SEAT Altea Freetrack 4 (07-09) - Review

The Freetrack 4 comes with all the interior space of the Altea XL, which means extra rear leg room over a standard SEAT Altea and five adults can sit in comfort. There is plenty of headroom and the seats are supportive. Electronic climate control is standard on the Freetrack 4, as are electric windows, however, the diesel model is a little noisy at low revs. The ride quality is very good though - if anything it's even smoother than the Altea XL, thanks to the raised ride height and different suspension.

The Altea Freetrack 4 offers a minimum of 490 litres of luggage capacity up to window height, and this can be increased to 593 litres with the rear seats slid forward. With the rear seats fully folded, luggage capacity increases to 1,562 litres overall. The boot has two tiers with concealed compartments, a luggage net and lashing hooks for securing loose items. A partition net is also included to separate the luggage compartment from the passenger compartment when carrying pets. There are trays set in the backs of the front seats and numerous storage compartments in the cabin.

The driver has seat height adjustment as standard in the Freetrack 4 and the steering wheel is adjustable for reach and height. Visibility is pretty good, although the windscreen pillars (which also house the windscreen wipers when off duty) are pretty substantial and compromise visibility at junctions. Although the interior is very well designed, it doesn't feel worthy of such an expensive vehicle. The hard plastics on the dashboard and doors have a slightly budget feel about them. Facelifted cars from mid 2009 come with a far better interior with more modern controls and an upmarket appearance.