Ever since the Ateca was first launched in 2016, it’s been one of the very best cars in its class.
Special mention : Looks small, actually big, spacious and comfortable. Quality materials used throughout cabin. Very solidly built. Once you turn Lane Assist off, it stays off.
Needs work : Takes a couple of slams to close the boot on occasion. Subtle looks belie a competent and standout family SUV. Cheap to tax but beware the next Government budget. Apple Carplay can get confused between Bluetooth and USB-C, will sometimes refuse to play unless you un-plug or switch off bluetooth.
| BHP 150 | Diesel / Auto |
| 0-100 km/h in 8.8 seconds | Road Tax €280 |
Price: €32,545 As Specc’d : €44,546 | Boot space 510 – 1,604 litres |
Seat was relatively late to the SUV market when it launched the Ateca in 2016 but it was worth waiting for based on the same underpinnings as the popular VW Tiguan. It was well priced and spacious but it was the fact that it was surprisingly fun to drive that really separated it from rivals at the time. And it remains a thoroughly recommendable package even with competition now more fierce and varied than it was just a few years ago.
So to freshen it up it’s had a facelift which is mostly cosmetic. There are new front and rear bumpers and there’s a slight increase in the length of the car by 18 millimeters. More noticeable is the new grille and reshaped lights. There’s also full LED rear lights and you get dynamic indicators on FR and Xperience trims and for the first time on the Ateca you get the handwritten badge which is the same style as we’ve seen on the new Leon in Seat’s lineup.
There’s also been a change towards the top of the lineup with a new Xperience model of the Ateca which basically replaces the previous Xcellence model from before. Basically it’s a normal Ateca but with a bit of off-road styling added.
There’s a new steering wheel, new seat materials and the look on the center console and dashboard is quite different because you’ve got a matte silver finish outlining the dash rather than the more shiny looking silver in the old Ateca. There’s also a new design for the doors with some new stitching and on SC technology and above you can now get multi-coloured ambient interior lighting.
The other changes are more focused on the tech inside the Ateca, the higher trim levels get a 10.25” digital driver display. It’s got some configurability so you can decide what layout you prefer.
The infotainment system has also been updated and now if you go for an entry-level SC Ateca you get an 8.25” screen which is a little bit bigger than the one that came before and on the higher trim levels you get a 9.2” screen. The interface has been updated and it looks slightly snazzier than before but it’s not the best system out there because it can be quite laggy and also some of the icons are just a bit small so they’re difficult to prod accurately while you’re driving. There are a couple of ways around this via wireless Apple Carplay and wired Android Auto, plus Seat has updated its voice control system to try and help it better recognise natural speech when controlling functions within the infotainment system.
Every trim level gets wireless phone charging as standard so really taking all the technology and the materials and the fit and finish into account. It’s a decent interior and is certainly up there with the VW Tiguan and the Skoda Karoq. If you wanted a much plusher interior in your family SUV then you’d have to spend quite a bit more money to get that on something like a Volvo XC40 or a Range Rover Evoke. There are now four usb-c ports as standard including two in the rear and you will be perfectly comfortable while your iPhone charges because there is plenty of room in the back for passengers.
There’s loads of leg room to stretch out in as well and it’s also quite a broad interior so you should be able to fit three adults side by side easier than you can in some rivals and that’s even with quite a large transmission tunnel in the floor. The windows are quite big so they let a lot of light in and it generally does feel quite spacious in the back. You’ve got a ski hatch which lets you into the boot or obviously lets you put your skis through it there’s isofix fittings as well but in the VW Tiguan you can slide and recline the rear seats and on some versions of the Karoq you can remove them entirely plus the rear seats split fold but they do so in a 60 40 manner rather than the more practical 40 20 40 that some other rivals offer.
It is very spacious in the back but it doesn’t do any of those fancy practical tricks like some of its rivals offer dropping those rear seats is very easy with these handy levers in the boot and once they’re down you can see you’ve got a nice big area to get large objects into the back.
The seats don’t fold completely flat which isn’t a big issue but they’re at a slight angle. There’s a nice big square practical space and it’s also quite deep which makes fitting carry-on sized suitcases into the boot of the Ateca a doddle.
The Ateca has always stood out from the crowd on the road. In general tall SUVs don’t handle as well as equivalent hatchbacks but the Ateca is surprisingly good fun to drive. It’s agile, has precise well-weighted steering and gives you quite a good sense of connection as to what the front wheels are doing. It’s certainly more fun and engaging than every other direct rival for this car. If you like driving and you have to have a family suv then the Ateca should be at the very top of your shopping list but if you want a family SUV and you value comfort above everything else then that’s where there might be better choices than the Ateca because the price that you pay for that feeling of agility and impressive cornering ability is a slightly firm ride. The Ateca isn’t uncomfortable but you do have harsher impacts over road imperfections than you do in other cars but the good thing is that when it does go over a pothole it’s really well controlled and that impact is dealt with very quickly.
Even with the same platform they’ve managed to give them all quite different characteristics and the Ateca is definitely the sportier one. There has been a slight tweak to the engine lineup for this facelift but it’s nothing major so the entry-level petrol and the entry-level diesel now have slightly better claimed fuel economy and performance than before and the 1.6 tdi and the 2-litre tdi 190 diesels have been dropped from the lineup but it’s the 1.5 tsi 150 which remains a favorite.
The entry level three cylinder one litre is an impressive petrol engine it’s great around town but if you’re going to be doing motorway miles or longer journeys where you’re really going to appreciate the extra power is from the 1.5 150. We’re in the 2-litre tdi 150 and it’s a strong impressive diesel engine with pretty good fuel economy as well but it’s not expected to be the biggest seller in the lineup of course because of the massive downturn in diesel sales so most people are going to go for the petrols and if you do you’ll be impressed by the choice on offer.
Seat Ateca pricing is competitive in the family SUV class with the Ateca range starting from around €32,545 Euro but when you compare it like for like models of the Skoda Karoq, then the Skoda is a little cheaper.
There are a lot of trim levels to choose from and really even entry level SE is great value for money but we’d look at FR. It gives a sportier look inside and out as well as gaining automatic lights and wipers and the bigger infotainment screen. Choose your trim carefully though because you won’t find much on the options list beyond metallic paint. A favorite engine is the 1.5 tsi 150. Tax rates on the 2.0 TDi are currently low at €280 for the year but that might change with the next budget and you can’t get a hybrid or a plug-in hybrid.
If you’re more interested in performance than fuel economy then check out the Cupra version and if you need more space then you might be interested in the slightly bigger Seat Tarraco. The voice control system works very well, all versions come with automatic emergency braking and plenty of other electronic safety wizardry. However lane keeping assistance and blind spot monitoring are available only on Experience versions and above. There’s also side assist which can stop you steering into a lane occupied by another car and exit assist which keeps an eye out behind your car while you’re reversing out of a parking space.
The Seat Ateca has a nice practical interior, it’s very solid and it’s better to drive than most of its rivals. The facelift really hasn’t changed that much so it does remain the case that the Skoda Karoq is a slightly more comfortable overall package. The Ateca is a thoroughly recommendable family SUV.