Farewell, Seat!

[BaldyDave]

Well after the electrical niggles and poor warranty/dealer support, the FR has regrettably had to go! As a few of you know, I decided to replace it with a new Kia Pro Cee’d CRDI. Hopefully you’ll see some pics of the new wagon below!

First impressions is that whilst the FR was (as expected) significantly faster than the Kia, and the steering feel is a bit better in the Seat, however the Kia still handles pretty well and has the Seat soundly beaten on just about every other aspect.

The quality of fit in general is fantastic and reminds me of the MK5 Golf GT TDI I used to own. The interior is very well put together and soft-touch plastics abound. I don’t think that I’ll be bothered by the interior rattling like a 5 year old van, like the FR did. OK slight exaggeration there, but the FR did rattle annoyingly! Lol All the switchgear operates with a satisfying solidity and is correctly positioned for the UK market (unlike the FR!). Even the bonnet release is on the correct side for UK use! In comparison the Ibiza’s switches and interior look and feel cheap (sorry!). I certainly won’t miss the Seat’s poor (and rattly) excuse for a glove box lid! Stacks of gadgets in the Kia too… I love the reversing sensors, auto headlights, LED lamp clusters as well as Bluetooth music streaming and phone connection. The variable mode power steering in the Kia is a bit of a gimmick in my opinion though - the sport and comfort modes feel artificial, so it’s just been left on normal! Like I’ve said before, the FR is better as far as the steering goes…

So far the fuel economy is pretty outstanding – 62MPG average on a 160 mile trip – half of it done sitting on a motorway at the legal limit. Not bad for a tight engine! In fairness my FR could manage 53MPG in similar journeys so (considering its extra performance) I can’t criticise it for that.

It’s sad really, with a bit more care in quality control, and better dealer/warranty support, I’m sure I’d have stuck with Seat – but this in combination with the way that Seat seem to be cutting the standard equipment levels in their cars, whilst maintaining their prices finished it for me, I’m afraid…

So why am I still here? Well one thing that owning the Seat had in its favour was this forum! It has to be the friendliest place I've come across, so if you guys don't mind, I'll stick around. I enjoy the banter! lol

 

[ibizaracebrake]

Looks sharp, but wheels could be an inch bigger?

 

[cupra.al]

im actually amazed to see the words kia and well put together interior in the same sentence maybe kia have changed since i worked on there cars.
everything on them use to be cheap rubbish that all seemed very dated compared to anything else of the same age on the road.
they do look a lot better now though.
that said i hope it makes you a lot happier than the previous car and gives you many happy miles.

 

[BaldyDave]

Looks sharp, but wheels could be an inch bigger?

Yes, that's a fair point. The car has 16 inch wheels, but I agree that visually it would look better with 17 inch rims. That being said, in the real world 17 inch wheels in Scotland's roads are a VERY bad idea, I've found!

My FR had 17 inch wheels, and in the 18 months that I owned it I went through two tyres at £130 a time purely from pot hole damage. Pot holes are easy enough to spot in daylight, but another matter when it's dark, pouring with rain and the pot holes just look like a normal puddle. Two virtually brand new tyres were totally written-off because of this. The guys at the local tyre fitters said they love 17 and 18 inch wheels as they do a roaring trade replacing damaged tyres and repairing cracked or dented wheels! Due to the ultra low profile tyres normally fitted to them it's all too easy to pick up damage on the rubbish roads we drive on. Also it's quite hard to see when you have a puncture on very low profile tyres (unless there’s virtually no air left in them) and if they are in the slightest bit soft, again it will be all the easier to damage them...

I also test drove the SE model of Pro Cee'd which has 17 inch wheels, and have to say the ride was noticeably harsher, with no real improvement in road holding... You also get worse emissions which means I would have dropped out of the zero road tax bracket. No-brainer for me!

