SEAT’s Badge Engineering: What’s next, the Cupra R8?

Badge engineering is a term used to describe the rebadging of one vehicle to another with minimum aesthetic changes. One example is the Korean Daewoo Gentra that has been morphed into the Chevy Aveo and quite recently, into the Pontiac G3. Another example is the SEAT Exeo sedan that premiered in Paris which is basically a previous-gen Audi A4 with a new fascia and tail lamps. But while no one actually cares if the Aveo is a rebadged Gentra (or the other way around), we reckon that VW Group’s decision to remask the B7 Audi A4 will have a negative effect on both brands and especially on Audi. -Continued

The VW Group has come a long way with Audi which until the early 90’s, was seen by most consumers as more of an alternative to BMW and Mercedes than an equal opponent. It took money, time and tremendous effort to establish Audi as a worldwide recognized premium brand.

The Germans have also been trying for years now to cultivate an image for SEAT as the youthful, sporty brand within the VW family –something like a Spanish version of Alfa Romeo. The results of course, are far from triumphant but no one is to blame than VW’s high-rank execs who for one decided to produce cars like the Toledo and its siblings, a vehicle that does not know if it’s a minivan, a hatchback, a liftback or a sedan.

It’s no secret that like other major players in the industry, the VW Group exercises component, platform and engine sharing within its brand portfolio that includes Skoda, VW, Audi, SEAT, Lamborghini and Bentley. But by introducing a car like the Exeo that is clearly recognizable as a rebadged A4, one of Audi’s most important and well sold models, you’re basically weakening the brand’s premium image (at least in Europe) in the same way that Chinese knockoffs do.

As for SEAT, while the Exeo might bring new clientele into its showrooms, we believe it further deepens the problem with the Spanish marque’s identity crisis. Just take a look at the automaker’s vehicle line-up: Ibiza, Leon, Toledo, Altea, Altea XL, Altea Freetrack, Alhambra and Exeo. The only (relatively) sporty and youthful cars we see here are the Ibiza and Leon.