SEAT Arona

[Wen]

I ordered an Arona FR in Jan and got it in May. I just took it up to Penang (with a side trip to Genting) - the car is plenty powerful enough for the trip, even passing most cars on the drive up to Genting. Handling was secure (tho no fun at all), roadholding good, ride was generally ok, and noise was intrusive only if you break the speed limit. I’m quite pleased with it overall - I’d be happy to share more if anyone’s interested. Overall about 6litres/100km.

 

Thks for the write up. Yes the 1.0 is a nice engine... just not meant to push it hard to anything too high speed like 140-150kmh. But anything below 120/130kmh is perfectly fine. I was happy too with the test drive. FR feature is also as complete u can get... it has a long list of feature where u only can get it in VW Highline EQP series. 

 

I think the only thing i find is the SEAT pricing is not enough to convince the mass buyer to dip in. when COE at 33-35k Arona FR was at 98k-102k. Now that COE is at 25k the price is still 98K. Should it be at maybe 94k?

 

If you want something similar, 95k get you the high spec Skoda Rapid. Both such carhaveas its pro n con and also u earn some and lose some in features. Howeve,r Skoda is backup by VCS so that is one added advantage.

 

SEAT shld lower their price 5 to 10k from current levels, then I think people will start to give it a try. Else if its similar to VW/Skoda, many will still prefer to stick to a brand with proven support track record. 

[DACH]

Agreed, their pricing should be lowered to compete in the market and they should also improve their customer and after sales services.

[Hamburger]

Some would say that there are cars that cannot run more than 120km/h and would feel unsafe.

 

Could it be the driver or the car? Everybody threshold is just different.

[Keepmoving]

I bought the arona over the a3 and golf mainly becos I didn’t think that they justified the price difference especially considering the equipment level (in the case of the golf 1.0, it was the same price). Plus the arona’s room is slightly better, I think - the rear fits my 100kg 1.76m frame well. And a bigger boot. The torsion beam rear didn’t seem to affect the ride too badly too.

 

I’m not too particular about interior plastic quality so long as they look nice and well assembled and don’t squeak or creak, and the arona’s touchpoints and controls are actually pretty good - I’m not missing Audi or VW’s quality, certainly not for $15k less. Maybe Skoda could be the middle ground, I haven’t gone to examine one yet.

 

I’m in total agreement tho that our European car prices are out of whack. Oh and Seat didn’t ask for a higher price when I wanted to pay cash. Thanks for your insights!

[Keepmoving]

I did drive up the Arona to 150 for spurts when I was overtaking, the car didn’t feel unstable. It’s was noisy (from the wind rush) tho, and even tho the North-South highway pavement isn’t the best in the world, there wasn’t much road roar and at 150 the car was riding flat. I slowed down becos I chickened out at the thot of being caught!

 

In Germany where there are higher speeds (I was there last year in an Astra 1.4 turbo), the roads are mirror-smooth, so above 200 is like a walk in the park! I didn’t buy the Astra becos I got indifferent service from the distributor here and they weren’t very keen to sell a 1.4, they were pushing the 1 litre (which has that unacceptable gearbox).

 

Coming back to pricing, the Qashqai is listed way above the Golf in the UK, and generally Japanese cars are priced slightly higher than their European equivalent - here it’s the opposite. The Koreans are priced well, but they sorely need a good small engine, I tried the 1.6 turbo but not the new 1.4 on the i30. And their 1 litre turbo doesn’t come with an auto yet. It looks like we have quite a lot of choices for a budget up to $120k, but there are serious compromises everywhere!

[Lchong]

Some would say that there are cars that cannot run more than 120km/h and would feel unsafe.

 

Could it be the driver or the car? Everybody threshold is just different.

I once brought a 85BHP skoda fabia combi over 210km/hr

 

What is unsafe?

