Until now, if you fancied a seven-seat SEAT, your choice was limited to the Alhambra MPV, but the Tarraco is the company’s first SUV with seven seats. With a large boot and a generous level of equipment, it can comfortably meet the demands of a growing family, although the third row of seats – which are standard across the range – are best reserved for occasional use. The Tarraco is closely related to the Skoda Kodiaq, but the SEAT edges the Skoda in terms of styling and driver appeal, although it can’t match its Czech mate when it comes to practicality and flexibility. It’s also more expensive, with the top models edging beyond the £40,000 mark. It’s a very good 5+2 SUV, but there are cheaper and more flexible options out there.
The Tarraco follows the Arona and Ateca as SEAT’s third SUV, and it’s arguably the best looking of the trio. For such a large car, it hides its size well, with a front end dominated by a prominent grille and stylish LED headlights.
In truth, the Tarraco looks at its best in the four different grades of the Xcellence trim, with the larger alloy wheels, chrome accents, eye-catching grille and body-coloured bumpers combining to create a look that can hold its own against the more premium SUVs in the segment.
This is especially true of the Xcellence Lux, Xcellence First Edition and Xcellence First Edition Plus models, which feature 20-inch alloy wheels as standard. They might not do much for the ride quality, but they score highly in terms of street appeal.
On the inside, the Tarraco feels every inch a product of the Volkswagen Group, although it’s subtly different to the Arona and Ateca. The key to this is the eight-inch ‘floating’ touchscreen, although it does look like a bit of an afterthought.
There’s a generous level of standard kit, as even the entry-level SE featuring 17-inch alloy wheels, ambient lighting, three-zone climate control, auto headlights and wipers, four driving modes, cruise control and rear parking sensors.
SE Technology adds 18-inch wheels, dark tinted windows, ambient lighting in the front and rear door panels and sat-nav with a 3D map display. The SE First Edition features a rear-view camera, wireless phone charger and a driver assistance and safety pack.
The Xcellence features 19-inch alloy wheels, illuminated door sills, Alcantara sports seats, park assist, a wireless phone charger, keyless entry and go, adaptive cruise control and a rear-view camera. These are in addition to the cosmetic upgrades mentioned earlier.
In Xcellence Lux guise, the Tarraco pushes into premium territory, both in terms of price and spec, boasting 20-inch wheels, leather sports seats, heated front and outer rear seats, a top view camera and an electric driver’s seat.
The Xcellence First Edition and Xcellence First Edition Plus take things up a notch or two and will be available for a limited time after launch.
Sat-nav, stereo and infotainment
We like the eight-inch touchscreen, which is responsive, bright and features the appropriate smartphone connectivity. But in this age of integrated tech, it looks as if it has been bolted on at the last minute.
On the plus side, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are standard across the range, while all cars bar the entry-level SE feature sat-nav. Rather brilliantly, a digital cockpit, which is similar in style to Audi’s Virtual Cockpit, is standard on all models.
A BeatsAudio premium sound system is standard on the Xcellence First Edition Plus but not available on the other models.
For a seven-seat SUV, the SEAT Tarraco is remarkably good to drive, offering more driver appeal than the Skoda Kodiaq, even though it shares the same platform. It helps that the Tarraco sits 20mm lower to the ground, which means body roll is kept in check.
It means that you can change direction with confidence, with the responsive steering encouraging you to press on when cornering. Sure, it’s far from sporty, and we suspect the majority of customers won’t be placing dynamics too close to the top of the list of priorities.
You can select from four different driving modes – Normal, Sport, Eco or Individual – although we question the relevance of a Sport mode on a seven-seat SUV. We think it’s better to enjoy the Tarraco’s long suspension travel and revel in the soft and cushioning ride, especially if you’ve opted for an SE model with 17- and 18-inch alloy wheels.
Engines, 0-60 acceleration and top speed
There are two petrol engines: a turbocharged 148bhp 1.5 TSI Evo and a more powerful 187bhp 2.0 TSI. The entry-level 1.5-litre is equipped with a six-speed manual gearbox, while the range-topping 2.0-litre TSI only comes with a seven-speed DSG transmission and 4Drive four-wheel drive.
