2022 Seat Arona long-term test: report 4

When it first went on sale, the Seat Arona was the best small SUV around, but it's been surpassed by other cars. Has a recent facelift put it back on top? We're living with one to find out...

Seat Arona interior

The car 2022 Seat Arona 1.0 TSI 110 FR Sport DSG Run by Kiall Garrett, senior videographer

Why it’s here Can the sporty version of Seat's small SUV be spacious and efficient enough for What Car?'s videographer?

Needs to Be practical, comfortable on long journeys and exciting to drive


Mileage 2286 Price £26,345 Target Price £24,628 Price as tested £25,580 Test economy 41.8mpg Official economy 46.3mpg


9 May 2022 – Tech-fest

Cutting-edge infotainment technology seems to have become a standard expectation on all new cars in 2022. No matter where we're going or what we're driving, we want to stay connected to the wider world. So, how does my Seat Arona stack up on this front?

Seat Arona infotainment

Well, under the surface Seat has very similar infotainment technology to Volkswagen, but having dabbled with a few VW touchscreens recently, I reckon Seat does it better. The 9.2in screen in the Arona responds promptly, with no lag or glitching, and has modern, clean graphics that make it look more upmarket than the car’s price would suggest. You also get wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto phone integration on all trims, and it works as smoothly as the infotainment system.

Arona digital cockpit

A ‘Digital Cockpit’ is standard with FR Sport trim as well, giving you a fully digital instrument panel that offers a variety of view layouts and customisation. It can even put the sat-nav map right in front of me, meaning I can keep my eyes closer to the road, even when I'm checking where I'm meant to be going.

All of this shows that the Arona is a small SUV that is big on tech, and it's just one of the things I really like about it so far.

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