[Wen]

Dont get me wrong not saying Arona cannot go fast, can but just more comfortable probably at 130kmh, as I drove the A3 1.0 once ... i find the push from 120kmh onwards is a bit sluggish, meaning it takes longer to get up the speed from 120kmh , while comparing to a 1.4 Golf it is easier. No need say 2.0 that one is a breeze to take it up to 160kmh

 

Arona is a good choice to be honest, I almost got it too. 

[Sky_blue]

I ordered an Arona FR in Jan and got it in May. I just took it up to Penang (with a side trip to Genting) - the car is plenty powerful enough for the trip, even passing most cars on the drive up to Genting. Handling was secure (tho no fun at all), roadholding good, ride was generally ok, and noise was intrusive only if you break the speed limit. Iâm quite pleased with it overall - Iâd be happy to share more if anyoneâs interested. Overall about 6litres/100km.

I ordered mine in April... still waiting for my ride.

 

I don’t understand why the long wait when SEAT is trying to break into Singapore’s car market.

 

Hope the wait was worth it.

[MaBoiBoi]

I ordered mine on 20th June.

 

Heard that the shipment is arriving June End.

 

But till now, my SE mentioned that there is no news.

 

Definitely not expecting a 5 month wait as per what KeepMoving Bro experienced.

I did drive up the Arona to 150 for spurts when I was overtaking, the car didnât feel unstable. Itâs was noisy (from the wind rush) tho, and even tho the North-South highway pavement isnât the best in the world, there wasnât much road roar and at 150 the car was riding flat. I slowed down becos I chickened out at the thot of being caught!

 

In Germany where there are higher speeds (I was there last year in an Astra 1.4 turbo), the roads are mirror-smooth, so above 200 is like a walk in the park! I didnât buy the Astra becos I got indifferent service from the distributor here and they werenât very keen to sell a 1.4, they were pushing the 1 litre (which has that unacceptable gearbox).

 

Coming back to pricing, the Qashqai is listed way above the Golf in the UK, and generally Japanese cars are priced slightly higher than their European equivalent - here itâs the opposite. The Koreans are priced well, but they sorely need a good small engine, I tried the 1.6 turbo but not the new 1.4 on the i30. And their 1 litre turbo doesnât come with an auto yet. It looks like we have quite a lot of choices for a budget up to $120k, but there are serious compromises everywhere!

Bro.

 

Able to advise on the waiting period ?

 

Did you have to keep chasing the SE ?

 

Or did the SE mention the long waiting period ?

 

Thank you!

[Keepmoving]

The Arona is a great city car - the short wheelbase, good body control, light weight, fantastic engine paired with a flexible transmission all contribute to it. While it’s ok on the north south highway, a larger car however will be more comfy and refined. Once you get to your destination, it’s back to being a great city car. For the 4-5 hour stretch heading to KL, no issue with ride, stability, noise and comfort for me, but longer drives might wear you down a bit. Also the speed with which it found the radio station list was great, I quickly could select my favourite station anywhere (and the stations do change radio frequency on the drive north). And the air con was good thru out (highest I encountered was 36 Celsius ambient temp in Penang). And adaptive cruise control works beautifully even in very heavy rain!

 

No, I didn’t chase Seat for my car and in fact it did get delivered earlier than was last discussed, by two weeks. (Most times I don’t chase the distributors cos I prefer that they that deliver the car in as perfect condition as possible. And the Arona had no problems on delivery.) if you’re in a hurry for the car, maybe just see if they can schedule yours a bit earlier! If the car hasn’t landed, don’t think anyone can do much - I don’t think Seat sgp has the type of volume so far to see a constant flow of cars from Barcelona.

 

On delivery, I guess my only gripe was that the brochure indicated wireless mobile charger but was not on the handover list, but since I’m always hooked up for Apple CarPlay, it isn’t an issue to me. I was also pleasantly surprised that they fit a full size spare tyre.

