16 October 2002: The new-generation SEAT Cordoba, revealed at the recent Paris Show, will be in Ireland in January.

The car is based on the same platform as the recently-revised Ibiza, and generally will have the same engine range in Ireland - 1.2- and a brace of 1.4-litre petrol units and three 1.9-litre diesels.

The really nice petrol one is the 100bhp 1.4, while the piece de resistance (or Spanish equivalent) in the diesels is the 130bhp TDi, the fastest car in the range and now mated to a 6-speed gearbox.

The 75bhp 1.4 is also available with an automatic gearbox.

Though the 1.4-litre 3-cylinder turbodiesel from the Audi A2 and the VW Polo will eventually be included in the Ibiza range in Ireland, there is as yet no timescale for it. The same engine for the Cordoba is 'being considered', we heard last night at the International Press Launch in south-eastern Spain.

There will be three specification levels for the Cordoba in Ireland - the familiar SEAT designations of Stella, Sport and Signo. The importers expect to sell around 1,000 units next year (saloons are not the major derivatives in this country, unlike Spain and Mexico, the two key markets for the 60,000 Cordobas expected to be sold worldwide next year).

A decision hasn't been made yet on whether to produce a wagon version.

No prices are yet available for Ireland, but in Spain the new Cordoba range will go from E12,630-E18,170.

The new car is higher, wider and longer than its predecessor, and with a bodyshell 12 per cent stiffer it is also the stiffest in its class. Much of the improvement is due to the use of laser-welding manufacturing processes. Though we were told earlier this year that the Cordoba would not be just 'an Ibiza with a boot', its interior dimensions for rear passengers are the same as in the 5-door Ibiza.

Never mind, it seems on short acquaintance to be a substantial car in its own right, and something of a crossover towards the next segment dominated by Astra/Focus/Corolla. I drove both the high-end diesel and a 1.2 petrol yesterday, and the car confirms my great liking for the latest Ibiza.

The base Stella specification will include dual airbags, ABS, front electric windows, and other goodies.

The car took just 36 months from decision to development, due in large measure to the availability of computer-aided design and simulation facilities, including a crash-simulation programme that saved much time and expense before they had to do the real thing.

The Ibiza and now the Cordoba was last night described as 'pillars in the bridge' between the current range of SEAT products and the future generation which will be seen over the next three years.

They owe significant detail to recent concept cars such as the Tango coupe, and there were hints last night that it will be a production car itself, perhaps as early as the first half of next year.

I'll do a preview of the Cordoba soon, with full details of the various spec levels and some idea of what it is like to drive. But Ford and Toyota should be worrying a little, if the price negotiations come up with a car that's competitive, if not quite as big.

Because there's a market there that used to be served by the obove-mentioned before they got as big as they are.

Viva l'Espagna!