2006 Seat Ibiza Sport 1.9 TDI

Summary:

A Spanish senorita that will have you hooked

Faults:

Nothing.

General Comments:

I went and bought this car after my Peugeot 306 D Turbo finally decided to finally pack up.

I couldn't believe the torque the car had on the test drive and ordered on that day.

The interior is very comfy and rather quite "swish". The dials light up red which I feel is a nice touch. There have been reviews of the interior build quality, but I have not heard a rattle in 18k miles and 14 months of ownership.

The performance is where this car does the talking. I bought the 100bhp version mainly because of cost and have found it to be quite quick. But I soon got a little bored and took it for a remapped ecu, the new power is unbelievable and is now pushing about 140bhp with a lot more torque which gives my cousins BMW 530i a run for it's money. 0 -60 in just over 7 seconds. Not bad for £200.

Basically if you want a car that is reliable, quick, fun to drive and a lot cheaper than it's VW cousin then this is the car for you. It is affordable in both running costs (average 48mpg) and tunablilty.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 24th October, 2007

2006 Seat Ibiza FR 5d 1.9 TDi 130

Summary:

A competent performer, with a good all-round specification, but has a few refinement issues

Faults:

There are a few squeaks and rattles in the cabin.

The paintwork appears to scratch quite easily.

Also, the cabin/dashboard plastics mark quite easily.

First to second gear change is not always that smooth.

General Comments:

The car offers lively acceleration, cruises well on the motorway, and appears to handle well with little body-roll.

I have achieved an average of 50 mpg over about 7,000 miles in 9 months of motoring. The furthest I have travelled between fill-ups is 502 miles (driving like Gordon McIver).

Its looks are quite appealing, with the face-lifted front-end bumper and surround.

The cabin is quite comfortable and I find the seat and steering wheel controls adjust to my requirements well.

I waited for about a year to get my hands on this exact model, and I'm quite pleased, but I do have some criticisms...

- The ride is harsh and 'crashy' due I suppose to the 17" 40% low-profile tyres, although I've read that the entry-level Ibizas ride the bumps none too well either.

- The car appears to enjoy steering itself along depressions in the road/motorway caused by HGVs, poor road repairs, and apparently whenever there is a heavy camber in the road. Tyres to blame again I think.

- Road noise can be intrusive on certain surfaces.

- First gear is too low - maximum revs in first gear reached at about 20 mph! Second gear is too low as well.

- The engine appears to operate in two modes: 'SDI' mode at low revs (lethargic) and 'TDI' mode above say 1800/2000 revs. This can be a problem for standing starts.

- This model has the 'BLT' engine, and suffers from a certain stuttering of performance when lifting the throttle and then reapplying it.

- The trip computer often records fuel consumption at around 70+ mpg, but I contend this is inaccurate.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 25th June, 2007

26th Jun 2007, 06:29

'First gear is too low - maximum revs in first gear reached at about 20 mph! Second gear is too low as well.'

It's a diesel, so you can't expect to get up to much speed in the first 2 gears. They're really just to get you moving before the more usable torque in the higher gears.

As for the trip computer, I don't know if its the same one as in my fabia vRS, but mine regularly reads well into the 70s over a journey and yet I rarely get more than 50mpg out of a tank.