SEAT IBE Concept to Be Produced

SEAT presented at the 2010 Geneva Auto Show the IBE concept, an electric coupe that could reach production as part of a scheme prepared by the Spanish government to encourage local drivers to migrate towards "greener" means of transportation. According to autocar.co.uk citing some SEAT insiders (which remained anonymous so nobody knows for sure whether the information is indeed accurate or not), the Spanish manufacturer is currently pondering several green models, including the aforementioned IBE concept.

Besides the concept, SEAT will also introduce a petrol-electric hybrid model based on the Volkswagen Golf platform, which will obviously suffer several modifications to work with this kind of powertrain. A SEAT Leon hybrid is likely to make it to production by 2014 as well.

The IBE concept is 3.78 meters long, 1.80 meters wide and has an overall height of 1.22 meters, which means it is 25cm shorter than an Ibiza, 22cm lower but 10cm wider.

The engine develops 102 horsepower and 200 Nm of torque, which means it could go from 0 to 50 km/h in 3.4 seconds, to 80 km/h in 6.3 seconds and to 100 kmh in 9.4 seconds. The continuous power rating is limited to 68 horsepower, with the speed reaching 160 km/h. Battery capacity is 18 kWh.

“The IBE is in the best SEAT tradition of always offering the boldest and most youthful cars in its class. On top of that, our first electric concept car represents the continuation of our strategy for the future; after the huge success of the highly efficient ECOMOTIVE models, we are now working intensively on electric mobility; and that includes plug-in hybrid drive, as well as an all-electric vehicle," said James Muir, President of SEAT, S.A. at the Geneva Auto Show.