Seat has said it is working on its first electric car, based on the Altea minivan, it’s also working on a plug-in hybrid version of the Seat Leon compact hatchback.
Seat Leon plug-in hybrid car is expected to be launched in 2015, The Altea electric car should follow a year later.
Seat will be using on hand information from government departments in Madrid and Catalonia, Seat say they will be giving the government use of both the vehicles in the next few months. The valuable information they get from this will whether or not to go in to mass production of the electril vehicles.
The Altea XL Electric Ecomotive will be aimed at families or fleet buyers who need a roomy vehicle. It has a range of 135 km and a top speed of 135 kph. The battery pack is located under the rear seats and in the trunk to maximize passenger and cargo space.
The Leon TwinDrive Ecomotive has a range of 52 km in electric mode, with a top speed of 120 kph. In combined mode using the electric motor and gasoline engine, the car's fuel consumption forecast is 1.7 liters of fuel per 100 km with CO2 emissions of 39 g/km, with a top speed of 170 kph.
Seat President James Muir said the carmaker has adopted a parallel strategy of developing two different technologies to meet a growing but diverse customer demand for sustainable mobility.