Seat wows Barcelona with Bocanegra

THIS year’s Barcelona motor show was almost another victim of the recession, but Spanish car-maker Seat rewarded the organisers for pressing ahead by last week launching a road-ready version of its stunning Ibiza Bocanegra on the show floor.

Inspired by the Bocanegra concept car unveiled at the Geneva show 14 months ago – and put into production as a result of public reaction to it – the production model stays remarkably true to the headline-grabbing prototype.

Having a name that translates as ‘black mouth’ in Spanish, the Bocanegra features several unique and distinctive black styling elements around its nose, including the dramatic black double headlights, lower air vents and a central grille with honeycomb mesh.

Based on the Ibiza SportCoupe that was launched almost a year ago, the car also sports honeycomb mesh at the rear, a chunky bumper (with diffuser) and wheel arches, black door mirrors, tinted rear window and sunroof, 17-inch alloy wheels and a sporty interior.

Power comes from a twin-charge 1.4-litre engine (as seen in the VW Golf GT in Australia) producing either 110kW or 132kW of power, driving through a seven-speed DSG gearbox and an electronic limited slip differential.

Seat said the car was a tribute to the milestone 1200 Sport of 1975, which also carried the Bocanegra name and was the first model to be wholly developed at Seat’s Spanish technical centre.

With no plans to launch the Seat brand in Australia, the Bocanegra will not be coming here, but it will be built in right-hand drive for the British market, where it will go on sale late this year priced at about $35,000.