Classic Car Insurance For The SEAT Ibiza Twenty Five Years On

Remember the Mid Eighties? In the summer of 1985 Margaret Thatcher was in her second term, Nintendo released Super Mario and England won the Ashes at the Oval. The post punk, post new romantic music of the time hardly bears a mention, it was that dull.
At the same time across the forecourts of a few smaller dealers throughout the UK, a bright new marque was appearing, the SEAT Ibiza Mark 1.

A quarter of a century later and half a million in UK sales, SEAT UK is an established and thriving concern, currently enjoying a 1.6% share of the UK new car market, and it is growing annually. SEAT enjoys an enthusiastic band of loyal customers and has ambitious plans to expand upon its sales success.

The success of the Spanish Brand can be put down to consistent growth built upon an array of sporty, engaging and value for money cars that are within the reach of the pockets of the majority of the UK’s driving population. Moreover, SEAT models have been very cheap to insure, with the range all falling within the lowest car insurance groups for rating. The availability of spare parts, good driver profiles and inexpensive repairs has made the SEAT Ibiza one of the UK’s Car Insurance companies favourite models to underwrite.

But back in 1985, the success of a new Spanish hatchback in a market dominated by British, German and French makes, and most UK ‘high street’ car dealers tied agents of the big boys, was not guaranteed. After all Spain didn’t make cars did they? And the current iconic images of Fabregas and Nadal and Barcelona, were substitued by those of Manuel from Fawlty Towers in the psyche of the majority of the ‘We make the cars and go on holiday to Spain’ British public.

So sales of the modern classic got off to what can only be described as ‘a slow start’, with only 24 cars sold in the first month and just 405 for the year.

Undaunted a handful of dealers stuck with the Mark 1 Ibiza hatchback, which was the first car to be developed in Spain entirely by SEAT without input from Italian co-owners FIAT, and the larger saloon the SEAT Malaga.

And it worked!
Some say, it was the great value for money that SEAT offered in a time of austerity for the majority of people that was behind it. Others, that its sporty, young, spanish style and design struck a chord with the buying public. Whatever, in 1986 in their first full year of trading the company sold 5,922 new cars in the UK.
The rest is history. Twenty five years ago, German giant Volkswagen took one look at SEAT’s first years sales figures in the UK, and immediately acquired a 51% majority holding stake, ensuring the future sucess of the company.

Sales topped 10,000 by 1988 and by 1990 Volkswagen completed it’s takeover of the Spanish car manufacturer.
SEAT’s operations stayed in Spain, with cars directly exported to Southampton, for shipment direct to the forecourts of the growing numbers of dealers. SEAT took full advantage of it’s relationship with Volkswagen and by 1995 sales had rocketed to over 20,000 cars per annum.
This was in the most part due to what have now become modern classic cars. In 1993 Seat launched the classic Mark 2 Ibiza, the Cordoba and shortly after the Alhambra.

All SEAT models built before 2001 are now eligible for classic car insurance, which should help owners reduce premiums even more, on what were always good value for money policies.

SEAT has continued to grow and in the last ten years new models including the Ibiza SC, Leon, Altea, Altea XL, Exeo, Exeo ST, and the new Alhambra; have driven UK sales of new SEAT car toward the 50,000 per year mark.
At Car-Insurance.tv in association with Flux Insurance Services we have brought together providers of some of the Cheapest SEAT Classic Car Insurance Quotes and Schemes in order to get you the best quotes for your classic . Apply online today or call our team of SEAT Insurance specialist brokers on 0800 089 0182. And you’ll get even cheaper SEAT Insurance with large discounts if you are a member of the official SEAT Car Owners Club!