Named after Tarragona, the oldest Roman settlement on the Iberian Peninsula, this is Seat's third SUV and it represents the Spanish carmaker's entry into the large SUV market, completing the family lineup alongside the Arona and the Ateca.

Interestingly, the Tarraco name was decided by 146,124 Seat fans in 134 countries, who participated in the final stage of the model's pre-launch campaign.

It sits on the Volkswagen Group's MQB-A platform and is Seat's answer to the Skoda Kodiaq and the Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace. The latter is, however, not available in Singapore.


So it must be a rather solid offering, then?

It sure is, and then some. For starters, like the Alhambra, the Tarraco comes with seven seats. So if you often need to fill all those seats and much prefer something that shouts 'rugged mum' and not 'stay-home dad', this is the Seat for you.

It's also better-looking than the Kodiaq, being slightly longer, lower and more angular. The Tarraco's design is one that showcases what future Seats will look like, which according to the brand will be 'elegant and progressive in design'.


This can mostly be seen on the inside, where two new snazzy digital screens - a floating 8.0-inch infotainment display and a 10.25-inch digital cluster - take centre stage. The latter also allows the convenient display of navigation right within the driver's line of sight.

While new, they feature logical interfaces that are easy to operate if you're familiar with the Group's products and elsewhere, there's also the familiar Volkswagen switchgear that make for a cabin boasting solid build quality.

Compared to Asian rivals at this price point, the plastics used are softer and various controls click in place more satisfyingly. It altogether feels more premium and more durable.


There's also a ton of headroom to go around, and the second-row seats can be slid and reclined for more space in the third row when needed.

But like all seven-seater SUVs of this size, don't expect palatial accommodation in the Tarraco's third row, as it's still best left for children.

More importantly, its 700 litres of boot space with the third row folded is 70 litres more than the Kodiaq in equivalent configuration. And the two rearmost seats, meanwhile, are light and easy to fold, and lie flat enough that they don't obstruct when loading heavy items.

Is it underpowered as a 1.4-litre though?

Not at all, actually. The boosted 1.4-litre lump residing underneath the bonnet of the Tarraco is the same one that powers the Kodiaq and the Tiguan.


While its 148bhp and 250Nm of torque do sound like modest figures for something of this size, there's more than enough to get you quickly along. 0-100km/h takes a respectable 9.4 seconds, plus it's easy-going on highways and surefooted enough around corners even without adaptive suspension.

But perhaps, the biggest selling point of the $153,999 (as of 6 June 2019) Tarraco is the suite of safety systems it comes standard with.

Like in the Group's more expensive Volkswagen Touareg, it has clever tech like lane assist, park assist, and emergency braking assist, adaptive cruise control, blind spot detection and even tiredness recognition.


So if you're looking for a stylish, well-packaged and rather advanced seven-seating SUV, there's really no reason not to consider the Tarraco. With it, Seat is offering quite a lot of car for your money.

Want to see in video what 700 litres of boot space looks like, or just how spacious the cabin of the Seat Tarraco is? Watch our video review!