Details of Cars

SEAT Ritmo: the last Fiat-era SEAT hatchback

SEAT

1981 SEAT Ritmo 65 CL
1981 SEAT Ritmo 65 CL. Photo by Spanish Coches, CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons.

The SEAT Ritmo was the model that replaced the SEAT 124 in 1979 and the first SEAT with a name instead of a number. A Spanish version of the Fiat Ritmo built near Barcelona from 1979 to 1982, it was named Car of the Year in Spain in 1980, and 118,450 were made before it became the SEAT Ronda.

SEAT Ritmo at a glance

SEAT Ritmo key facts
Maker SEAT, near Barcelona
Production 1979–1982
Basis Fiat Ritmo, built in Spain
Replaced SEAT 124
Body five-door hatchback only
Engines licence-built pushrod units from the Fiat 124
Gearbox four-speed; five-speed standard in CLX and Crono
Sport version Ritmo 100 TC Crono, 1,592 cc, 95 hp
Award Car of the Year in Spain, 1980
Built 118,450
Became SEAT Ronda in 1982

This page is based on one source, the English Wikipedia article on the SEAT Ritmo.

History of the SEAT Ritmo

A new name and a new shape

The Ritmo arrived in 1979 as the Spanish version of the Fiat Ritmo, produced near Barcelona, and it replaced the SEAT 124. It was the first SEAT to carry a non-numerical name, unlike all its predecessors. The Spanish car came only as a five-door hatchback, whereas Fiat also offered a three-door hatchback and a two-door convertible. Under the bonnet were licence-built pushrod engines derived from the old Fiat 124 units. At first a four-speed gearbox was the only choice, but later the five-speed became standard in the CLX and Crono versions.

SEAT Ritmo radio patrol car of the Spanish national police
SEAT Ritmo radio patrol car of the Cuerpo Nacional de Policía. Photo by David Perez, CC BY 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons.

Ritmo Crono

A special, more sporting variant was released as the SEAT Ritmo 100 TC Crono at the end of the model’s production run. It used the 1,592 cc Lampredi twin-cam engine of 95 hp that originally came from the Fiat 132 and that SEAT had also fitted to the 1430 Special, the 124 D Special and the 131. The Crono indirectly replaced the SEAT 128 3P. The very last Ritmos had their front logo changed from the original round badge to a rectangular one on the right-hand side of the front.

Car of the Year and the move to the Ronda

In 1980 the SEAT Ritmo was named Car of the Year in Spain. Its life under that name ended with the split between SEAT and Fiat in 1982, when the Spanish company restyled the car into the SEAT Ronda and had to convince an arbitration court in Paris that the new model was sufficiently different from the Fiat Ritmo. The Ritmo’s underpinnings lived on: they were used for the first-generation SEAT Ibiza and for the SEAT Málaga. The Spanish coachbuilder Emelba also built derivatives, including a panel van called the Emelba Ritmo Elba.

Design and features

  • First named SEAT: a break with the numbered models of the past.
  • Five-door only: the Spanish range skipped the Italian three-door and convertible.
  • Ritmo Crono: the 1,592 cc twin-cam of 95 hp from the Fiat 132.
  • Lasting base: its platform went on to underpin the Ibiza and the Málaga.

SEAT Ritmo versions

  • Ritmo (1979–1982): the standard five-door hatchback.
  • Ritmo CLX: five-speed gearbox as standard.
  • Ritmo 100 TC Crono: 1,592 cc twin cam, 95 hp, at the end of the run.

The Ritmo replaced the SEAT 124, and after the split with Fiat it was restyled into the SEAT Ronda, whose base was used for the SEAT Ibiza. More Spanish cars are in the SEAT collection.

Sources

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