SEAT unveils green plans

SEAT is developing plug-in hybrid and battery-powered versions of its model line-up.

The plug-in hybrid system is called TwinDrive, and it's set to go on sale in 2015, while the technology is already being developed in the Leon hatchback. Then in 2016, a fully electric, zero-emissions vehicle will arrive.

But the big news is that both of these efficient machines will be based on existing models within the SEAT range. It means the ambitious aim to make a standalone electric model, heralded last year by the dramatic IBE concept (right), has been abandoned.

Company president, Brit James Muir, explained: “In Spain, electric vehicle registrations were supposed to number 11,000 by now, but there are currently 197 on the road, so the demand clearly isn’t there. However, customers do want a more sustainable form of personal mobility, and their needs are diverse. We think a parallel strategy of developing two different technologies will put SEAT in the best position to meet their needs.

“Our job is to make the VW Group’s resources available to the wider public,” he added. “We think electric cars will make up between three and five per cent of sales over the next five to eight years, but plug-in hybrid electric vehicles could be double that.”

The first pure electric SEAT prototype is based on an Altea XL compact MPV, while the TwinDrive technology is being developed in the current Leon. The plan is to sell a TwinDrive version of the next-generation Leon, a model which is due to be unveiled for the firt time at the Geneva Motor Show next March.

SEAT has also confirmed that, unlike the current Leon, the next generation will be available in more than one body style. Plans for a stylish Vauxhall Astra GTC-style three-door coupe and a practical ST estate are both on the cards.

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