With the Spanish media concentrated on the political crisis concerning Catalonia, Volkswagen‘s Spanish division Seat has chosen to delay announcing the name of its upcoming model.
Seat, based in Martorell in Catalonia, was prepared to reveal the name of its 2018 sport-utility vehicle (SUV) this month, about a year before the 7-seat model’s launch.
However the automaker, which previously this month stopped production at the Martorell plant after parts supplies were interfered by protests in Catalonia, said on Tuesday it would reveal the name of the car at a later time.
“With the whole Spanish media focused on politics at the moment, we have chosen to discover a much better time,” a representative for Seat stated.
Seat has likewise delayed the statement of an agreement it has signed with a Spanish market association on development and digitization, he stated, without discussing more.
However, plans for selling and building the vehicle, which is due to be made at Volkswagen’s Wolfsburg base in Germany, will not be impacted by the delay, the spokesman stated.
The presentation of Seat’s new Arona SUV to the worldwide trade press in Barcelona is continuing as planned and will run for another week, he informed.
Seat, acquired by Volkswagen in 1986, went back to profit in 2016 for the first time in about a decade, helped by strong sales of the Ateca, the first crossover model of it.
The 2018 SUV, its 3rd such model in as several years, will play a crucial role in the brand’s technique to build on its recovery, chief executive Luca de Meo informed.
