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Seat has spruced up its Alhambra MPV with more powerful and frugal diesel engines - which return as much as 56.5mpg, along with 130g/km emissions and 24% BIK charges - and reintroduced a turbocharged 1.4-litre petrol.
Seat has also updated the car's vast interior with a new in-car media system and different upholstery plus subtle styling updates.
Business users will account for 70% of Alhambra sales. Most popular is likely to be the 2.0 TDI 150 SE diesel. With 150hp on tap, this engine powers the car up to speed briskly, pulling smoothly from low revs. It's not quite as quiet as it could be, but overall noise levels are low courtesy of little wind or road noise.
Meanwhile, the suspension provides a comfortable ride, but the oversized machine does bounce a little over lumps and bumps. The steering is surprisingly weighty (although this does make it easy to place the Alhambra on the road), while the gearchange is slick.
The dash feels solid, with a clear layout, high-quality materials and simple rotary controls for the aircon. All models now have a 6.5-inch touchscreen media system too.
Space in all three rows of seats is generous, with three individual seats in the middle row. The outer seats slide forward and upwards, allowing very easy access to the rearmost row, while these seats offer adequate room for adults, provided they're not over six feet tall, and the boot is usefully sized.
Despite improved economy, the Alhambra could be cheaper to run. Residual values of 33% lag behind the Ford Galaxy's 36% figure, meaning the Alhambra 2.0 TDI 150 SE costs 60.8p per mile compared with 59.3ppm for an equivalent Ford. The slightly smaller Ford S-max, meanwhile, costs 54.9ppm. The Alhambra's sister model, the Sharan, is pricier, however, at 63.2ppm.
Although this Seat MPV is appealing in isolation for practicality-focused users, the Galaxy offers more load space, while costing less to run and offering lower BIK costs, making it the better business choice.
Seat Alhambra 2.0 TDI 150 SE |
| Model price range £24,885-£35,770 |
| Residual value 33.1% |
| Depreciation £19,255 |
| Fuel £4975 |
| Service, maintenance and repair £1796 |
| Vehicle Excise Duty £390 |
| National Insurance £3098 |
| Cost per mile 60.8p |
| Fuel consumption 55.4mpg |
| CO2 (BIK band) 132g/km (24%) |
| BIK 20/40% per month £115/£230 |
| Warranty 3yrs/60,000mls |
| Boot space (min/max) 267/2297 litres |
| Engine size/power 1968cc/150hp |
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Business Car Magazine © 2020 | Business Car is part of NS Media Group.
