IT MAY be hard to believe that that the engine in the massive Seat Alhambra, which I drove last week, was the same as the one in the sporty Golf GTD that I drove the previous week.
But that’s the way it is with the VW group, where technologies are shared. The Alhambra is built on the same platform as the VW Sharan, but the 2.0-litre diesel engine they put into the Golf GTD was more powerful, with 184 brake horse power, compared to the Alhambra one, which had only 140 bhp.
Hold on, this may be getting a bit too technical. What you, the prospective customer, really needs to know is that this is a massive seven-seater people carrier with plenty of room and very flexible seats.
Admittedly I didn’t find much use for the third row of seats, which would be ideal for young children, but the extra space was useful for shopping and for trips to the recycling centre.
This is the second edition of the Alhambra which made its debut in 1996. At present it’s the largest car in the Seat range and has been a good seller over the past 18 years. Many people claim it’s the best car that Seat has built. It’s named after the Alhambra of Granada, a famous monument in Spain, but is built in Portugal. An SE version has just been launched in Ireland.
The flexible middle row of seats should keep everybody happy. A car fanatic I showed the Alhambra to was very impressed with the air conditioning for back seat passengers. He also said that if you didn’t have five children then why not bring the in-laws out for a Sunday drive, but I said we wanted to keep everybody happy.
Access to the third row of seats is via two sliding doors, which are really handy in shopping centres as you won’t find yourself apologising to fellow shoppers for scratching their doors. There is no luggage space if you have to use the third row of seats and no room for a spare wheel, just a repair kit – but the kits do work as I found out recently.
Inside there is plenty of leg and head room. The only thing that looked a bit plastic in an otherwise solid car was the sun glasses holder near the windscreen. It’s a very long motor and you will appreciate the reversing sensors when parking.
Prices start at
?¬38,995, but the automatic version with start/stop technology which I drove, will cost you
?¬45,255, which is a lot of money. You will also have to consider residual values. Road tax is
?¬390 and it’s certainly an economical car.
Overall I thought the Alhambra was very comfortable; I liked the high driving position and if you need a car that is spacious, practical and reliable I would recommend a test drive. If you cannot afford to buy a new one right now, the Alhambra would be an ideal car to rent if you were planning on doing a bit of touring with the family and in-laws around Ireland this summer.