Currently reading: Inside Seat's secret car collection - picture special

We take a tour of Seat's car collection, which is brimming with classic models, modern concepts and glimpses into the history of the Spanish car maker

Like all car makers, Seat has a collection of its most significant vehicles, from production cars and concepts to competition models.

However, the Spanish manufacturer does not have a museum that is accessible to the public, so some real gems and curios are currently hidden from view. 

On Autocar’s recent trip to Barcelona to drive a fleet of historic Ibiza models, the company allowed us into a factory warehouse for a brief walk around the collection. 

Aside from examples of the rebadged Fiat models that the company made for many years, there are also a number of concept cars which neatly show how Seat tried to reinvent itself as a standalone company by developing unique models with their own character while leveraging Volkswagen Group technology.

One of the most intriguing of the preserved models is the 1990 Seat Proto C, which was created by ItalDesign. This neat, Polo-size one-box car was quite a way ahead of its time, being a spacious and slippery one-box shape. It was probably the inspiration for the later Salsa concept, which failed to be translated into a convincing production car. 

Take a look through the gallery above and pick your top Seat model.

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The Seat Ibiza is good looking, well-priced and spacious supermini that doesn’t quite live up to Seat’s sporty image

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Mini2 19 May 2014

Fascinating

Reminds me of that secret stash that Citroen have over in France. It's funny how forlorn some of those concept cars look in a warehouse compared to their snazzy show stands. It's a shame the Tango never saw production; VW have really missed some tricks these last few years.
darrenforster99 17 May 2014

Seat Playa - looked great!

The Seat Playa looked like a really practical car.

Last time we were looking for a car we were trying to find an Alhambra 'cos we wanted a 7-seater (and they're the same as the Galaxy's, and Touran's).

Couldn't find one, so we settled on a Vauxhall Zafira instead.

The Playa reminds me of a my friends series 2 land rover with the side facing seats in the rear (although my friends land rover doesn't have a removable roof).

It looks like a modern day fun version of the old Land Rovers with it's colourful styling. The only thing is, is it a 4x4 - 'cos that would make it a superb 4x4 car!

EngageSportMode 16 May 2014

There's something quite

There's something quite frustrating when you look at the recent history of SEAT's concept cars. Some obviously have translated into actual production car design, but there's an obvious proportion of ones which really should have but didn't.

The Tango is a prime example of a car which could've really given SEAT some great brand stature and identity, but didn't get built. Some 13 years later and VAG still doesn't quite seem to know what to do with SEAT.