So I guess I'm going to stick to the 16 inch wheels as they have more tyre between them and the road! lol

 

[BaldyDave]

im actually amazed to see the words kia and well put together interior in the same sentence maybe kia have changed since i worked on there cars.
everything on them use to be cheap rubbish that all seemed very dated compared to anything else of the same age on the road.
they do look a lot better now though.
that said i hope it makes you a lot happier than the previous car and gives you many happy miles.

Things have moved on A LOT comapred to Kias of a few years back... I agree they were bargain basement quality back then...

I know a few people that have had the newer Kias and they've all commented on how reliable they were.

Time will tell I guess, but the 7 year warranty does indicate that Kia are confident in their products...

Thanks for your good wishes.

 

[G.P]

It’s sad really, with a bit more care in quality control, and better dealer/warranty support, I’m sure I’d have stuck with Seat – but this in combination with the way that Seat seem to be cutting the standard equipment levels in their cars, whilst maintaining their prices finished it for me, I’m afraid…

So why am I still here? Well one thing that owning the Seat had in its favour was this forum! It has to be the friendliest place I've come across, so if you guys don't mind, I'll stick around. I enjoy the banter! lol

My local Seat dealer is also Kia, so the dealer support for me would be the same for both brands. Not sure after 6 years 9 months if Kia would honor their warranty. For me (couple of years ago) I just could not position the seat lower enough in a Kia for my liking..

How you getting on with the Kia owner's forum, if there is one?

 

[BaldyDave]

My local Seat dealer is also Kia, so the dealer support for me would be the same for both brands. Not sure after 6 years 9 months if Kia would honor their warranty. For me (couple of years ago) I just could not position the seat lower enough in a Kia for my liking..

How you getting on with the Kia owner's forum, if there is one?

It wasn't just the dealer that didn't provide good service, it was Seat Customer Services too..... I just got the feeling that Seat would use any excuse they could find to try to wriggle out of replacing anything under warranty, and the dealer gave the impression that they couldn't care less.

It is bad news when a loyal Seat customer gets treated this way... The FR was my third Seat.

For example - gear stick gaiter developed a tear when car just over a year old. Seat said normal wear and tear, and garage agreed! I kicked up hell, arguing that this part should last for the life of the car, and asking if I should stop changing gear on a manual car to stop this happening again? Seat eventually agreed to change the part as a GOOD WILL GESTURE (!!!) but only after I gave them the reg numbers of the 2 Seats I'd owned previously to prove that I was a loyal customer!

Then had a few electrical issues, like tail gate intermittently not opening, wing mirror sometimes not folding and trip computer went dead one time. Dealer would not fix the issues under warranty even though the service manager witnessed the wing mirror issue happening, initially agreed that this was a fault, but then changed his mind (presumably after talking to Seat) and said that this was a known "feature" of the folding system when it detected an obstruction such as ice.... I pointed out that it had been mild all of that week so where would there be ice? Didn't make a difference...

Without going into a rant, there was a similarly "slippery" response when I asked them to investigate the trip computer and tailgate problems.... In the end it wears you down... What's the point in having a warranty when the dealer and Seat makes it seem that you are robbing them if you even dare to try to claim under warranty...

Time will tell if Kia's warranty lives up to it's claims, but one thing's for certain, my experiences of Seat's 3 year warranty doesn't give anybody making a claim any confidence even if the car is just over a year old, let alone under 3 years old.

As to the seat height adjustment, the Pro Cee'd has seat height adjustment, and a good range of reach/height steering wheel adjustment and I have to say that it is really easy to get an excellent driving position even though I am 5ft 11 and have long legs. LIke you I like my seat set fairly low.

Yes there is a Kia forum - not joined it yet but have read through the forum posts prior to buying my Kia... Impressions are that it isn't as busy a forum as this one - some of the latest posts are months old. Will probably join it though, but hang around on here too...

 

[m0rk]

I do like these.

I will keep an eye on it to see how it pans out for you!

 

[BaldyDave]

I do like these.

