It may be the “black sheep” in the Volkswagen Group’s ever-expanding portfolio of car, truck and more recently, motorcycle brands as well, but the Germans aren’t about to give up on Seat.
Following the presentations of the all-important Leon compact hatchback and the new Toledo compact sedan, Seat boss James Muir told British publication Autocar that the Volkswagen board has given the green light for the development of the Spanish automaker’s first ever SUV.
Muir said the crossover will be a compact model in the likes of the Volkswagen Tiguan and the Nissan Qashqai and that Seat will preview a thinly disguised concept to preview it a major European auto show “within the next two years” before it reaches showrooms in final production trim by 2015.
“We will bring an SUV as quickly as we can,” Muir told the magazine. “After the concept in the next two years, it will be a short time before it comes to market.”
The Seat boss said he expects the brand to sell around 100,000 units of the five-door SUV, which will draw some styling cues from the 2011 IBX three-door crossover study.
Along with the compact crossover, Seat is also contemplating the introduction of a smaller SUV based on the VW Up!/Seat Mii platform, similar to the VW Taigun study displayed at the recent São Paulo International Motor Show in Brazil. “It’s on a white cloud at the moment, but it’s going to happen,” said Muir.
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