SEAT Ibiza SC Review

SEAT Ibiza

Safety and Security

The SEAT Ibiza SC is officially one of the safest cars in its class, with a five-star rating in the stringent Euro NCAP tests.

Key features include the standard fitment of pioneering new side head-thorax airbags, plus the inexcusable option of side curtain airbags these should be standard. And so should ESP - this should not be an option anymore!

All SEAT Ibiza SC models also feature ABS as standard, plus front seatbelt pre-tensioners, a front passenger seatbelt warning buzzer and rear ISOFIX child seat anchorage points. It lacks top tether points for ISOFIX child seats which ideally we would have liked to have seen.

Standard across the range, the SEAT Ibiza SC is equipped with a rolling code immobiliser and remote central locking, while all the doors and rear hatch have deadlocks. There are also child locks on the rear doors.

Comfort and Refinement

The SEAT Ibiza SC test car was fitted with the optional climate control pack (£245) - air conditioning is standard - the controls look a little like they were a stuck on after market kit, a bit like the radio - it is also set too low and fiddly to use.

Although the windscreen wipers do not automatically come on you can adjust the intermittent rate.

We liked the cornering lights which utilise the front fog lights at speeds lower than 25 mph, the corresponding fog light comes on to light up the inner side of the corner. It is activated when the indicators are activated or when the steering wheel exceeds a certain angle. The SEAT Ibiza SC also offers the option of daytime running lights and Headlight Coming Home function, which turns on the dipped beam for 30 seconds after removing the key from the ignition.

You can specify the option of (£636) Bi-Xenon headlights with AFS (Adaptive Front Lighting System) which is the first time this option has been made available in this segment. It is an option to consider if you do a lot of night time country driving. The adaptive part of the package allows the headlamps to track the steering movements made by the driver, pivoting the beam to match the direction of travel around a corner.

Our SEAT Ibiza SC test car was also fitted with optional (£245) cruise control package which always seems a bit pointless on this class of car - we would have much preferred to have seen safe packages as standard but of course this is the customer's choice.

Between the speedo and the rev counter there is a multi-function computer which can report information on the fuel level, clock, trip computer, outside temperature, distance remaining until the next service appointment, etc.