Spanish subsidiary of Volkswagen, SEAT, revealed a hybrid electric version of its Leon hatchback. It is only a prototype for now, and showcased the results of a four-year research and development program under the Cenit Verde project. They call the car SEAT Leon Verde which means Green Zenith.
Over the past four years SEAT has spent over €34m developing its electric drive system, which besides the Verde hybrid plug-in electric prototype, also produced an innovative smart car charging system. The Centi Verde project had 800 professionals from 16 private companies and 14 public bodies working on it.
The result of their efforts is the Leon Verde, which features a 1.4-litre TSI petrol engine with 122 PS linked to a 102 PS electric motor, for a combined maximum output of 170 PS. That is pretty good for a small car like the Leon. The really good numbers, however, are the combined fuel consumption figure – 176.6 mpg – and the 36 g/km CO2 emissions. The car also offers 31 miles of pure electric drive and has a range of 507 miles with topped-up fuel tank and batteries.
The hybrid electric powertrain is the most important part of this car, but SEAT, just to make it look good, has also invested in an smartphone app that connects to the car and lets the driver manage functions such as energy consumption, battery status, recharge management. It’s just some extra garnish. It’s not really necessary to have such a thing.
Currently, there are no plans to put the SEAT Leon Verde into series production. But some of its techs may find their way into the future production models.