The 1.5-litre petrol can feel a little underpowered, especially when fully-laden, with only 250Nm of torque and all of the power available at the top end of the rev range. It’ll cover 0-62mph in a leisurely 9.7 seconds before hitting a top speed of 125mph.
In comparison, the 2.0-litre petrol feels more punchy, helped in no small part by 320Nm of torque. The 0-62mph time drops to 8.0 seconds and the top speed increases to 131mph. Be warned, though – the four-wheel drive system and DSG transmission add weight, which serves to blunt the performance and makes the Tarraco feel less agile.
There are also two diesel options, both 2.0 TDI units that are available with either 148bhp or 187bhp. These are the engines we’d recommend if you intend to opt for four-wheel drive. With 340Nm and 400Nm of torque respectively, the two diesel engines have the pulling power required for a fully-laden SUV.
Indeed, in 187bhp guise, the 2.0-litre diesel is as quick as the 2.0-litre petrol, with a 0-62mph time of 8.0 seconds and a top speed of 130mph. In the 148bhp version, the figures are 9.8 seconds and 126mph in manual guise, or 9.8 seconds and 123mph when equipped with four-wheel drive and the DSG transmission.
The Tarraco was tested by Euro NCAP in early 2019, and it earned a five-star safety rating, as well as a class-leading 97 per cent adult occupant protection score. The mechanically similar Skoda Kodiaq also received full marks in 2017, while all SEAT models dating back to 2011 have been awarded five stars.
Front assist with bicycle detection, lane-keeping assist and emergency call are standard across the range, while adaptive cruise control is standard on the Xcellence trim. Also available are blind spot detection, traffic sign recognition, emergency assist, plus, for the first time on a SEAT, pre-crash assist and rollover assist.
Pre-crash assist can react in two tenths of a second if it detects an accident is about to occur – tightening the seatbelts, activating the hazard lights, rolling up the windows and closing the sunroof. If activated, rollover assist will make an emergency call, turn off the engine, turn on the hazard lights and change the ventilation system.
The Tarraco is too new to have appeared in our 2018 Driver Power customer satisfaction survey, but SEAT was placed 14th out of 26 on the list of the best car manufacturers. The SUV uses tried and tested parts from within the Volkswagen Group, so we have every reason to believe the Tarraco should be reliable.
Warranty
The Tarraco is covered by a pretty standard three-year/60,000-mile warranty, but this can be extended at the time of ordering. A four-year/75,000-mile warranty costs around £500, while a five-year/90,000-mile package will set you back about £850. The extended warranty is fully transferable to the next owner.
Servicing
If you cover fewer than 10,000 miles in a year and make a lot of short journeys you’re advised to service the Tarraco on an annual basis. However, if you drive mainly on motorways, it’s recommended that you visit a service centre at intervals of no more than 20,000 miles.
A fixed price service plan is available and costs around £350 upfront or roughly £20 a month. This covers the first and second-year services.
Until now, if you fancied a seven-seat SEAT, your only option was the highly capable but ageing Alhambra MPV. The Tarraco is a different variation of a similar theme, offering the same number of seats, albeit without the same level of fuss-free flexibility and practicality.
Indeed, if you regularly carry seven people, the Alhambra remains the best option – the Tarraco is far more suited for use as a five-seater with the third row of seats designed for occasional use by children.
The Tarraco is 4,735mm long, 1,839mm wide and 1,674mm tall (including the roof bars), making it similar in size to the Skoda Kodiaq. It’s also longer than the Hyundai Santa Fe, while the wheelbase is 90mm longer in the Tarraco, which creates more passenger space.
There are plenty of storage options, too, including door bins wide enough to house a large bottle of water, a storage bin beneath the centre armrest and two large cup-holders.
Leg room, head room & passenger space
When judged as a five-seat SUV, the SEAT Tarraco is easy to recommend. There’s plenty of room in the first and second rows of seats, with enough adjustment in the driver’s seat to create a comfortable driving position.
