Seat launched a facelifted version of both the Ibiza and Arona this week. With the Seat Ibiza, the news mainly takes place indoors, but the Arona also gets a (slightly) different front outside of a new dashboard.
The facelifts of the compact Seats will certainly not go into the books as the most radical ever, although that may be different for the interior. Even in the Arona, which changes the most, the shape of the headlights remains intact. This is striking because the larger Ateca, which had similar headlights, has Leon-like copies since the facelift.
Striking lamps
The clearly visible news is thus limited to the front bumper and the grille incorporated therein. More specifically, it is the round fog lights directly below the headlights that catch the eye the most. The lamps are reminiscent of a pre-facelift Skoda Yeti and can also be found in a similar form on the Cupra Formentor. However, they are not standard with the Arona. In the press photos, they are present on the new Xperience version, while the FR shown lacks them. According to the accompanying letter, these lamps will become a separate option and the Arona buyer can therefore opt for these striking lamps regardless of the version.
Crease
Fortunately, there is also news to report apart from those fog lights. The crease under the headlamps sets off the descent more clearly than before, to make room for a higher grille with a modified design. Under that fold, things are also different than before, with a tightly drawn air inlet combination and silver-colored elements for the aforementioned Xperience version.
‘Diffuser’
At the rear, the now centrally placed and decorative type designation is particularly striking. Reportedly, however, the roof spoiler is also new and changes have been made to the element that Seat optimistically calls a diffuser.
Dashboard
However, the biggest news is only visible when the door is opened. As with the Ibiza, a completely new dashboard is fitted, which is a real rarity during a facelift. The central touchscreen is mounted higher, the ventilation grilles are now underneath and the outer ones are now round in shape. Completely different, and according to Seat also built from higher quality materials.
For an overview: in the photo gallery above, the red car is an ‘old’ FR and the orange Arona the discontinued Xcellence. The facelifted Arona is visible as blue FR and as green-white Xperience, the version that replaces the Xcellence.