1999 Seat Alhambra S 1.9 TDi

Summary:

Faulty from day one

Faults:

Water pump, drive-belt failure, wheel bearings, suspension noises, leaks, you name it, it happened to this car.

General Comments:

Back in the early 2000's we had a pretty poor experience with this family MPV. Dull and not fun to own, we had to have it for the extra space.

Bought used but with low mileage and a good dealer history, this car was problematic from the get go. Dealer did some work under warranty, but as the miles and years went by, it was clearly a lemon that had to go.

Clearly based on the VW Sharan/Ford Galaxy from the same time, I knew people with those cars also and they had problems as well. None of these things are reliable. No wonder not many are left.

Good bits? It was not bad to drive and very comfortable and spacious, but that was all.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 6th February, 2023

26th Dec 2025, 18:12

Early Alhambra's were pretty bad, we had one in the family as well about 20 years ago, and it was just as troublesome.

The funny thing is the 1.9 TDi unit in this car, was actually very reliable and used in many other Seats and VW's of the time. But not reliable in the Alhambra for some reason, and I'm pretty sure it was the same 1.9 TDi unit they all used.

1999 Seat Alhambra 110 Sport 1.9 turbo diesel

Summary:

Excellent all-round car, value for money

Faults:

Map sensor at 80000 miles; that's all.

General Comments:

Cheap to run, lots of space, 7 very comfortable seats, air con.

I run it on bio diesel even in winter, which is a lot cheaper and cleaner. Never had any real trouble with this car in the 7 years I've had it, one map sensor changed cost me £35.00 and changed it myself.

Value for money, would buy another when this one fails in ten years or so hopefully, fingers crossed.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 13th December, 2008

1999 Seat Alhambra Unsure 1.9 turbo diesel Injection

Summary:

I highly recommend this car for all mpv enthusiasts

Faults:

I had a leak from the power steering that I noticed six days after I purchased it, and I had only done 130 miles approximately.

So I contacted the dealer and they are very sorry about it and have agreed to book it in over next week and leand me a courtesy car.

General Comments:

The car is very reliable.

Its also extremely comfortable.

The space is brilliant.

Its very cheap to run.

Very smooth and quiet.

Six of the seven seats can be completely removed with ease.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 12th February, 2005

1999 Seat Alhambra 1.8 ltr 20V Turbo 1.8 turbo petrol

Summary:

Expensive and difficult to maintain

Faults:

The Gear selector broke and this meant removal of the gear box.

The clutch slave cylinder broke at 90000 miles and the gear box had to be removed.

General Comments:

A wonderful car to drive and a great family car, but difficult and expensive to work on.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 2nd April, 2003

1999 Seat Alhambra 20v Sport 1.8 turbo

Summary:

Better value than either the Galaxy or Sharan

Faults:

Major problems with air conditioning/ventilation system.

Wiring loom to o/s rear door frayed and needed replacing.

Car is always telling me via the odometer that it needs a service when it doesn't.

Eats front tyres for breakfast.

Cruise control packed up. Seat says that it was never fitted with it despite the fact that it worked fairly well for the first 50,000 miles!!

General Comments:

Seat dealerships leave a lot to be desired.

Car is comfortable, handles well (for an MPV) and the kids love the flexibility of the seating. Wife seems to quite like it as well, but hates having to reverse it.

If you are after fuel economy do not buy the petrol variant. I am only getting about 24 mpg.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 20th January, 2003

12th May 2008, 19:10

Hi. Read your comments with interest, especially the part regarding "cruise control".

I found it odd that a main dealer stated that yours didn't have it, as ALL Seat Alhambras had it fitted as standard.

You are right about the tyres too. Mine eats both inner and outer edges on both wheels once a year, even though the laser tracker says all is OK.

Mine didn't like going out in the rain when I first had it. It would pout for 4 days after, then it would start back into life. Anyway, with that sorted, now it likes all the big puddles!

There is an annoying "low noise click" that regularly comes from the steering air-bag area (ON MINE). Don't know why, but I'm not going to say any more about it, as I don't wish to tempt fate!

Overall it's a fantastic car that just swallows all those silly lumps of concrete the government call road humps. It's nice and wide enough to go over the outer edges without too much damage to my back vertebrae, which is good news now, but stops me suing for damage later.

As for economy, I use SAAB phrase "You can't compromise between safety or economy", it's one or the other, so I believe it's worth the cost.

If you're a DIYer, and you are doing the front pads, after removal of the caliper, it is very important to make sure the caliper does not twist when removed; otherwise the brake flexi WILL be in an incorrect position, which WILL lead to the tyre rubbing into it, which WILL cause brake failure eventually. TAKE NOTE OF THE WAY THE FLEXI SITS!

As for wiper blades; £24 a set, BUT if you're a DIYer, pop along to Tesco, where you will find 24" blades for about £4, remove the inserts and fix them into the original wiper blades on the car.

Overall, considering it carries a SEAT badge, you are getting a car where everything comes as standard (unlike the other two), but also one of them supplies the engine (and the body).

I think it is a great road-to-driver communicator, and the seating position height allows you to plan way ahead rather than relying on a wall of steel on wheels in front of you. And there's bags of room underneath, if you ever wish to get an LPG tank fitted.

1999 Seat Alhambra S 1.9 turbo diesel

Summary:

Don't hold your breath!

Faults:

Headlight levelling switch replaced due to failure - 6,000 miles.

Persistant noise from nearside front suspension when turning right - still trying to identify and rectify - from new 0 miles to 19,800 miles.

Drive belt replacement c.6000 miles due to excess wear problem.

Recall due to brake fluid reservoir cap problem - 6,000 miles.

WATER PUMP FAILURE AT 16,000 MILES.

Fuel line problem - sucking in air resulting in 4 BREAKDOWNS before being identified - BY MYSELF - and rectified - 8,000 miles to 19,800 miles.

General Comments:

Going by the performance of the first 7 months, the 3 year warranty and good service from the dealer are of paramount importance.

A good car spoilt by being beset by problems and failures from DAY ONE of taking delivery.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 1st July, 2000