1.9 TDI Stylance 5dr Estate

good car, easy to own, drive and reliable

seat altea xl, 1.9 SE spec, 5 speed manual gearbox, fitted with loads of extras
bought it in march 2011, it was 2 year old with 38000 miles on the clock, we needed the extra boot space for carrying kids stuff, mrs likes the higher driving position, she drives it most of the time

looks
front and sides are good, doesn't look as good at the standard altea at the back.

engine & gearbox
easy to drive, but a little sluggish until about 3rd gear, but when on the move its ok, needs a bit more power for overtaking, could do with a 6th gear for motorways

handling and suspension
goes round corners well, handles great, its on 16'' wheels, but it can be a bit choppy over rough surfaces, doesn't like potholes much, brakes are good, traction control / abs works well on slippy roads

practicality
load of space, roomy up front, lots of storage pockets and trays
in the back its better, back seat can slide forwards, picnic trays on the backs of the front seats, integrated sun blinds on the rear side windows
boot is huge, it will take a big buggy and have enough room for 2 families big shop shopping.
we normally leave the false boot floor out

running costs/ maintenance / service
averaging 49 mpg on short runs, getting 55 mpg on longer drives, other than normal services / consummables and the odd blown bulb nothing has gone wrong. 80000 miles on it now
fit and finish is good, nothing has fallen off or broken

i'd recommend it

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