SEAT Mii five-door

SEAT has added a five door version to their Mii city car line-up, turning the super-compact SEAT city car into a unique combination of exceptional driving fun, Spanish sporty design and outstanding functionality.

The three- or five-door Mii scores top marks for fuel consumption and emissions and this particularly applies to the newly-announced Mii Ecomotive. Thanks to a start/stop system, brake energy recovery and other measures to improve vehicle fuel economy, the Mii Ecomotive makes do with just 4.1 litres of fuel per 100 km, equating to CO₂ emissions of only 96 g/km  for the 60 PS version and 4.2 litres per 100 km – 98 g/km – for the 75 PS Mii.  

James Muir, President of SEAT, S.A.  said: ‘The new Mii has enjoyed a terrific start.  Customer response in Spain is outstanding and we are now bringing the entire line-up to the other European markets – complete with the three-door, five-door and Ecomotive versions”.

The car is compact at just 3.56 metres long and offers plenty of room for four adults, plus with a volume of 251 litres, the Mii also boasts one of the largest luggage compartments in its class, expanding to an impressive 951 litres with the rear seat back folded.

SEAT Mii five-door

The rear doors offer a wide opening angle making entry access to the rear seats straightforward, while the especially large area of the rear side windows ensures great all-round visibility. This feeling of spaciousness is reinforced by the addition of an optional panoramic sunroof if required.

In terms of on-board occupant safety, the Mii five-door has head restraints for the rear seat passengers and child locks on the rear doors as standard vehicle equipment. The Mii also features City Safety Assist, which when the car determines a risk  in city traffic, brakes automatically to prevent a possible impact.

The Mii also comes with the innovative SEAT Portable System infotainment system, which is a compact unit boasting a five-inch touchscreen that can be fully removed from the car for use ‘on the go’.  It integrates into the vehicle’s electronics and its many functions include a satellite navigation system, hands-free phone capability with voice control and an on-board computer.

New SEAT Ibiza 5-door

SEAT has released the details about the new SEAT Ibiza range, which has been updated for 2012 with a launch date expected in the spring of this year.  The SEAT Ibiza is one of the best-selling models for the sporty Spanish car manufacturer, with more than 500,000 models of the Ibiza sold since its original launch in 2008.

This new model features the new SEAT “face” and the bumpers at the front and rear have been completely re-designed as well. Inside the car has had a complete makeover, with the new instrument binnacle one example and the glove compartment has also been enlarged.

SEAT Ibiza ST

The new Ibiza comes in three bodystyles, three-door SC, five-door hatchback and the Ibiza ST (estate) and all feature a range of fuel efficient, low CO2, petrol and diesel engines. For example, the 1.2-litre TDI Ecomotive with start/stop emits 89g/km of CO2 and uses 3.4 litres of fuel per 62 miles. There are also more powerfuel engines for the top-of-the range sports versions with a 150PS 1.4 TSI petrol engine plus supercharger and turbocharger that propels the car from 0-62mph in just 7.8 seconds.

The model trims are Reference, Style and FR, with the new Cupra coming on board mid-summer and full new Ibiza UK pricing and specifications will be announced closer to the launch date.

City Emergency Braking on the up!

The Volkswagen up! is not even on UK roads yet, but it has just been awarded the title of What Car? Car of the Year 2012, as well as Best City Car, at the What Car? Awards.

Volkswagen had a successful night at the motor industry’s annual ‘Oscars’, which was held at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London. The Golf was voted the top Small Family Car category for the sixth time overall and fourth consecutive year, and Volkswagen also won the coveted Safety Award.

Commenting on the awards, What Car? editor-in-chief Chas Hallett said: ‘The Volkswagen up! sets new standards for a car at £10,000.  It’s a city car that can seat four adults, while offering new levels of refinement, quality and maturity at this price; none of its rivals feels quite so grown-up.  Buyers will be looking for even more for their money than ever in 2012, so the up! is a worthy winner of the What Car? Car of the Year.’

Meanwhile the Safety Award was in large part the result of the availability of Volkswagen’s new City Emergency Braking system on the up!.  The What Car? judges were impressed by this particular example of ‘big car’ technology filtering down to a smaller model and the system uses sensors to scan the space ahead. It then applies the brakes automatically if it detects that the car is about to hit an object in front. 

Director of Volkswagen UK, Chris Craft, said: ‘We are absolutely delighted with the awards we have received from What Car? this year.  The magazine continues to be one of the most thorough and important sources of new car buying information for UK customers and winning the overall Car of the Year accolade gives our new city car, the up!, the best introduction to the UK market that we could have hoped for”.

First models should arrive in UK showrooms in March and Volkswagen contract hire on the up! range is on the site now.

The full list of category winners at the What Car? Awards 2012 is below.

SEAT Ecomotive model

Camps International is the ethical travel company that offers a range of gap year volunteering experiences and school expeditions to areas across the world including East Africa, South East Asia and Latin America. The company has just taken delivery of a dozen SEAT Ecomotive models to add to its company car fleet, allowing them to slash their fuel bills while reducing CO2 emissions and employee tax liability.

