Michael Taylor from Auto Express and Richard Bremner from Autocar were both given an exclusive opportunity to test-drive the new IBE ahead of its appearance at the 2010 Paris Motor Show.
“If you’re lucky enough ever to drive a concept car, disappointment often follows,” says Bremner. “But this SEAT, the IBE, is a little different.
“It’s electric, as intended, but the drive system in this show car is one of several that SEAT is experimenting with for production. Not only that, but all the sub-systems of this handsome little coupé are hooked up, too.”
“The result is a concept car that hints tantalisingly at the driving experience of a showroom version,” says Bremner. “That’s not merely because an electric motor produces near-instant torque, enabling the IBE to gain momentum with the unwavering certainty of a high-speed lift, but also because its electrically assisted steering directs it with crisply satisfying accuracy.
“True, we’re limited to around 30mph, but we’re lapping a tight and topographically challenging little track that demands a deft dynamic touch, even at this pace. The SEAT slices at corners with remarkably little roll, feels robust and, equally important, provides a driving position and visibility that encourage you to steer it with verve… You can really imagine flinging it around with the kind of light recklessness that the best hot hatches encourage.
“So this car feels more real, when you drive it, than most of the concept breed. It uses a second-generation electric drivetrain, says SEAT’s head of EV development, Francesc Sabaté Bastán, who explains that ‘city cars are not suitable for SEAT – they’re too conservative’. The hardware in question consists of a 102bhp, front-mounted electric motor and a compact, below-floor lithium-ion manganese-nickel-cobalt battery that allows a decent boot and room for four.
“The IBE zips to 62mph in 9.7 seconds and, more impressively, 31mph in 3.6 seconds, the low-speed acceleration underscoring its sporty, urban character. Its range is 81 miles and the top speed is 100mph.
“Its appealingly dynamic styling has a significance too, explains Chris Axe, SEAT’s chief exterior designer… The new [SEAT] look, he says ‘will be more crisp, positive and proud, and sporty and youthful’. The unconnected lines – along the IBE’s waist, for example – ‘are to be a SEAT signature. They’re like a skin’.”
“It’s hard not to be seduced by the IBE’s low-slung stance and razor-sharp body,” says Auto Express’s Michael Taylor. “But this car is more than something to look good on SEAT’s Paris show stand. It previews a new design language and proves that the company is serious about battery vehicles. We shouldn’t read too much into the driving experience, yet the electric motor’s smooth power delivery impresses even at this early stage.
“The highlight of the package has to be the interior, with its smartphone integration and eye-catching design… SEAT has gone for a minimalist approach [that] exaggerates the space on offer in a car that, at 3.83 metres long, is shorter than the current Ibiza. The two rear seats fold individually to boost load space and give a large, flat floor. Yet when they’re in place, there’s plenty of headroom, even though the car is only 1.23 metres high and has its batteries placed under the floorplan.
“In the front is a pair of leather-covered plastic bucket seats, and it feels as if half the dash has been sliced away,” says Taylor. “Instead of a built-in screen, SEAT has developed its own iPhone app. Dock your Apple handset in the top of the dash, and it takes care of music, navigation and other vehicle settings… Let’s hope this makes it to a production model soon.”
