SEAT Arona

[Wen]

Hi all,

Wanted to check if it is worth paying 2000 for the accessories for ARONA that is solar film, leather seats and in car camera 2 channel. How’s the quality of the solar film and other accessories or is it better and cheaper to get accessories outside.

Thanks for the replies .

 

Tint value about $400... Camera if with Wifi then its ard $400 if its a branded one. Leather seat is ard $800 

 

If me I will take original fabric, esp if u get FR... such a waste to strip off the FR fabric and install lousy local leather. 

[Keepmoving]

My second trip in the Arona to Genting - the car performed flawlessly, very little body roll, great roadholding, engine never strained. On the NS highway, I drove mostly at about 130, very stable, never a hint of floatiness or being blow off line. With about 1 hour and 40 min of jam (2nd Link and an accident before Ayer Hitam), fuel consumption was 15.5km/litre.

[Weezersg]

My second trip in the Arona to Genting - the car performed flawlessly, very little body roll, great roadholding, engine never strained. On the NS highway, I drove mostly at about 130, very stable, never a hint of floatiness or being blow off line. With about 1 hour and 40 min of jam (2nd Link and an accident before Ayer Hitam), fuel consumption was 15.5km/litre.

 

Did you use adaptive cruise control?  

[Keepmoving]

Yes, I also used it in the earlier drive to m’sia and it works beautifully even in heavy rain. It brakes effectively and picks up quickly, no matter the incline in the road. I usually set the distance to the shortest to the car in front. I use it in sgp too, it really helps with coping with the slowing and speeding up that we always face on our highways, I feel confident I’ll never ram into any car!

[Weezersg]

Yes, I also used it in the earlier drive to m’sia and it works beautifully even in heavy rain. It brakes effectively and picks up quickly, no matter the incline in the road. I usually set the distance to the shortest to the car in front. I use it in sgp too, it really helps with coping with the slowing and speeding up that we always face on our highways, I feel confident I’ll never ram into any car!

 

Is there a minimum speed for it to work? For example in stop/start crawl type of jam....will it work? Thanks!

[Keepmoving]

Good question! I just went on the Net to check out, apparently it’s 19mph. Myself I’ve used it to as low as 50kmph. But at really low speeds, the shortest distance kept to the next car will make you want to turn it off, becos it would allow other cars to sneak in front of you - also don’t want to frustrate the other drivers at the back lah.

[Keepmoving]

Back from my trip to Genting, car performed well. Rushed down the highlands, passing practically all the cars I came across, brakes no hint of fade at all. 1hr 40min of jam going up, and 2hr jam coming back - still managed 17.3km per litre!

 

Just booked service date for the car, now just above 5000km. Will see how the service is handled!

[Wen]

Back from my trip to Genting, car performed well. Rushed down the highlands, passing practically all the cars I came across, brakes no hint of fade at all. 1hr 40min of jam going up, and 2hr jam coming back - still managed 17.3km per litre!

 

Just booked service date for the car, now just above 5000km. Will see how the service is handled!

 

Isn't the 1st service 15k km?

 

or u are paying it urself to do EO change in between all the 15k km intervals ?

[Keepmoving]

Hi, Wen. My package came with three free services and states the first service is at 5000km. The other schedules are 15,000 and 30,000km.

[MYFIRSTTIME]

Hello all!

 

I have a question to all experienced drivers out there. i just got my license recently and i am looking around for my first car. Came across this SEAT Arona which just appeals to me. This is the first time i will be getting a car and previously only driven a Honda City during driving lessons. So...

 

1. Will you guys recommend this car ? particularly for a new guy on the road.

2. Is it worthwhile to get the FR compared to the "normal" version?

3. For maintenance, is it easy to get it done here in SG? considering this is a relatively new brand here in SG?

 

Pardon my ignorance on those questions.. i am finding it difficult making a choice and will probably head down for a test drive soon to see how it feeeels.... Just wanted some opinions from guys here who are already driving this car.

