SEAT Altea Freetrack 4 Review

SEAT Altea Freetrack 4

The exuberance of the Crono Yellow exterior is somewhat muted by the interior colours. The design, ergonomics and feel are fine; it is more the odd combination of colours that seems incongruous. SEAT tells us that the brown, ‘bark-coloured’ centre console and various trim panels, provides “links with the great outdoors”. For me, the mix of perforated brown and grid-patterned, black materials just doesn’t gel.

There is a single equipment specification, as the Freetrack 4 is more or less, a stand alone vehicle. The list contains more than enough for family travel, with a few extras thrown in for good measure. With families on board, storage is a big issue; one that has been thoroughly addressed by way of under-seat drawers, capacious door bins and a two-tier armrest at the front, slightly smaller door bins in the rear, plenty of cupholders and an overhead storage console, with four compartments of varying sizes.

The rearmost compartment opens up to reveal a 7-inch screen, so when the children become bored of ‘colouring in’, on the flip up aircraft-style tables, they can plug in a portable DVD player, games console or MP3 player, instead. Alternatively, the same RCA connection can be used for a laptop.

The cabin is spacious, with plenty of legroom for the three, rear passengers. The centre seat doubles as an armrest table, when not in use. The seat backs recline and there is a 60:40 split and fold function. What is more, the seats can be moved up to 14cm forward or 2cm back for extra legroom or more luggage space.

The Freetrack 4 has a little less boot capacity than the XL with between 490- and 593-litres available, depending on the rear seat positions; this increases to 1,562 when loaded to the roof. Not only is the boot fitted with a cargo net and hooks, as standard, but there is also a partition net, which can be used to separate the luggage or the dog, from the cabin area.

Another standard feature is the partial leather seat covers, which, together with the fabric areas, provides a mixture of practicality and luxury. The rear seats are well contoured and supportive but the front seats are of a Recaro style with heavily bolstered sides to keep you firmly in place when off-roading or making the most of fast country lanes. Both the driver and front passenger have height and lumbar adjustment, while the sports steering wheel lives up to its name in superb style.

But that’s not all. Here is a quick rundown of the other standard goodies: integrated window blinds for the powered rear windows, dual-zone climate control, automatic wipers and headlights (with washers), heated washer nozzles, rear parking sensors, integrated front foglights, heated, folding mirrors in the same grey colour as the bumpers, auto-dimming rear-view mirror, rake- and reach-adjustable steering column, cruise control, tyre pressure monitor and pre-installed towbar electrics. Quite a list.

Seat Altea freetrack 4