You have to consider what Seat built and what they try to market it as.
They try and market this as an MPV. Its clearly not. Its has sliding rear seats that can provide big boot room or big rear seat room. The rear seats fold 70/30 but not flat - the rear cushions go down a bit, and the seat backs end up flat with where the original false boot floor was. Because the false boot floor never made it into the XL (and was deleted from the ordinary altea) it leaves a deep boot well and a step up to the folded seat backs. The seats do not come out.
So clearly its not MPV, but what do you do get is a very useful estate hybrid, that suits my needs (doggy and luggage and runs to the tip) Clearly I wont get three metres of worktop in it like i did in the touran.
Yes the A pillars are fat and wide, wider than any car i know. The wipers live in those A posts. Its not however a problem for me, as I am used to it. And paradoxicly, the worse they are the more you are aware of the shortcomings and you always look round them, never assuming nothing is there. The ride is firm but the altea (and more the XL) are the softer riding Seats.
I would describe the interior build as "Japanese" - That is good fit, finish, but brittle plastics. There is the odd strange bit of plastic here and there (look to the end of the dash on the drivers side - wierd.
The car show signs of the money men constantly snipping bits off during production to get profits right (like the now missing boot floor, the now missing engine covers, removal of options etc). The colour choices are dire as well. Dark grey looks good, silver aint bad, it looks good in non metalic red, and looks superb in metalic black.
But i do like the feel of it on the road. And its looks. And the huge list of standard toys, and the price, and that sold it for me.
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TourVanMan TM < Ex RF >
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TVM, agree with everything you say there. I noticed the end of the dash at the drivers side seemed a bit "unfinished" but I thought that was more to do with the pod thing that has been put in for the TomTom.
The one I am looking at is grey, think they call it Platinum grey. Not my first choice but I like it all the same. Looking down on it from my office window today it "almost" looked gold and with the chrome roof bars fitted its quite a nice contrast.
All my last 3 Scenics have all had double sunroofs so it will be strange going to a car that doesn't have any. I will miss the light getting into the car, but not miss the creaking sunroofs! My Skoda doesn't have a sunroof and to be honest, I don't really miss it.
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I am faced with the decision of taking out a loan to fund the final payment of my PCP to keep my (now) 3 year old Scenci, or look elsewhere. Had hoped for a CRV (old shape) but when I drove it , it just didn't appeal (after doing ages of research on the subject).
My other car is a Fabia vrS.
My first drive of the Altea was yesterday, 30 mins. Its an ex-demonstrator 2.0tdi Stylance. Really liked it yesterday, only concern was engine noise, like a "thrum" coming through the car.
Dealer phoned me back today saying that he was in all day and if I wanted to come and take the car for the day (as it was his company car) then I could. So I did. Really useful actually getting to test drive a car, doing what I will be doing with the car on my average working day rather than driving a pre-determined route.
Anyway, I have decided that if I do get a new car, then this is the one. It reminded me so much of my fabia. The dash is modern, functional and smart. the seats are well supported. The engine has real good grunt in it, floor it in second and it pulls away just like the Fabia. And keeps pulling.
It was only when I returned the car today I realised that I wasn't conscious of the engine noise at all. Now maybe that was cos I was driving it "normally, so radio on etc, rather than radio off listening for every sound.
Likes
Engine, TomTom with instructions coming through the speakers and built in bluetooth facility, (strange getting a text up on the TomTom whilst driving!), roadholding, firm suspension, shape, looks etc
Dislikes
In short - not a lot!
Compared to the Scenic it is not as "versatile" Scenic has loads of cubby holes, all the seats can come out, front seat folds flat. However, after having owned this one for 3 years, infact having owned Scenics since 1999, I can probably count on one hand the times I have had the three rear seats out. Storage space, great to have once a year if you take the car on holiday but other than that, not really used.
Dealer said he has squeezed evry pound out the deal and can't include the engine cover for me. I don't know how much these cost, I daresay if the deal hinged on it then I might get it.
One question though that dealer couldn't answer for definite, if I get a towbar fitted (for my cycle carrier) will the towball interfere with the rear parking sensors??
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I had a 1.9d Stylance Altea for 3 weeks in Spain last summer and my only gripe was the A/C really struggled to keep the car cool.I find this with Seats,just had an Ibiza 1.9 Stylance diesel in Spain and again the A/C struggled.This would be a major factor in my choice.
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Bobby - have you tried an Octavia? You may have had other reasons not to, but I'd be interested if you have any views on this as (if I can't afford to go back to Audi, and the Golf is still too expensive for what it is) it might be between an Octavia Combi and an Altea XL.
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Avant, I like the high -up seating position of MPVs, having driven scenics since 1999. I actually really like the Octavia Estate but just like to sit that bit higher.
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Good point. I like sitting high too - that was one of the attraction of the current B-class, and it's why the Toyota Verso is on the list, but you can't have it as a diesel automatic.
You can with a Scenic - great engine (refined and punchy) but it wallows too much for me and there were rattles and loose trim on a 7000-mile demonstrator.
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Avant, I have been unhappy with the quality of the trim in My Scenic, a rattly sunroof here, a creaking headlining there etc that eventually become so obvious that your ears tune in to them!
Agree re the ride, I have always liked the Scenic's ride as it was the only type I had really experienced. Then I got the abia vrS, totally different, much stiffer, less roll on bends etc. The Seat , although obviously not as firm as the Fabia, is certainly closer in ride to the Fabia than it is to the Scenic.
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Just remembered something I don't like about the Altea XL - the rear pasenger floor is not flat like the Scenics, it has the "tunnel" going through the middle, making it difficult for someone in the middle seat to find somewhere for their feet!
What exactly is in this "tunnel"? I used to be told these were transmission tunnels but I presume that was on RWD cars?
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