THE SEAT Toledo arrived in 1991 as a five-door hatchback, despite the three-volume bodywork, and like other winners from previous editions, it was designed by Giugiaro.
The first generation of the SEAT Toledo, presented at the Barcelona Motor Show, was the first model of the brand to be developed entirely within the Volkswagen group after the acquisition of the brand in 1986, and was based on the A2 platform of the Volkswagen Golf.
It offered a 550 l boot, and despite the lower legroom in the rear seats than some of its competitors due to the platform used, it was a car with good familiar scrolls.
Mechanically, the novelty involved the adoption of Volkswagen blocks, instead of the famous Porsche System that equipped the Ibiza and Malaga. Both petrol and diesel engines were available, including the famous 1.9 TDI, with the more powerful version of the SEAT Toledo being in charge of a 2.0 16v petrol engine with 150 hp of power.
Since 2016, Razão Automóvel has been part of the Car of the Year jury panel in Portugal
Toledo in Dakar
It was in the same year that SEAT won the car of the year trophy, that SEAT developed a Toledo with the aim of winning the toughest rallies in the world, including the mythical Dakar. The SEAT Toledo Marathon had a 2.1 l block with five cylinders in line with 330 hp — courtesy of Audi — and was built with a tubular chassis and bodywork in carbon fiber, kevlar and epoxy resins. It debuted in 1993, in Portugal.
Olympic Games
Recent on the market, the model was also associated with the Spanish brand's support for the Barcelona Olympic Games, where a fleet was available for use by athletes and the organization.
It was also up to Toledo to be the first electric SEAT, or at least the first prototype. It had only 65 km of autonomy and was used in the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona, and later in the Paralympics.
The SEAT Toledo would be replaced in 1998 by a new generation that kept the name.
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