Our SEAT Ateca long-term test car continues to show its family and business driver friendly side.

List price (BiK): £33,195 CO2: 151g/km (BiK: 35%) MPG: 39.8-42.2mpg Test efficiency: 37.7mpg

Report 4:

It’s all change in the Fleet World fleet, which means the Ateca is off to another team member to test.

After three months with the car, I’m somewhat reluctant to say goodbye as I’ve enjoyed the SEAT’s mix of comfort, practicality and a sporting edge.

In the weeks leading up to its departure from the Middleton household, I’ve tested out the eco mode – and found that while it doesn’t dent performance much, it does improve economy. Ditto for the sport mode, which noticeably sharpened performance.

While the interior is on the dark side, there are elements that lift it, such as the chrome detailing and the grey fabric used on our model for the seats and door panels – although the latter has also meant there was something else to clean for the handover as it’s amazing where kids can get mud.

I’ve appreciated the driver focus in the cabin – the infotainment screen is angled to the driver, easy to reach, while the side supports on the seats mean they really do hold you in place. The physical buttons for climate controls are also handy too.

Visibility is generally very good, with a clear view ahead, although the over-the shoulder aspect is a bit eclipsed.

Volkswagen Group SE Technology models are normally geared towards fleets, and the Ateca’s comes with many business driver-friendly features. These include the upgrade to the 9.2-inch navigation system, keyless entry and high-res driver binnacle. Features carried over from the SE include cruise control, dual-zone climate control and the wireless smartphone integration; a particular benefit as charger cables do an excellent disappearing act the older that my kids get – and the rear USB-C ports too. Probably the best thing to my mind is there’s been no glitches at all. The infotainment has worked every time and there’s been no hiccups with safety equipment and other onboard features; not always a given in today’s tech-laden cars.

I will miss the Ateca’s practical side – particularly the roomy interior and plenty of rear space. I can’t see anyone wanting for head, elbow or knee room in the back.

I’ve not wanted for storage space either – the boot is a nice, well-sized practical shape, and easy to access and I kept finding more cubbies as time goes on. Including a more security-focused slot in the glovebox, and spaces in the roof and under the driver’s seat.

Throw in its smart looks and keen driving abilities and it’s easy to see why the Ateca remains a strong contender among family SUVs.

Report 3:

Are tailgates getting higher or am I getting shorter? It’s something I’ve increasingly noticed over recent years and I suspect it’s the latter – along with the obvious shift to SUVs. Luckily, I’m able to reach the Ateca’s with just a bit of a stretch, compared to an outright reach with some.

Boot space has been pressed into use in recent weeks – whether to amass three kids’ bedding for a sleepover or the sticks from a forest den that one of them was adamant they had to bring home after. It’s also helped with spring cleaning clear-outs to the tip too.

With hands full of whatever gubbins, it’s been a relief that the Ateca comes with the requisite levers to plop down the rear seatbacks from the boot – and that the boot space is pretty flat with just a small lip. The parcel shelf is also quick to remove yet robust enough for everyday use too. And there’s a folding hatch through to the rear seats for longer loads.

I’m a fan of the 1.5 EcoTSI petrol engine, which delivers smooth yet gutsy and effortless performance out on open roads, while the Active Cylinder Management technology seamlessly switches to two cylinders in low-load conditions.

While the DSG feels a little slow to change when I’m doing three-point turns in our road – where drivers seem to think slowing down for other cars is for wusses – it’s very quick to change out on the road.

Dynamically, the Ateca does feel different to its VW Group siblings. Ride is definitely firmer but without being uncomfortable and body control is good.

School runs in morning traffic have also made me appreciative of how quick the start-stop system is to react.

I have been pleasantly surprised by fuel consumption. This is a fair-sized – and well built – car and yet I’m getting 37.7mpg, no doubt helped by the cylinder shutdown, which as mentioned is pretty much undetectable.

So saying, the Eco button, which flashes on the driver display during more parsimonious driving behaviour, gave me a turn or two at the start as it’s blue like the main beam symbol and I kept quickly trying to flick the lights down. A different colour would work much better to my mind.