Group Financial Controller of Camps International, Carl Palmer, said,”We were looking at all the options, but the SEAT Ecomotive range ticked all the boxes for us. We’re a carbon neutral company and we take our responsibility to the environment very seriously which is why it was very important that we opted for a clean car with low emissions. But we were also incredibly impressed with the fuel economy of the Ibiza and Leon Ecomotives, and the savings we could make by running them”.

The Leon E Ecomotive emits 99g/km CO2 emissions and returns 74.3 combined mpg while the Ibiza E Ecomotive emits even less at 92g/km and returns a fuel figure of 80.7mpg.  And of course both models will be exempt from the London Congestion Charge. SEAT contract hire on all models is on the site now.

SEAT electric car

SEAT, the sporty Spanish car manufacturer, has just released details of the new Altea XL Electric Ecomotive, its first electric car, In addition they have also produced a plug-in hybrid Leon TwinDrive Ecomotive and SEAT envisages full hybrid and electric car production by 2015.

Electric car charging

The SEAT Altea XL Electric Ecomotive engine produces 115hp and this translates into a top speed of 135kph. The batteries are located under the rear seats and the boot, so there is plenty of space and legroom for passengers. When the Altea XL is parked in the sun, rooftop photovoltaic cells recirculate fresh air throughout the passenger compartment, reducing the need for energy when setting off, by reducing the need to turn on the climate control to cool the car.

The SEAT Leon TwinDrive Ecomotive plug-in hybrid has a top speed of 120kph and a range of 52 kilometres in full electric mode. When switching to the combined mode (electric plus combustion) the top speed extends to 170 kph and CO2 emissions are just 39g/km.

Windsor Vehicle Leasing, a recognised FN50 leasing company, has joined the site and they have just loaded some great business car leasing offers on sub 100g/km CO2 cars. All contracts are based on the three years, 3+35 rental profile, 10,000 miles per annum and non-maintained contract hire. Other terms are available on request.

Just click on the monthly rental below for further details.

New models just loaded

Volkswagen Ensurance

Volkswagen Insurance Services (VIS) has just launched a new product called “Ensurance” which works with any car insurance policy and then provides a full accident management and support service using the Volkswagen Group repairer network. The new product was launched on the 15th July 2011 and has an annual cost of £49.99.

The new product does not work on referral fees or increased courtesy cars cars costs paid in the background and all work is carried out by VW Group trained technicians, using genuine VW parts and a courtesy car will be provided for a wider range of circumstances than usual credit hire arrangements.

The Ensurance product can bought for all new and used Audi, SEAT, SKODA and Volkswagen branded vehicles and full details by these brands can be found as follows;

• Volkswagen- www.volkswagen-ensurance.co.uk
• Audi – www.audi-ensurance.co.uk
• SKODA- www.skoda-ensurance.co.uk
• SEAT – www.seat-ensurance.co.uk

EcoVelocity Show 2011

The EcoVelocity UK eco motor show is being held at Battersea Power Station in London from Thursday the 8th to Sunday the 11th September. There will be a number of green low-CO2 cars, electric vehicles (EVs) and hybrids on show, with manufacturers being represented including Citroen, Fiat, Ford, Honda, Hyundai, Kia, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Peugeot, Renault, SEAT, Vauxhall and Volkswagen.

EcoVelocity is going to be a fun interactive day out for all the family with the “SEAT youngs driver programme (11-16 year olds), Honda introducing motorcycling to young children, a Green Supercar paddock and also an Eco-Lab which delves into the science behind eco-motoring.

Gile Brown, Event Founder, commented,”In the absence of the British Motor Show in 2011, EcoVelocity will be the most important and definitely not to be missed motoring event of the year, showcasing the best real-world cars for real-world motorists at a single location”. If you are also thinking of leasing a low CO2 car try the Vehicle Type leasing shopper for a range of the latest models available.

Volkswagen

The Volkswagen Group consisting of Audi, Volkswagen, SEAT and Skoda, have been added to National Policing Improvement’s Authority (NPIA) vehicle purchasing framework. This means than any UK Police service, Fire and Ambulance Authority can now order any of the Volkswagen Group car and commercial vehicles.

Robin Woolcock, Volkswagen Group Managing Director, said,”We’re delighted to be working with the NPIA on this key initiative. We’re confident our proposition gives the emergency services a strong model line-up as well as excellent support-which is just as important in day-to-day operation”.

SEAT, the sporty Spanish car manufacturer, is stepping up its search for the soccer stars of tomorrow with its Kicks and Tricks online competition.

The competition challenges over-18s to submit video clips of their “freestyle” football” skills via SEAT’s membership website, Club SEAT.

An online vote by Club SEAT members will decide which talented youngsters will go onto perform at the SEAT FIVES final in April. You can also win tickets at the 2010 UEFA Europa League Final in Hamburg.

Visit www.club-seat.co.uk/kicksandtricks for further details.