 

Also do note that moving off from standstill, there’s a slight hesitation. I’ve adjusted to it so it isn’t a problem to me anymore. On my long drive up, the info system got quite hot, and froze after i drove off from a pitstop. However, I restarted the car and it rebooted. I’ve reported it to Seat but they don’t seem to have much info about such a problem.

[Keepmoving]

I ordered my car just before they launched it at the Sgp motor show in mid Jan - they did tell me that delivery was going to be in May, and I was prepared to wait. They got the COE in Feb.

 

Just before a trip in April, I wanted to go and pay up for the car, then was told that it would be June delivery instead (I was mildly disappointed!). But when I got back from my trip in May, they called me for delivery. So no change from the original schedule after all.

 

Since the car has been fully launched, I’d be surprised if delivery is going to take longer than 2 months now lah. Unless maybe you want some unique colour combo!

[Sky_blue]

I ordered my car just before they launched it at the Sgp motor show in mid Jan - they did tell me that delivery was going to be in May, and I was prepared to wait. They got the COE in Feb.

 

Just before a trip in April, I wanted to go and pay up for the car, then was told that it would be June delivery instead (I was mildly disappointed!). But when I got back from my trip in May, they called me for delivery. So no change from the original schedule after all.

 

Since the car has been fully launched, Iâd be surprised if delivery is going to take longer than 2 months now lah. Unless maybe you want some unique colour combo!

Which version did you buy, style or FR?

Colour?

 

I chose the mystery blue w grey top as my SE recommended this colour scheme. FR version and I requested for leather seat, solar film and in-car camera.

[Keepmoving]

That’s a nice combo! When I ordered my FR, the first few shipments didn’t have the grey roof. They also hadn’t figured out how to install the camera, so mine is without that. I also didn’t ask for leather but they gave solar film (very effective). Mine is black top with silver, which makes the car blend into the road scape but that was what I wanted, I didn’t want to call attention when I’m driving, er, ahem, in a hasty manner. I think overall it’s like a stealth car, hahaha!

[MaBoiBoi]

I ordered mine in FR trim with white body and black top which i believe would one of the more popular colour combi.

 

I thought the AD would have have been efficient enough to deliver within the month. Hahahaa.

 

Can i check when did you make the remaining payment ?

 

During collection ? Or before they do the vehicle registration ?

[Keepmoving]

I paid up two days before they delivered the car, I guess they wanted to make sure my cheque didn’t bounce! The white is very nice but I thot it would be difficult to maintain. I’ve had my silver car for just over two months and I’ve only had it washed once! It’s dirty but from a few steps away, silver really hides the dirt well. As far as I can tell, the paint work looks ok still! But tomo I’ll be signing up for a grooming service, my past cars were all groomed regularly and I think it makes the paint work last.

 

Hope you get your car soon and be able to enjoy it!

[Keepmoving]

I paid up two days before delivery, I guess they wanted to make sure my cheque didn’t bounce! I noticed that they registered the car with the LTA on the day I gave them the cheque, so the registration date is just two days earlier than the actual delivery date - don’t think I ever got such a small gap for my other cars.

 

White is really nice but I thot it would be difficult to maintain, so I passed on that. Since I got my car just over two months ago, I’ve only had it washed once! It’s really dirty now, but silver can really hide the dirt well from a few feet away!

 

Hope you get your car soon and be able to enjoy it ASAP!

 

Sorry for the double post, I thot the first one disappeared!

Edited July 22, 2018 by Keepmoving

[MaBoiBoi]

Hoping to hear from my SE soon.

 

COE has been secured. Now probably waiting for the stock to arrive.

 

I have read on the UK forums that the long wait for the FR trim is happening to them as well.

[Wen]

I wanted Arona white with grey roof FR.... seat (as in the one we sit on, hehee)  I will keep it original as the FR themed fabric is very nice. 

 

As I was about to find one weekend to go down and meet the SE, Skoda (quietly) announced the Octavia VRS 245. Test drove that and my love went somewhere else   ... then a few days later I signed on the VRS.