It felt like being in Ibiza with the sun shining and temperatures hitting a sweltering 30 Celsius, which for Britain, prompted heat warnings when the SEAT Ibiza was delivered. In a blue Azure colour, it matched the Sky and looked fabulous. Although not a luxury or sports car, I was looking forward to driving the Ibiza as the SEAT brand produces excellent cars.
The 1.0-litre three-cylinder engine is impressively quiet, and you hardly notice it running. The Ibiza is a sporty choice in the supermini class, even if you don't choose the racy FR or FR Sport models. The handling is sharp, but not at the expense of comfort, while increased dimensions help the Ibiza to be one of the most spacious cars in the class, too.
Rivals in this hotly contested sector are plentiful, but three to mention are the Ford Fiesta, Renault Clio and the Skoda Fabia.
SEAT Ibiza models are five-door hatchbacks, SE being the entry point to the range with no basic version in the line-up. You get as standard a touchscreen DAB radio with smartphone connectivity, LED daytime running lights and tail lights, metallic paint and a host of modern safety kit. The SE Technology model has a bigger touchscreen with sat-nav and ambient interior lighting. If you jump to the FR spec, you get sportier trim, 17-inch wheels and a drive mode selector. FR Sport gives you 18-inch wheels, suede-effect upholstery and a digital dashboard.
