Seat Rumored to Start Production of Audi Q3-based SUV in 2012

It seems that the VW Group’s Martorell plant in Spain will not only build the new Audi Q3, but a similar version of the compact SUV for Seat as well, according to a report from British car magazine, What Car. Industry sources told the publication that the Seat IBX crossover study shown at Geneva this year will be built in the same plant with the Audi Q3, with both models to share the same platform. The production version of the IBX is expected to be introduced next year.

The IBX is Seat's second SUV concept after the Tribu shown at the Frankfurt Motor Show in 2007. The Tribu was initially supposed to spawn a production model but the project was canned due to the grim economic outlook at the time.

Now a Seat SUV is closer than ever to reality, even though the production version could differ from the three-door IBX design study. The series production model could feature a more conventional five-door bodywork and internal combustion engines, as opposed to the concept's full-electric setup. The IBX study uses an electric motor to power the front wheels and a battery package that offers a driving range of 45 kilometers (28 miles).

The road-going model is expected to adopt a variety of TSI and TDI engines offering buyers the choice of front-wheel or all-wheel drive. At 4.26 meters long, 1.80 meters wide and 1.62 meters tall, the IBX is very close in dimensions to the Audi Q3, which measures 4.39 meters in length, 1.83 meters in width and 1.60 meters in height.

By Dan Mihalascu

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Luc Donckerwolke to Head VW Group’s Advance Design Division

It’s time to move on for automotive designer Luc Donckerwolke who will leave his position as Director of Design at Seat to become the VW Group’s Head of Advanced Design starting on August 1, 2011. In his new role, Donckerwolke will report directly to Design Chief, Walter de Silva. The 46-year-old Belgian designer will be replaced at Seat by Alejandro Mesonero-Romanos.

Donckerwolke joined the VW Group in 1992, first as an exterior designer at Audi and two years later he moved to Skoda. He returned to Audi in 1996 to lead the styling studio in Munich and then became director at Ingolstadt. In 1998 he moved to Lamborghini, where he was appointed Head of Design in 2003. After a two-year tenure, he became Seat’s Director of Design.

His replacement at Seat, Alejandro Mesonero-Romanos, joined the Group in 1995 and has designed several models for the Spanish firm.

In 1997 he joined the Group’s Design Center in Spain where he was in charge for the exterior design of various VW, Audi and Seat projects. Four years later, he left and became Head of Advanced Design at Renault and Design Director at Renault Samsung Motors in 2009, before returning to the loving arms of the VW Group.

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Audi Begins Production of New Q3 SUV in Spain

The first series production version of Audi’s new Q3 small SUV rolled off the assembly line today at the SEAT factory in Martorell, located in Spain’s Catalonia region. Built in 1993, the Martorell plant currently employs more than 10,000 workers. This is the first time that the Ingolstadt-based automaker makes use of the SEAT factory. To build the Q3, the VW Group invested around €330 million in infrastructure and upgrades to the production facilities. Audi said around 100,000 Q3s are slated to leave the three-shift assembly line each year.

The smallest member of Audi’s Q series of SUVs and crossovers utilizes the VW Tiguan’s platform architecture. Currently, the Q3 is offered with three four-cylinder powerplants, a 2.0-liter turbo diesel with 177-horses, and a 2.0-liter turbocharged gasoline engine available in two outputs with 170HP and 211HP. A more fuel-efficient 2.0 TDI with 140HP as well as smaller displacement petrol engines are to be added to the range in the near future.

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