Seat backs carsharing: buy Respiro!

Seat is backing carsharing with its fleet of CNG vehicles. The Spanish company will offer service in Madrid through the Respiro platform.

SEAT has acquired 100% of the stake in the Spanish startup Respiro, a pioneer in hourly car rental in the city of Madrid. With this acquisition, SEAT is entering the Madrid carsharing market to compete with companies such as Emov, Car2go or ZITY. That said, the Spanish firm will add its range of CNG models (Compressed Natural Gas) to the Respiro fleet, which means that the Seat proposal will not be 100% emissions-free, unlike the companies currently leading carsharing in the capital.

Following the signing of the purchase agreement, the president of SEAT, Luca de Meo, stated that “Respiro is a project based on a business model with potential for the company, and it allows us to continue advancing in our commitment to finding and developing sustainable and efficient solutions for future mobility“. De Meo also added that “this acquisition is a first step in our commitment to buying into and participating in future projects that we believe will set the trends of the coming years”.

How Respiro works

Founded in 2010 by Ian Paterson and Inés De Saralegui, the platform operates on a pay-per-use system. To access Respiro’s vehicles, you only need to sign up and receive a membership card that grants access to the cars. Currently, Respiro has 15,000 active users.

What Respiro will offer

Through an extensive network of car parks, the company offers city cars, saloons, MPVs and vans to private individuals or professionals in all areas of Madrid. Currently, Respiro operates a mixed fleet of 200 cars, including electric, hybrid, CNG, LPG and low-emission vehicles, which will gradually be replaced by SEAT vehicles, carrying the ECO label and powered by CNG.

The future of Respiro

Seat has stated that its intention is to roll out its new carsharing model in other cities across Spain.