Our Fleet Test Drive: Seat Exeo ST - 5th Report
Date:
23 June 2010
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Author: Rachel Burgess
On the grass
A few weeks after being tested as a family estate by a combination of kids and dogs, the Exeo faced a different challenge - that of ferrying a group of twenty-somethings to a party in the middle of nowhere.
Not knowing whether the outdoor event would be an all-nighter or something more tame, the inebriated, quartet of male passengers plus this sober driver carried wellies, tents, alcohol and a change of clothes, which fitted easily in the boot, despite it being a little smaller than rivals'.
Satnav (more likely to be an aftermarket item on this relatively low-cost car rather than the £1775 option) would have been handy, especially as having taken directions, delivered with conviction, by a tipsy passenger we ended up arriving late in Silverstone due to an unplanned diversion via Warwick. An unexpected off-road experience followed, and while the Exeo did lose its traction control on the wet farmyard tracks leading to the party, with some carefully tempered driving it handled the challenge well, particularly as a Land Rover had reportedly struggled over the same ground.
Seat Exeo ST 2.0 TDI 143hp | Mileage | 3854 | Claimed combined consumption | 51.4mpg | Our average consumption | 36.8mpg | P11D price | £21,215 | Model price range | £19,775-£24,285 | CO2 (tax) | 143g/km (20%) | BIK 20/40% per month | £71/£141 | Service interval | £1937 | Why we’re running it | To see whether Seat’s first upper medium competitor is a serious proposition | Positive | Good handling in unexpected terrain | Negative | Not much bar satnav support |
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