Used SEAT Altea review and buying guide (2004 to 2015): which one to buy and what to check

Which used SEAT Altea should you buy?

Go for a manual Altea rather than a DSG automatic. The twin-clutch box has more against it than any other part of the car: its heat exchanger can fail and let engine coolant into the gearbox, and one report names the 7-speed dry-clutch control unit as a frequent failure on engines under 2.0 litres. The manual isn't fault-free, but its weak points (a stiff change and a tired clutch) are things you can feel on a test drive.

No year or engine comes out clean, because each part of the 2004 to 2015 run has its own trouble. Earlier diesels pick up clutch, flywheel and hesitation complaints, while the 2.0 TDI from 2010 to 2015 has a known fault with its EGR valve and DPF after the emissions fix. The later 1.6 TDI isn't an easy way round that either: owners of 2011 and 2014 cars have reported injector and gearbox trouble since the same fix.

The longer Altea XL gets the same advice, since two XL owners describe the same DSG jerking, stalling and rough running as the standard car. The 1.4 and 1.6 petrols have had fewer complaints, but that's a short record rather than proof they're tough, and the plastic tensioner on the 16v versions has failed regularly.

Which Altea engines and gearboxes are the safe choices?

The manual gearbox is the safer pick across the range, with two things to test. On 6-speed manuals the shift from 1st to 2nd can go stiff; fresh gearbox oil is the first fix, and a new synchro ring is the next step if that doesn't work. Clutch and dual-mass flywheel failures were turning up more often by late 2009, so feel where the clutch bites and ask whether either has been replaced.

Avoid the DSG if you can. One 1.6 TDI owner was told by SEAT that the clutch pack was failing, and another 1.6 TDI car lost all drive at 78,000 miles. There's also a software delay between the brake switch and the engine computer that can let the car roll into a junction or roundabout and then cut out briefly halfway across, which isn't something you'd want to discover in traffic.

The 2.0 TDI from 2010 to 2015 has a known fault: once the emissions software fix is applied, the EGR valve can fail and the DPF can block, usually between 60,000 and 100,000 miles. The older 1.9 TDI 105 has had faults with its clutch release bearing, plus a hesitation problem traced to its ECU software, which a dealer reflash cured on 2008 cars. One owner's 2008 1.9 TDI threw a rod through the block at 67,000 miles.

The 1.6 TDI is another EA189 engine, and owners have reported trouble since its emissions fix too: one 2014 car had its injectors fail one at a time and another lost fuel economy. With both DSG failures above also on 1.6 TDIs, don't treat it as the easy alternative to the 2.0; if you buy one, make it a manual and ask what was done after the fix.

What should you check when viewing a used Altea?

Drive a DSG car in slow traffic and in reverse, because jerking at parking speeds, stalling or jolting are the signs of the clutch pack and control unit trouble owners describe. Watch the dash display too: one car whose display dropped from D1 to D lost all drive a couple of yards after setting off. Ask when the gearbox fluid and filter were last changed, as that was the first suggested fix for one 1.9 diesel DSG jerking at 43,500 miles.

An amber ESP or ABS warning light needs explaining before you buy. On this car it can point to a pressure sensor built into the ABS unit, which means replacing the whole control unit and pump, and it seems to come with age. Before assuming the worst, though, check the ABS fuse is pushed fully home, because one that's worked loose can set the light off on its own.

Ask for proof the recall work was done. That covers the ABS and ESC software update on 2008 to 2010 cars, whose earth connection could drop out, the starter motor solenoid on 2011 stop/start diesels, which could stick on and overheat, and the driver airbag on a few 2009 and 2010 cars. On a 2.0 TDI pump-injector diesel, ask about the Siemens piezo injector recall: a short inside them could cut the engine out. On a 1.4 or 1.6 16v petrol, ask for a receipt for the plastic tensioner.

Start a 1.9 TDI hot as well as cold: one 2005 car at 88,000 miles fired up fine from cold but struggled once warm. Listen for hesitation when pulling away and watch for stalling, which these cars are prone to. Try the cruise control, as one complaint describes it failing again and again even after every part was replaced, and check the digital display in the instrument cluster isn't corrupted, as one owner's was after sub-zero temperatures.

Paste the advert into the free check and it runs these against the listing, the MOT history and the DVLA record before you travel.

What does a used SEAT Altea cost to run?