DURING 2005, the models in the SEAT range received a wealth of national and international awards which are a clear indication of their popularity amongst customers and the motoring press alike. The excellent rating the Altea received for pedestrian protection in Euro NCAP testing in 2004 was further supported by the maximum possible rating of the Leon in the testing in 2005. These results helped SEAT to secure the award for the least aggressive car front presented by VOICE (Vulnerable road users Organisations In Cooperation across Europe), an association made up of various organisations working in the field of transport safety and pedestrian protection. The Spanish manufacturer had the added honour of receiving the award in its inaugural year. Despite only being launched in the European market a short time ago, the new Leon has already started to collect awards, including the title of “Car of the Year 2006” in Denmark. This accolade, which has been conferred by the Danish association of motoring journalists, was the first to be awarded to the new SEAT model. During their evaluation of the candidate models, the panel of 26 motoring experts paid particular attention to the following criteria: safety elements, practicality, comfort, driving characteristics and value for money. Out of the 23 cars which were entered for this award, the Spanish model came out on top ahead of the Mazda 5 and the Suzuki Swift, which came second and third respectively. In Spain, the publishing group Hachette Filipacchi crowned the new Leon “Young Car of the Year 2005” as voted by readers of its magazines “Car and Driver” and “Ragazza”, with readers of both publications rating the youthful spirit, price and performance of the Leon particularly highly.
The Altea picked up more awards in 2005 than any other SEAT model, most notably the top accolade of “Car of the Year 2005” in Macedonia. For the second year in succession, the SEAT Altea was voted top in its category by readers of the German motoring magazine “Autozeitung”. The prestigious “Auto Trophy 2005” for the category “Compact monospace – imported vehicles” was collected by President of SEAT, Dr. Andreas Schleef. This was the 18th time that the magazine had staged its readers’ poll, and this year almost 90,800 readers cast votes for the best models across 25 different categories. In Spain, the Altea was on the role of honour at the “XII Motoring Awards” organised by the women’s lifestyle magazine “Telva”, where the SEAT model collected the prize awarded to the car receiving the most votes on the magazine’s website: www.estarguapa.com. The voting placed the Altea amongst the 8 cars which came closest to offering the female fans of Telva what they are looking for in a car, with requirements including design, practicality, technical perfection, glamour and low consumption. The Altea was also the winner of the “Fleet Car of the Year” title, which was being presented by the magazine “Flotas” for the fourth time. These titles bring the total trophy haul of the SEAT Altea in less than two years on the market to twelve, which have been awarded both nationally and intemationally by experts from a number of sectors, specialist motoring publications as well as by magazine readers. A resounding success therefore for the debut model in the new generation of SEAT products, which has also received accolades for the creativity of its advertising campaigns, including the prestigious “Ampe” award in the category Internet.
For the third year running, the SEAT Ibiza has been crowned ‘What Car? Best Car of the Year 2005″ in its segment. The international accolade was bestowed on the Ibiza by the prestigious British motoring magazine, “What Car?”. It was this Ibiza version which captured the very same award in 2003 and 2004, and which in 2003 also took the title of “What Car? Car of the Year 2003”, the magazine’s top honour which is contested by the 18 category winners.
