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Showing posts from December, 2011

Driven: Seat Ibiza Sport 130 (2004)

Greetings everyone! Today’s post is about another commercial vehicle, even if a very different approach from my Fiat Panda Van: the 2004 Seat Ibiza TDI Sport Van. Back in 2002, when Seat renewed its biggest-selling model – you guessed it – the message it wanted to spread was simple: we’re a young, stylish brand focused on those of you who are dynamic, young (at heart, at least...) and uncompromised. It was this clear. So, they went to Alfa Romeo, borrowed Walter de Silva – at the time Alfa’s chief of design – took the Skoda Fabia’s new platform (launched one year before), added a couple of powerful engines from VW and had a success between hands. I must recognize I like the look of it. Even today, the design is relatively up-to-date, despite the car having been sold in such great numbers and being a compact hatchback. On the inside, it’s another story. Yes, the round dials and air vents look Italian (wonder why...), but everything else is purely German: definitely practical and well s...