Review of the new SEAT Ibiza Ecomotive

Aiming for greener motoring, SEAT wheeled their 1.4TDI Ibiza into the workshop and set to work. They cut unnecessary weight, fitted low rolling resistance tyres, gave it longer gear ratios and adjusted the ECU. Now it does 73.4mpg, emits 99g/km of CO2 and is one of the greenest cars you can buy. Nice work SEAT.

The global automotive industry went straight on the defensive when it became clear that the environment was to be the major issue that would determine its future. Governments and public opinion were edging car makers into a sticky green corner and worried looks were flying across boardroom tables at some of the major brands. Then it dawned on the people who build our cars that going green in the short to medium term might not require a huge and costly technological leap in the direction of hybrids or fuel cells. They could do a lot by tweaking what they had and crucially, the most environmentally-friendly cars were now at a distinct commercial advantage. The race to go green was on and SEAT called its entry the Ibiza Ecomotive.

SEAT has done a number of things to this car in order to improve its environmental performance and they've influenced the way the car drives. The standard Ibiza is up with the smartest-handling superminis with its pointy steering and firm suspension and to an extent these features have been retained. The Ecomotive, however, rides on Dunlop SP10A 165/70 R14 tyres which are made from a low friction compound that reduces rolling resistance and improves economy. They also reduce the amount of grip slightly but it's only really noticeable during fairly extreme braking and cornering manoeuvres. Overall, the Ibiza's trademark element of fun remains intact. The gearbox that marshals power from the 1.4-litre TDI diesel engine has lengthened ratios to boost motorway economy while the 79bhp unit itself has had its ECU software remapped and a Diesel Particulate Filter (DPF) grafted onto its exhaust system.

"74.3mpg, that's the upshot of all the tinkering SEAT has done to the Ibiza Ecomotive.."

The engine still feels eager with torque of 195Nm being produced at 2,200rpm. It makes the Ibiza a willing companion around town and the longer gearing helps motorway trips become that fraction more relaxed than in the standard car. Go all in and the 0-60mph sprint can be dispatched in 12.8s with the top speed tapped at 110mph. Anyone exploring these limits isn't really using the Ecomotive in the spirit in which it was designed but it's revealing to learn that the car's notable environmental credentials carry little penalty in terms of performance.

It's not just technology that gives the Ibiza Ecomotive its sparkling green credentials. The car has undergone a programme of good old-fashioned weight loss, along with aerodynamic tweaks that improve its efficiency. Under normal circumstances, SEAT's 1.4TDI Ibiza weighs in at 1,141kg but the Ecomotive derivative's 1,119kg kerb weight shaves 22kg off that. The car's drag coefficient is also cut from 0.315 to 0.30. This has been achieved externally through the skinny 14" steel wheels with their aerodynamic hubcaps and a subtle body kit. On the inside, the air-conditioning and electric wing mirrors have been ditched, as has the split folding rear seating which is replaced by a solid bench.

The Ibiza is generally a well-built and practical supermini with its Volkswagen Polo origins evident in the interior. Nitpickers may point out the slightly shoddy plastics quality but at the affordable end of the supermini sector, that would be harsh. The cabin feels spacious, although adults in the back may struggle for headroom where the car's curved roofline swoops in, and there's plenty of boot bringing up the rear.

At £10,995, the Ibiza Ecomotive is as affordable to buy as it is to run and only £600 more than the standard 1.4TDI Ibiza which comes in plusher Reference Sport trim. The Ecomotive also stacks up favourably against Volkswagen's Polo Bluemotion - a car that takes a similar route to eco-friendliness but is £1,500 more expensive. Standard equipment may be down a little on the standard Ibizas after the weight saving cuts have been made but it still runs to electric windows, remote central locking and a CD stereo, with safety gear including stability control two airbags and ABS.

SEAT's Ibiza Ecomotive followed on from Volkswagen's Polo Bluemotion in employing a series of comparatively small modifications that together have a big effect on efficiency. BMW has trodden a similar path with its more technologically advanced EfficientDynamics programme and we can expect a lot more of this sort of thing from other major manufacturers. The costs of developing a Hybrid powertrain like those found in Toyota and Honda products is astronomical and why should manufacturers go to the trouble when similar results are attainable quickly and cheaply by giving their small cars the Ecomotive treatment?

74.3mpg, that's the upshot of all the tinkering SEAT has done to the Ibiza Ecomotive. The 1.4TDI manages 61mpg on the combined cycle in standard form, so the Ecomotive modifications do have quite an effect. CO2 emissions are directly-linked to the quantity of fuel burned so the Ecomotive manages a similarly impressive 99g/km output. The most telling comparison is between the Ecomotive and Toyota's Prius with its advanced Hybrid Synergy Drive. That car returns 65mpg and emits 106g/km of CO2. SEAT can afford to feel pretty smug that it's bettered Toyota's gargantuan investment in Hybrid technology with a standard diesel supermini with some weight shaved off and a new set of tyres.

These days, green cars are also cheap cars to run and that's the main reason why the public is taking to them with quite the fervour that it seems to be. No matter how much we like to massage our consciences with the thought that we're making sacrifices for the sake of the planet by going green, the fact is that cars like the Ibiza Ecomotive mean going green is no longer much of a sacrifice. In fact, you can benefit considerably by doing it.

Overall then, it's been a job well done. SEAT engineers took the existing 1.4-litre TDI Ibiza and set about making it greener. They ditched superfluous equipment to save weight, improved the aerodynamics with wheel trims and slight body modifications, fitted low rolling resistance tyres, fiddled with the engine management computer and introduced some longer gear ratios. The result is the Ibiza Ecomotive, a 73.4mpg supermini that drives well and looks much the same as it did before the operation. Overall, it's an impressive piece of lateral thinking from SEAT.

People tend to resist change unless the right incentives are in place. Today, the UK public are incentivised to drive greener cars by hefty taxes on fuel and CO2 emissions while car makers are incentivised to build greener cars by the demand these tax-averse punters create in the marketplace. This works in reverse too, If environmentally-friendly cars needed re-charging every 20 miles or pumped the stench of decomposing cabbage from their exhausts, we'd all be put off. As it is, you can buy a SEAT Ibiza Ecomotive and suffer no real disadvantage over someone with a standard Ibiza. It seems the incentives and disincentives are where they need to be to make a car like this work.