 

Thanks in advance!!

 

[Keepmoving]

Hi! Welcome to the driving club!

 

Well, I think the Arona is a great car because mainly it’s cheap to buy (considering all the gadgets) and cheap to run (economical and low road tax). It’s easy to drive and the small size will help on the road and in parking.

 

Can’t say about reliability of the Arona yet, but VW group cars generally don’t have a good reputation. However they are heaps better to drive than most Korean and Japanese cars, so if you take the attitude that if something goes wrong with your car, that it’s an opportunity to learn about maintenance and repairs and how a car works overall, then go ahead and take the plunge.

 

If you’re looking to familiarize yourself with driving and recognizing roads and the convenience of a car, maybe a Japanese car will be a better alternative. If your driving life is going to include long drives to Malaysia, I’d say take the European cars and enjoy the drive! I started with two Japanese cars and have had 8 European cars since - nothing will drag me out of a fun-to-drive car (never kept a car more than 5 years and hence I’ve never had to repair any of them).

[Keepmoving]

Oh sorry, I’m guessing you’ve seen my earlier posts - the Arona is a great driving car, took me up to Penang and Genting twice. Surprisingly sprightly, great roadholding, accurate steering and handing, decent ride, quiet mostly (110-120 cruise on NS highway no problem), well built and well equipped. Five year warranty gives some peace of mind too! It’s a combination that I can’t find in Japanese or Korean cars (tried the qashqai, vezel, CH-R, Tucson etc - can’t quite compare!).

[MYFIRSTTIME]

Oh sorry, I’m guessing you’ve seen my earlier posts - the Arona is a great driving car, took me up to Penang and Genting twice. Surprisingly sprightly, great roadholding, accurate steering and handing, decent ride, quiet mostly (110-120 cruise on NS highway no problem), well built and well equipped. Five year warranty gives some peace of mind too! It’s a combination that I can’t find in Japanese or Korean cars (tried the qashqai, vezel, CH-R, Tucson etc - can’t quite compare!).

 

Thanks bro!!

 

I wanted to try something different from the usual cars on the road based on aesthetics alone and I thought with the Arona, because it is a mini SUV it will give me the elevated feel when i am driving ( which i think will make me feel more comfortable). Don't think i will be using it to hit those high speed (still new) so not too concern with those issues.

 

I think ur "strategy" of changing a car every 5 years is smart.. that way like what you mentioned you do not have to worry about your car being worn down. I hope if i do get the Arona, it will last me 5 years at least with minimal fuss...

 

Did you do a test drive with this car before getting it? where do they allow you to drive? i am hoping to get it up on the expressway to get a better feel

[Wen]

Thanks bro!!

 

I wanted to try something different from the usual cars on the road based on aesthetics alone and I thought with the Arona, because it is a mini SUV it will give me the elevated feel when i am driving ( which i think will make me feel more comfortable). Don't think i will be using it to hit those high speed (still new) so not too concern with those issues.

 

I think ur "strategy" of changing a car every 5 years is smart.. that way like what you mentioned you do not have to worry about your car being worn down. I hope if i do get the Arona, it will last me 5 years at least with minimal fuss...

 

Did you do a test drive with this car before getting it? where do they allow you to drive? i am hoping to get it up on the expressway to get a better feel

 

VAG cars with the 7 speed dry gearbox is not suitable to be use in a sentence with "minimal fuss" hahaha

 

In terms of reliability its not to say bad, but definitely not fuss free like any of those more simple models from, say Toyota.

 

Having said that, after a while you learnt what is Water pump, clutch pack, MU then you will at least not in a blur mode when such items fail. 

 

Also do not forget yes u get 5 yrs warranty but any break down mneas u might lost 1 to 2 days of usage too. 

