. Not to mention the looks, the beauty is the Ibiza ST and the beast is the Fabia combi. I also don't know if this is some kind of trend talking about SEAT's future, for sure I can tell we would hardly draw conclusions from the sales in your own country Russia. If that would be the case, then we would name Lada as the most successful brand in the automotive history ever. And yes in Russia there might not be seen lots of SEATs (as well as other brands too, like Fiats or Alfas that you 've mentioned), because in there SEAT never in the past was present, with the exception of the last couple of years. And not to forget that SEAT's main market still is Europe, not Russia.
@robinstp
Man do you know anything about those cars you are talking about, i.e. the Ibiza and the Fabia? How can the skoda be a better car since it is based on a past vw group platform ? The Ibiza rides on the same platform (PQ25) with the latest Polo or the new Audi A1, which is a lighter and more rigid one. On the contrary, the heavier Fabia is based on the previous Polo/Ibiza platform (PQ24), with the same underpinnings used in the first gen Fabia for almost a decade.
Not to mention the looks, the beauty is the Ibiza ST and the beast is the Fabia combi.
I also don't know if this is some kind of trend talking about SEAT's future, for sure I can tell we would hardly draw conclusions from the sales in your own country Russia. If that would be the case, then we would name Lada as the most successful brand in the automotive history ever. And yes in Russia there might not be seen lots of SEATs (as well as other brands too, like Fiats or Alfas that you 've mentioned), because in there SEAT never in the past was present, with the exception of the last couple of years. And not to forget that SEAT's main market still is Europe, not Russia.
08 October 2010 01:30
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