Seat Alhambra MPV (2010 – ) first drive
Monday 20 September 2010
Seat has been making its big Alhambra people carrier since the mid 1990s, so the second-generation car marks a huge departure.
The original Alhambra was essentially the same car as the old Volkswagen Sharan and Ford Galaxy, but Ford has since developed its own people carriers. The reborn Alhambra is now only related to the new Sharan, although the two have different front end styling treatments and interiors.
What both share are the latest range of Volkswagen’s 2.0 TDi diesels and high power output, 1.4-litre turbo petrol motors.
There are a host of other spec and design changes that make the latest Alhambra a big advance over its well-liked predecessor.
Open and shut
The Alhambra’s body has a low-key European stylishness to it, and is generally less curvy than its predecessor. It’s also quite a lot bigger, being both 22cm longer and 9cm wider than before.
The most obvious design change is the adoption of a pair of big sliding side doors, which are electrically operated in the costliest versions.
These provide easy access to the cavernous interior, although getting to the rear seats is a bit of a stretch. Once you’re there, the amount of space for a pair of adults will come as a pleasant surprise, although by necessity, the deep boot is relatively small when all the seats are in place, with just enough room for a pair of large suitcases.
The three centre seat occupants have plenty of legroom, although three grown-ups will still find it a bit cosy – children will have no complaints. Oddly, the outer seatbelts aren’t height adjustable, which led to some complains about chafed necks.
An electric motor also does the business of opening and shutting the huge tailgate, complete with sensors to prevent it opening too far in low-ceilinged car parks.
Flexible interior
With a little practice, collapsing the rear seats is a one-handed job, and finding your way round the system is easy to do.
There are some clever design touches, including neat twist locks for the removable twin luggage covers. There’s also a huge, sliding luggage net.
Parents will appreciate the neat, optional built in child seats, which turn the centre sections of the middle seat bases into booster cushions. Impressively, these chairs swivel too.
All the seats, including the front passenger chair, fold flat to create a hefty load area –think 2,297 litres- and it’s possible to fiddle about with seat vs. luggage combinations in a thoroughly useful way.
The interior itself had a typically solid VW Group feel – the days of tinny Seats are long gone – and is filled with nice detailing, from hidden side window blinds to rear roof vents and rear heat/vent controls.
Oddments stowage space, from big door bins to a large, dash-mounted lidded recess, is good too.
Driving experience
The instrument display and centre console are all thoroughly tasteful and easy to use.
The upright driving position comes under that clichéd heading of ‘commanding,’ but with plenty of seat and steering wheel adjustment opportunities most people would find it easy to get comfortable. Seeing out of the Alhambra – some people carriers have a fair few blind spots – generally wasn’t a problem, and the built in reversing camera was rather good too – a park assist reversing system will be available soon.
The steering is light, direct and confidence inspiring if not especially engaging, while the ride is both quiet and pliant, and the hefty, tall Alhambra gets around bends tidily and without excess roll or lurching about.
By all accounts the latest Ford Galaxy is more involving to drive, but the Seat’s dynamics are civilised, and anyway, how many people carrier owners choose them for their handling?
Anyone expecting a 1.4 petrol engine to be incapable of hauling a big car like the Alhambra would be amazed at how well it does this, but most UK buyers are likely to go for the 2.0 diesel, either with a six-speed, two pedal DSG self-shifting gearbox, or a manual six speeder.
We went for the latter, mated to the smaller, 138bhp engine, and found these suited the car well.
Power is delivered quickly and fluidly from an engine that is smooth and unstressed unless really revved hard. With plenty of torque, coming in from a relaxed 1,750 revs, the pleasant gearbox doesn’t have to be worked especially hard either.
In this combination, the car is claimed to hit 62 in 10.9 seconds and reach 118 mph, whilst returning a near 50mpg combined, and emitting a rather good 149g/km of CO2.
Revving at a little under 3,000rpm when travelling at motorway speeds, this Alhambra is an easy-going motorway companion, although there’s some wind and tyre noise.
Broad appeal
Seat has worked hard to project a young, sporty image, so it’s slightly ironic that the quietly successful Alhambra, its longest serving model, has done well because it’s an entirely pragmatic, sensible piece of kit.
The new one builds on its strengths, but adds to them with the sort of technical, safety and convenience improvements you’d expect of a modern car.
Anyone with a big family, a small hotel or a private hire business would find a lot to like in this capable, good looking car, which proves that being sensible isn’t the same thing as being dull.
Key facts:
Model tested: Seat Alhambra 2.0 TDI six-speed manual 5-door
On the road price: (circa) £22,000
Price range: (circa) £22,000 to £30,000
Date tested: September 2010
Road tester: Martin Gurdon