I will keep an eye on it to see how it pans out for you!

Yeah, I'm hoping my luck will change with this car!

 

[Biker]

I like it mate!

I hope you have a better experience with the Kia than you did with your last Seat, I just can't understand the attitude of some main dealers.

Keep us informed on how things go. Still loving my new FR mind, and the dealer I bought this one from (Western Seat) are poles apart with Arnold Clark who supplied the last one. I think if Arnold Clark had still been the only local Seat dealer I too would have gone elsewhere.

 

[BaldyDave]

I like it mate!

I hope you have a better experience with the Kia than you did with your last Seat, I just can't understand the attitude of some main dealers.

Keep us informed on how things go. Still loving my new FR mind, and the dealer I bought this one from (Western Seat) are poles apart with Arnold Clark who supplied the last one. I think if Arnold Clark had still been the only local Seat dealer I too would have gone elsewhere.

Thanks! The FR certainly wasn't a bad car... I liked it's power delivery, economy and handling, and I could tollerate the rattles. However the electrical issues and warranty resopnses didn't give me any confidence in keeping the car until it was 5 years old (as originally planned). Electrical faults normally get worse the older the car gets, so sadly the car had to go.

 

[J400uk]

Looks a decent choice. I had a sit inside one the other day it certainly feels very well built and above the usual SEAT standards. I agree with your Ibiza criticisms, was never really happy with the interior/ build of mine.

 

[Bobanegra]

KIA have really upped their game recently, the Procee'd is a great looking car and I was considering one of their new GT ones after seeing the design but the spec didn't really live up to expectations.

…dunno where that bloody apostrophe is meant to go!

 

[skidpan]

Wife has a 2010 Ceed SW CRDi. Really well put together and reliable so far. Only issue has been leaking air con condenser and to my surprise the dealer replaced it with no argument, normally they blame a stone. When I bought the Leon a Ceed was top of my list but I did not want another diesel engine (short trips and dpf etc) and the Kia petrol engine was woeful despite supposedly having 133 bhp or something it must have gone off for a day off somewhere. If the Seat is as good as the Ceed I will be delighted but at this moment in time I am still stunned by the TSi engine (performance and economy).

Just spotted that the details of the Pro-Ceed GT are out, £200 RFL would be the show stopper for me.

Word of advise, if you want to keep your sanity stay away from the Kia Owners forum, they are the biggest load of moaners you will ever come across. If you go on and say you are happy with your car you get accused of working for Kia.

 

[BaldyDave]

…dunno where that bloody apostrophe is meant to go!

I have a few choice suggestions... Silly car name I know! lol

 

[BaldyDave]

Word of advise, if you want to keep your sanity stay away from the Kia Owners forum, they are the biggest load of moaners you will ever come across. If you go on and say you are happy with your car you get accused of working for Kia.

Have joined that forum! lol So far I'm being treated OK, so can't complain.

Guess with most forums, the majority of folk are there because they want info or have a fault with their car (so will complain). I like the fact that Kia Customer Service has a forum of their own on that site, but I guess that could be a double-edged sword as the modders have Kia potentially looking over their shoulder.... Then again who is to say that Seat don't have an invisible presence on this site, unknown to everyone - including the Adminsistators... lol

Conspiracy theory, anyone??? lol (Joking)

 

[m0rk]

Then again who is to say that Seat don't have an invisible presence on this site, unknown to everyone - including the Adminsistators... lol

Conspiracy theory, anyone??? lol (Joking)

It's not invisible!

 

[BaldyDave]

No offence intended, it was said in jest. However there is no obvious Seat UK presence here, but I accept that there is Seat dealer presence here as well as Parts Suppliers etc...

On the Kia forum, KIA UK Customer Services have a forum of their own for issues to be raised. Is there any chance of that happening here?

 

[m0rk]

We've visited that idea over the years, but it's not been pursued - I guess it all depends on the way that businesses want to interact (or not)