SEAT has officially unveiled its new SEAT Leon at the 2012 Paris Motor Show this morning, alongside which the company have unveiled their new brand logo.  The new corporate identity marks the beginning of a new era for SEAT, and comes as the company completes an unprecedented product offensive that has included the premieres of the Mii city car and Toledo hatchback, and the introduction of the revised Ibiza.

James Muir, President of SEAT S.A., presented the new car and the logo during SEAT’s Paris show press presentation this morning. “The next step in SEAT’s evolution is the presentation of our new company logo.  It reflects those brand values I just mentioned: clean, pure design and precise, quality engineering,” he said.

The first model to wear the new logo will be the all-new SEAT Leon, the company’s Paris show star. “It is an icon in our range and it represents the very best of SEAT: beautiful design, peerless quality, useful technology and driving fun,” declared Muir.

The first markets to introduce the new Leon will be Germany, Austria and Switzerland, with sales beginning before the end of November.  The new Leon is expected to be available in the UK from early next year.

James Muir also confirmed that the new Leon will become a family of cars, featuring different bodystyles: “For the first time ever, the Leon range will expand to include a three-door and sports tourer versions. They will expand the Leon’s appeal as well as its reach within the segment,” he explained.

• SEATCupra.net will be heading over to Paris this weekend, so keep an eye on our Twitter feed (@SEATCupradotnet) and our Facebook page for our Paris motorshow coverage.

New Logo

SEAT have said the new logo represents another step in the continuous development of SEAT’s image, and is symbolic of the company’s six core values: design; dynamism; young spirit; efficiency; reliability; accessibility. 

The logo juxtaposes two elements: the red font, which is passionate, warm and dynamic, and the unmistakable chrome ‘S’ stamp of SEAT. Characterised by its symmetrical lines in permanent tension, the chrome symbol is sculpted with precision and is firmly rooted in modernity, all of which lies below a subtle line of industrial inspiration. Its unique design highlights the renewed commitment of SEAT to precision technology, excellence in engineering and innovation, while the colour red continues to evoke the brand’s Spanish soul.

The origins of the elegance and precision of the SEAT logo are to be found in a diagonal stroke reminiscent of Barcelona’s Avenida Diagonal – one of the city’s most significant streets, which geographically separates it from west to east diagonally.  This line consolidates a creative vision, and is an essential component of SEAT’s genetic code.

Design made by SEAT

Design takes on special importance amongst the company’s values, and forms an intrinsic part of its genetic code. Design is SEAT’s DNA. To quote Alejandro Mesonero-Romanos, SEAT’s head of Design, “SEAT's new logo design reflects perfectly our love for detail and quality. While keeping the identity of our traditional "S", this time we have reduced the number of lines, they are now more 3D and the overall perimeter is now more square, more geometric. The whole gives our new logo a more modern, precise and sculpted look.”

60 years of genuine emotions and generational design

The company’s first model, the SEAT 1400, came into being on 13 November 1953. Since then, SEAT has created driving experiences which have managed to fire each generation’s emotions. The SEAT 600 enthusiastically spurred on the free-ranging spirit of the sixties; in the eighties the SEAT Ibiza was born, one of the company’s icons and the first 100% SEAT car; and both the SEAT Toledo (1991) and the SEAT Leon (1998) made a strong showing in the nineties.