SEAT will launch its latest SUV in the shape of the Tarraco at the start of 2019.
Rewind two years and SEAT didn’t have a single SUV to its name, but now we’re on the verge of welcoming its third and largest offroader: the Tarraco.
Sitting above the Arona and Ateca compact and mid-size SUVs, the Tarraco blends greater levels of design, quality, equipment, connectivity, safety, style and dynamics to inject some freshness into the large SUV segment.
Much of what makes up the Tarraco is shared with the Skoda Kodiaq. Both SUVs sit on the same MQB platform, come with five or seven seats and use the same range of petrol and diesel engines.
Those seven seats offer increased flexibility while a 700-litre boot, which increases to 1,775 litres with all of the back seats down, is pretty much the biggest in this class.
Driving the Tarraco is an engine range comprising two petrol and a pair of diesel units. The 148bhp 1.5-litre turbo petrol here is the same engine used by the Ateca and Arona (as well as many other VW and Skoda models), accompanied by a more potent 187bhp two-litre version, capable of 0-62mph in eight seconds with a 131mph top speed.
Diesel drivers can choose a two-litre unit with 148bhp or 187bhp, the latter of which can also reach 62mph in eight seconds.
Inside the cabin, the Tarraco fuses a high quality, ergonomically designed interior space with state-of-the-art infotainment and connectivity technologies to maximise the interaction between driver and vehicle.
Seven exterior colours are available: dark camouflage, oryx white, reflex silver, atlantic blue, indium grey, urano grey and deep black, with equipment split over two trims: SE or Xcellence.
Alejandro Mesonero-Romanos, SEAT’s design director, believes that the Tarraco gives a strong visual impression due to its proportions and elegant, yet sporty design.
“It delivers a feeling of proudness thanks to its assertive front end, a front end that gives you a hint to what future SEATs will look like,” he said.
“As we do in every vehicle we develop, we put a huge amount of our love and passion into the Tarraco’s detailing, following our philosophy: if it looks right, it is right.”
What do you think of SEAT’s new SUV? Let us know in the comments!
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And hybrid versions will be introduced?