 

Go test drive it, then go test drive other similar makes like Mazda CX3 etc. etc and make ur decision. During test drive dont chit chat so much with the SE ... pay attention to the drive and do not just keep ravving the car to test power as you do not drive like that daily. Do a fast pick up feel the acceleration as if u coming out from T junction ... do a normal drive to feel the comfort and road noise... do a quick pick up when u are cruising at 60kmh to feel the power needed to overtake. Go 1 more round if need to. 

[MYFIRSTTIME]

VAG cars with the 7 speed dry gearbox is not suitable to be use in a sentence with "minimal fuss" hahaha

 

In terms of reliability its not to say bad, but definitely not fuss free like any of those more simple models from, say Toyota.

 

Having said that, after a while you learnt what is Water pump, clutch pack, MU then you will at least not in a blur mode when such items fail. 

 

Also do not forget yes u get 5 yrs warranty but any break down mneas u might lost 1 to 2 days of usage too. 

 

Go test drive it, then go test drive other similar makes like Mazda CX3 etc. etc and make ur decision. During test drive dont chit chat so much with the SE ... pay attention to the drive and do not just keep ravving the car to test power as you do not drive like that daily. Do a fast pick up feel the acceleration as if u coming out from T junction ... do a normal drive to feel the comfort and road noise... do a quick pick up when u are cruising at 60kmh to feel the power needed to overtake. Go 1 more round if need to. 

 

hmmm... i dont mind getting my hands dirty and learning stuffs like you mentioned ( water pumps, clutch pack, etc.) but i think my wife will definitely not want these issues cropping up when she's behind the wheels instead. unless i keep it from her hehe!

 

Very thankful that i stumbled upon this thread... will definitely take up all advice and try out a few different cars. i think ultimately it comes down to which car i am most comfortable with...

 

Any idea what's the waiting time to get an Arona? i saw earlier in the thread someone mentioned close to 3-4 months? hands n legs itchy alr...

[DACH]

Hello all!

 

I have a question to all experienced drivers out there. i just got my license recently and i am looking around for my first car. Came across this SEAT Arona which just appeals to me. This is the first time i will be getting a car and previously only driven a Honda City during driving lessons. So...

 

1. Will you guys recommend this car ? particularly for a new guy on the road.

2. Is it worthwhile to get the FR compared to the "normal" version?

3. For maintenance, is it easy to get it done here in SG? considering this is a relatively new brand here in SG?

 

Pardon my ignorance on those questions.. i am finding it difficult making a choice and will probably head down for a test drive soon to see how it feeeels.... Just wanted some opinions from guys here who are already driving this car.

 

Thanks in advance!!

 

Congrats on your newly minted driving license. 

 

Other than the Arona, which cars did you shortlist? 

[Keepmoving]

Hi everyone.

 

I’m guessing that since I’ve been driving for a while and I rent cars regularly (on my overseas trips), I can get a pretty good feel of a car within a few km drive. I think you can ask Seat to let you take it for an extended drive, tho typically the Japanese and Korean distributors aren’t going to be so cooperative.

 

Like Wen said, make sure you test like you would drive it and also when you push it, turn off the sound system, make sure you can get comfy, switch driver (take the back seat, feel the ride and listen to the noise). There’s no argument that the Arona is very responsive and city driving is really easy. It’s only slightly higher than a normal hatchback and doesn’t give you much of a vantage point when you drive, but the increased height does go to making the car slightly more accommodating (more leg and head room than even a golf, tho it’s still a narrow car). I had my doubts about the 1 litre engine facing a long and hard drive to the north, but I’ve done it twice and it’s been surprisingly good - but remember that it’s what it is, and refinement is definitely not a forte.

 

I did the 5000km service and it was uneventful - done within 3.5 hours. They checked all the diagnostics, changed oil and filter, that’s about it - and they gave me a list of what was done and changed for my record. Do I feel any difference in the car? Nope.

 

One more thing to point out about the Arona, for a front drive car, it’s got a very short front overhang, which I love. I hate those long overhangs you usually see in front wheel drive cars, esp the Japanese ones!

[Keepmoving]

I’m lookin at you, Toyota Prius!