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2018 SEAT Arona Spied Testing On Spanish Roads

Following the compact-sized Ateca, the SEAT lineup will welcome its second sport utility vehicle in a few months’ time. And based on how close to production this prototype appears to be, it’s safe to bet that the order books for the Arona will open in Europe before year’s end.
2018 SEAT Arona 9 photos
Photo: Stefan Baldauf/SB-medien
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Less camouflaged than previous prototypes, the Arona we’re talking about today features halogen headlights that don’t incorporate LED daytime running lights. The cheapo specification, however, is made better by the rear end, where the taillights are embellished by LEDs.

It’s impossible to tell what’s hiding inside the Arona from this set of spy photos, but to the subcompact crossover’s defense, the cabin receives sufficient natural light from all sides thanks to the sizable greenhouse. In terms of proportions, it’s fairly obvious that SEAT’s Arona has many things in common with the Volkswagen T-Roc.

Customers that desire to get the best-looking Arona out there will have to settle for the FR trim level, which combines sporty styling cues with crossover-ish motifs. As far as performance aspects are concerned, SEAT doesn’t plan to do a Cupra-ified Arona, at least not for the time being. In other words, a 150 PS (145 horsepower) 1.5-liter TSI Evo will have to make do as the most potent powerplant.

Lower down the suck-squeeze-bang-blow food chain, the all-new Ibiza’s 1.0-liter TSI three-banger turbo is expected to be offered alongside a fuel-sipping 1.6-liter TDI turbo diesel. A seven-speed DSG transmission is on the menu too, as is 4Drive all-wheel-drive. The latter is made possible by the MQB A0 vehicle architecture, a platform which is based on the MQB that underpins larger models.

Expected to be shown in all its glory in July 2017, the SEAT Arona will be followed in 2018 by a mid-sized sport utility vehicle with not two, but three rows of seats. The Spanish automaker’s answer to Skoda’s Kodiaq, the yet-unnamed model is rumored to be christened Alora.
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About the author: Mircea Panait
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After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well.
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