OK, you know the form. This is not a Seat in any traditional sense. Indeed if you opened the bonnet of this and a VW Polo powered by the same 1.2-litre, three cylinder petrol engine, we reckon you’d seriously struggle to find a single difference between them beyond the badge on the engine.
Interestingly, given that this is very definitely the ground-floor of Seat ownership, they actually provide the more powerful 64bhp version of the 1.2-litre engine instead of the 54bhp version found in the cheapest Polo. There are another seven engines you can have in your Ibiza but the next cheapest, a 75bhp 1.4, will cost an extra £1445, a price we’re not sure is worth paying, even if it does buy you a raft of extra equipment. Others that do interest us are the 158bhp diesel-powered Cupra for £15,300 and the 150bhp FR for £11,900.
The Ibiza’s suspension follows the Polo’s form-book and that of almost every small hatchback - easily packaged McPherson struts at the front and a torsion beam rear axle.
For those looking for just 1.2-litres of power there is no other decision to make, save whether to spend an extra £600 on the five door bodyshell. There is only one trim level and it’s called Reference.