This is how the story of Spain’s only major automobile company, which began in 1950, ends quite routinely.
What it is
SEAT (Sociedad Espanola de Automoviles de Turismo) is a Spanish manufacturer of passenger cars and crossovers, which has been a subsidiary of the Volkswagen concern since 1986. SEAT has more than 14 thousand employees.
The company’s headquarters, engineering and design center and main assembly plant are located in the city of Martorell in the outskirts of Barcelona. A number of process steps are carried out at SEAT’s first plant in the Zona Franca, an industrial area of Barcelona.
In addition, a number of models of the Spanish brand are produced at multi-brand enterprises of the Volkswagen concern in Germany, the Czech Republic, and Portugal, and the SEAT Deutschland GmbH division in Mörfelden-Walldorf (Germany) is developing electronic platforms and online services.
In 2022, 232,696 new SEAT vehicles were sold, of which more than 80% were exported to 72 countries. At the end of last year, Germany became the main market for the company, ahead of Spain and the UK by a wide margin. Outside of Europe, SEAT is most successful in Mexico.
The title of best seller No. 1 went to the subcompact crossover SEAT Arona, which accounted for more than 30% of sales. In second place is the Ibiza small hatchback (22%), and in third is the Ateca compact crossover (21%).
The total circulation of SEAT models since the formation of the company in 1950 has exceeded 16 million copies.
Reasons for liquidation
Thomas Schaefer, in the same interview with Autocar, cited a decrease in sales volumes as the reason for curtailing the production of SEAT cars. Having reached a peak of 549,416 cars in the “pre-pandemic” 2019, at the end of last year they decreased to 232,696 units. This turned out to be not enough to keep the auto industry alive.
The financial performance of the Spanish branch also left much to be desired for a long time, and the symbolic profit of 67.5 million euros received in 2022 did not compensate for previously incurred losses.
However, this is only a reflection of a more fundamental problem, which has not been solved. SEAT, despite its long history, has remained a “secondary” brand without its own distinct character. It was not possible to replace it with the help of purely design solutions, just as it was not possible to find some non-trivial move like what Skoda did, which, after joining the Volkswagen concern, turned inventive practicality into its strong point.
In a word, SEAT did not become the Spanish Saab, although both companies – albeit to varying degrees – were initially related to the aviation industry (José Ortiz-Echagüe Puertas, the first president of SEAT, came from it). And since there were no really bright ups, then the fall does not cause strong emotions.
Maybe SEAT will have better luck in its new role?
Life after death
The familiar SEAT is leaving, but a new SEAT is coming. The head of the Volkswagen concern said that the Spanish brand is destined for a different role. What would that mean? It has been suggested that under the SEAT brand the production of modern means for urban mobility can be organized: electric scooters, ATVs, etc.
And in the automotive field, the dynamically developing Cupra brand, focused on the production of powerful electric vehicles of various classes, will continue to operate – and this is for sure. It looks like SEAT won’t disappear without a trace.
Spaniard in Latvia
SEAT is not a very common brand in Latvia. But it’s also impossible to say that these Spanish cars are generally unknown.
According to local registers, since 2000, 2,251 SEAT vehicles have been registered. How many of them are currently traveling on the roads of Latvia is unknown.
Thank you and goodbye
Car brands that we have lost in the 21st century:
* Hummer,* Maybach,* Oldsmobile,* Plymouth* Pontiac,* Saturn,* Saab,* SEAT.
2023-09-16 11:05:00
#SEAT #dustbin #history
