What is the future that awaits SEAT? For now, what awaits the quintessential Spanish brand is a mystery, since all eyes have been on CUPRA. The sports car takes all the new generation electric models, announced by Wayne Griffiths himself, for which the works council has already sounded the alarm, according to a German report.
CUPRA, CUPRA and more CUPRA, but not a trace of the Spanish brand in the words of Wayne Griffiths during the last major event held before the press in the middle of last March. The head of SEAT and the attached sports brand only had some delicate words that some understood as those of a final recognition, noting that «The sustainable future viability of our company is closely linked to the growth of CUPRA. We see our new brand as a lever to increase profitability.”
The truth is that, in recent months, and since last year, Griffiths has been confirming new electric models for the sports brand. They will arrive before 2025, and will join the firm’s first electric SUV, the Tavascan, with a sports utility based on the UrbanRebel concept car and a saloon that has not been officially confirmed by those responsible but whose project code has been leaked, advanced by Motor.es months before, in addition to a new SUV that is only known to be a plug-in hybrid.
The future of SEAT, more and more up in the air?
The reality is that the movements in recent months are strange. El Born was born as a SEAT and changed third in a few months, while the Formentor has not only become a star in recent times, but is also sold with very conventional gasoline and diesel mechanics and not only high performance, but all with the CUPRA seal. A rare amalgamation that has set off alarm bells within the Spanish firm, since works councils see a darker future from the next decadeby not having news of future models and, therefore, with a greater workload, according to the German newspaper «Handelsblatt».
The same source points out that the Spanish firm has not had a good time in the last two years, with red numbers instead of black ones, which has further increased suspicions that the Wolfsburg giant is after taking out SEAT. In fact, the German newspaper has pointed out that Griffiths himself pointed out at the press conference that “the brand cannot afford any more losses”, in a clear reference to the Martorell firm, at the same time that it pointed out that, despite the short life of CUPRA in the market, it has managed to capture half of the new sales in the company.
For now, SEAT sources neither confirm nor deny the external information, only point out that «We believe that in this decade both efficient combustion engines and hybrid vehicles will continue to coexist». The reality is that the Spanish brand is one of the most jealous of its privacy, and certain information rarely comes to light, especially those of this type that put its continuity in the market in real check.
Via: Autoweek.nl
Source: Handelsblatt