Hot Cupras as possible practical but fun family runaround.??

[oktapod]

Hi folks.

I've had a BMW 330Ci M Sport for a while and I can't really find fault with it. Here's a pic for the hell of it:



Anyway, we've just had our second child and it's just not working out getting the boys into the back of a two door coupe, even though there is plenty of room in the back. So, I've given in to SWMBO and listed it for sale (on PH right now, Autotrader later).

What I'm considering is a modern-ish Cupra as an alternative which should offer similar-ish performance, but be a few years newer (my BMW is an E46 and approaching 8 years old). Budget is basically whatever I can get for the 330Ci, so hopefully around £6.25k.

My questions are directed at Cupra owners and really boil down to: how much leg-room in the back, how far do the rear doors open, what's the ride like, and generally how reliable are they?

We've had a decent hire of an Ibiza whilst on holiday and I was impressed by its 'feel' - even if it felt pretty plodding compared to the BMW - and I decided there and then that I'd check out the hotter Seats for the next car.

Anyone care to advise? Of course, I'm happy to entertain a part-ex if someone has an older Cupra against the Beemer, but I suspect given my location (Scotland) that the odds are against me on this!!!

Cheers,

John

[steve--m]

My friend has an 04 plate Leon Cupra. Good kit level for the money he gave - heated leather, sat nav, climate etc even if lots of the parts are raided from the old Audi A3... This will be a let down compared to even an older BMW - the Seat cabin finish is cheap feeling.

We regularly go out in it 4 blokes up - last trip down to Thruxton - and rear room is pretty decent and there would be no issues getting the kids in and out.

This model of Cupra come with various tune's of the VAG 1.8T engine so common issues will include coil packs going, MAF sensors failing, N75 valves going etc - good news is that fundamentally the engines are sound and with a cheeky remap will provide comparable power to the BMW in basic Cupra form and significantly more in Cupra R guise.

HTH

[oktapod]

Thanks, Steve. I'll have to wait to see what interest there is in the 330Ci (a few phone calls and one guy coming to try so far, but perhaps not as much interest as I'd hoped).

I'm keeping my fingers crossed there's someone like me going the other direction - i.e. wanting to move from a Cupra or Cupra R to a 330Ci

[Adamantium]

Might not be your cup of tea but look into Octavia VRS's. the orginal one has 180bhp but a simple remap will see 210bhp and similar torque figures, a few little tweaks and it'll drive well and keep up with LCR whilst having more room for the family. They will keep up with mapped S3's on the straight till very naughty numbers, and for tweeks look into a Rear ARB, remap, bush's and possibly a few other little bits.

however it is a skoda and some people still are very anti them.

Edited by Adamantium on Tuesday 11th August 13:55

[Traveller]

Standard Cupras are decently quick, come with lots of standard kit, enough room in the back for two car seats, boot big enough to handle the usual debris carted around with kids and decent consumption in both petrol and diesel form. The Octavia is also a good option, same mechanicals as the Standard cupra in a sedan layout.

The R becomes a lot more fun with a remap though, and is probably the best looking MK4 VW hatch derivative. IMO anyway.

[oktapod]

"Might not be your cup of tea but look into Octavia VRS's."

Got one already - our main car is one, the 330Ci is my run-around. However, we really need two cars with full practicality.... agree, the VRS is a stonking motor, and once you get past the badge thing, it's as good as anything you can buy for the money...

However, this time I fancied a Seat

[jcborden]

My Leon Cupra R (LCR) is our family car and comfortably takes the two car seats plus there is just enough room for an adult in the middle if required. Reasonably quick and a pretty good ride. The rear doors open right out making it a doddle to get the kids/seats in out.

Quality is pretty good, doors give a nice thunk (but I did come from a scooby!). Watch out for the following though:

- Rattly dashboard (can often be resovled by packing the sides with felt/foam - mine was resolved this way).

- Leaky doors. The seals around the internal door panel break down after a while and can leak water into the footwells. This is easily resovled by taking the door panel off, loostening the metal panel bolts and sealing with silicone sealant

- Front splitter is VERY low and easy to catch when going anywhere near a curb. At least it is easy and cheap (£20) to replace

- Wheels are very easy to catch on the curbs.

- As mentioned, coil packs are known/prone to go

Having said all that, don't let it put you off, the LCR is a nice handling pretty quick car that seems well screwed together (even when considering the above points).