I continue to smirk over the doors. Every person who gets out of this car, including my son’s friends but also adults too, fails to give the doors enough welly to shut them properly. Further proof of the SEAT’s well-built credentials.

Report 2:

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One of my first impressions about the Ateca – other than the much-loved Hola! puddle lights – was the robust build quality. This is a car that feels well-made and decidedly solid.

But it’s led to an interesting problem in that shutting the doors requires a bit of welly. And for the first few weeks I really wasn’t giving it enough. I thought it must just be me at first but then my son quickly followed suit on the morning school run, resulting in an embarrassed double back to sort while still pretending he’s not being dropped off by his mum. And a friend did it too. In a way, it’s a nice problem to have – a car that feels so well-built that you have to give a good slam to the doors.

One other thing that I’ve noticed is that the standard-fit front and back sensors are a wee bit reactive and kick in when I’m not expecting them. As someone who’s a bit jumpy at the best of times, it’s led to a few panics. Particularly round my son’s school, where the residential road is also now being parked on by local builders and it’s a bit of a slalom course to get through in the mornings.

As with Nat Barnes who’s testing the Mazda CX-60 PHEV on our fleet, I also had an issue with tight spaces in a car park for a Christmas panto visit. Not wanting to get caught up in the post-panto exodus from higher levels, I was left with a space next to a pillar that was a bit of a tight manoeuvre, not helped by the sensors having a field day and I ended up getting out a couple of times to check how much room I really had (more than the sensors would have had me believe). So saying, I have had test cars where the sensors have been slow reacting so this setup is far better.

The Ateca is already showing its practical side. Boot space stands at 510 litres – rising to 1,604 litres seats down. Its very first job was to house a supersize helium balloon for a family birthday. These things are always awkward to fit in a car quick and stop them flying out again but the Ateca performed with aplomb.

Report 1:

With oodles of boot space, impressive build quality and a great driving experience, our new SEAT Ateca test car was a much-appreciated early Christmas arrival on our long-term fleet.

First launched in 2016, the Ateca was the brand’s inaugural SUV. It was targeted at Leon customers looking to gain more space and SUV attributes, along with drivers exiting the D-segment. A little late at the time, the midsize SUV more than made up for its tardiness. It’s now flanked by the smaller Arona that arrived in 2017 and larger Tarraco launched 2018; between them, the trio account for around half of the brand’s global sales.

The Ateca is a familiar sight on UK roads and it could have been a case of déjà vu for our test fleet. The SEAT is based on the same on the same MQB platform as the Škoda Karoq that we tested a year ago, and the usual VW Group parts sharing means some of it looks familiar. But by no means all – and there’s actually a surprisingly high level of differentiation.

Ours comes in SE Technology guise – sitting above the £28,385 entry SE trim and typically aimed at business drivers due to its levels of equipment, including connected technology and the 9.2-inch colour touchscreen. The grade line-up also includes the brand’s usual FR (‘Formula Racing’) and FR Sport with more sporty features and equipment, plus the range-topping Xperience and Xperience Lux.

Engine-wise, ours is the 150hp 1.5 EcoTSI petrol, paired with a seven-speed DSG. The Ateca is also available with a six-speed manual while the line-up also includes the 110hp 1.0 TSI that we’ve tested in our VW models. For those seeking more power, SEAT’s performance offshoot Cupra offers a 2.0 TSI unit with up to 300hp of power and 4Drive all-wheel drive system. The former Ateca diesels are gone, while there’s no fully electric, hybrid or even mild hybrid variants although, elsewhere, the SEAT line-up includes the Leon and Leon Estate e-Hybrid estates.

First impressions are that it’s very solidly built and looks good, while delivering plenty of space onboard – more on all of this imminently. But the greatest delight – one that genuinely puts a smile on my face and attracts attention from others – are the ‘Hola!’ puddle mirrors. With a plethora of puddles currently around, these have proved practical while also giving a neat party trick over the Christmas break.