The driver and front seat passenger will find a generous amount of shoulder room, while there’s enough space in the second for three adults. The amount of headroom is excellent throughout the cabin, while three sets of Isofix mounts across the rear seats will be useful for families.
It’s only when you climb into the third row of seats that things start to get a little cramped. Young children and early teens will have little cause for complaint, but adults will find it rather uncomfortable. It’s also worth noting that there are no Isofix mountings in the third row.
The second row of seats split 40/20/40, which means you can fold the middle seat down when carrying long items, but still make use of the outermost seats.
Boot
While the Tarraco and Kodiaq are incredibly similar, it’s the Skoda that boasts the larger boot. In the SEAT, you get 700 litres with the third row of seats folded down, but the Skoda offers an additional 20 litres of luggage capacity.
It’s a similar story when you fold down the second row of seats, with the Tarraco liberating 2,005 litres of space and the Kodiaq offering a cavernous 2,065 litres. It’s not that the Tarraco is small, it’s just that Skoda does flexibility and practicality better than most brands.
Which is why you’ll find the likes of umbrellas in the doors, an ice scraper behind the fuel filler cap and door protectors in the Skoda, but not in the SEAT. Small details, perhaps, but they soon add up when you start looking at an SUV as a long-term proposition.
The Tarraco’s third row of seats fold down to create a totally flat floor, although the space is flanked by two deep wells, which is far from ideal.
Towing
All versions of the Tarraco have a maximum unbraked towing capacity of 750kg, but the four-wheel drive models are the star cars if you intend to tow a caravan or a boat. In four-wheel drive guise, the 2.0-litre diesel will tow up to 2,300kg (braked), with the 2.0-litre petrol able to haul up to 2,250kg (braked).
Tow-bar pre-installation costs around £120, while a tow-bar and a hook costs around £700.
Predictably, the 2.0 TDI diesel is the most fuel efficient engine, offering between 44.1mpg and 47.9mpg on a combined cycle in manual, front-wheel drive guise. In common with all the engines, avoid the larger alloy wheels if you’re hoping to maximise the economy.
In all other cases, economy drops below 40mpg, with the 2.0-litre diesel in DSG and 4Drive guise offering between 37.2mpg and 39.8mpg. There’s only a marginal decrease in economy for the 1.5-litre petrol, so this is the best option if you intend to do a lot of city driving and don’t cover more than 12,000 miles in a year.
The 2.0-litre petrol is far from economical, delivering between 29.7mpg and 31.0mpg on a combined cycle. Not only is the bigger petrol engine hamstrung by its four-wheel drive system, but it’s also only available in the more lavish trim levels, which ride on larger alloy wheels.
With CO2 emissions of 129g/km, the front-wheel drive 2.0-litre diesel is the only Tarraco to cost £205 to tax in the first year, with the other models attracting a first-year VED rate of £515.
In most cases, this drops to £140 in the second year, although the Xcellence First Edition Plus costs £40,075, which takes it £75 over the ‘premium’ car surcharge, meaning you’ll pay an additional £310 for road tax for the first five years you own the car. This is also something to consider when you’re adding options to the Xcellence Lux model.
In fact, with prices ranging from £28,000 to £40,000, the SEAT Tarraco isn’t what you’d call cheap. Skoda Kodiaq prices start below £26,000 and rise to a little over £37,000 for the flagship L&K model.
Insurance groups
The Tarraco will be more expensive to insure than the Kodiaq, with the Skoda slotting into groups 14E to 20. Meanwhile, the Tarraco starts at group 23E for the SE 1.5-litre petrol, rising to 31E for the Xcellence First Edition Plus in 2.0-litre DSG 4Drive guise.
Depreciation
This is SEAT’s first seven-seat SUV, and initial residual values are in the 50-53 per cent range. In comparison, the similar Kodiaq has a range of residual values from 45-52 per cent. That model has already been on sale for a couple of years, and once thr Tarraco’s novelty value has worn off, it’s likely that it will settle into a similar depreciation range. The fact it’s an SUV means it’ll be popular with buyers and will retain more of its price than a similarly priced MPV or family car.
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