Tuesday 28th April 2015

SEAT Leon Cupra 280: PH Fleet

Matt bids a fond farewell to the Leon Cupra from the PH Fleet

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"You don't know what you've got until it's gone" is a sage piece of advice suggested by grandparents that often goes in on ear and out the other. "You don't look at the mantelpiece while you're poking the fire" was more keenly remembered, if only because there are some things your grandmother should never say... Whatever, now the Leon Cupra has been taken away it has become clear just how talented it is, a point that had become all too easy to overlook.

Could it be jazzed up just a little?

Throughout it's time with us the Leon has put up a very good fight against a whole host of rivals PH has had on test. In its final weeks it was informally compared to both the Juke NISMO RS and Audi S3 saloon. The lessons learnt from the Nissan were that a) hot hatches based on hatchbacks are definitely best and b) that VAQ 'diff' really is exceptional and can outperform a conventional LSD in some cases. The Audi was certainly a more pleasant place to sit but it was also £40,350 as tested. The Leon is £29K with options. What has become evident throughout is that the Leon Cupra is simply a very hard car to fault.

And don't mistake the impeccable performance for a lack of 'character'. The arrival of the Golf R (it was bound to feature at some point!) has proved just how exciting that clever front axle is. Put simply it can be felt doing its thing far more readily than the Golf's four-wheel drive system. With 81kg less weight and a touch less refinement, the Leon is just more exciting than the Golf more of the time. Furthermore, the SEAT continued to feel quicker as the miles accrued, to the point where the Golf now feels slower on the road. It's not a fair comparison given the miles on each car but the Cupra is by no means a poor relation on performance despite what the spec sheets may say. It's a very, very rapid car.

There is another way that isn't Golf R...

SEAT took KM14XHO back with nearly 12,000 miles on it. The front tyres will need replacing fairly soon but that's to be expected given it has been dealing with 280hp and 258lb ft. You could argue we've been driving it too softly... Aside from the damaged radar sensor which meant the cruise control wouldn't work (never used anyway so it didn't bother me), the car has been faultless. As you could reasonably expect but it's still worth mentioning.

Essentially the SEAT Leon Cupra deserves far greater credit in a fierce hot hatch market than it currently receives. I saw one more at the Morgan Sunday Service but other than that it can't have been more than five since July. Given I saw that many Golf bloomin Rs in one 90-minute journey recently it goes to show just what an unfair disparity there is. I would be really interested to hear from Golf R owners as to whether the Leon was considered and why it was discounted. Similarly to drivers of the old Leon Cupras: would you upgrade? And if not, why not?

Cheerio old chum!

It's certainly not a flawless car though so it's probably time to discuss the areas where the Leon could improve. It needs to be offered in more interesting colours for a start. I'm convinced a yellow, green and orange would increase the Cupra's appeal to many. Fresh wheels choices would help too as both 18- and 19-inch options are a bit dull really. The fake noise remains daft but I'm not sure how that would be remedied. Finally, the bucket seats are a must - they're not as uncompromising as that title sounds but just offer improved comfort and support over the fairly lacklustre standard items.

Still need convincing? Consider this for a deal: a 265 SC for £21,747 or £4,213 off the list price. 280s are around on broker sites with similar discounts, taking those below £23,000. That's outrageous value for a car that is arguably the pick of the MQB hot hatch clan. Personally the Renaultsport Megane appeals more but the more accommodating Leon is a worthy rival. Anybody in the market for hot hatch must consider the Leon Cupra as it's a genuinely superb car. And the Performance Pack? It's arriving at PHHQ for a week in May. Finally. Let's hope it's worth the wait!

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FACT SHEET
Car: SEAT Leon Cupra 280
Run by: Matt
On fleet since: July 2014
Mileage: 11,993
List price new: £26,945 before options (£29,650 as tested, comprising Leather Pack with Winter Pack £755, Driver Assist Pack including high beam and lane assist £295, Safety Pack £115, SEAT Sound System £250, Adaptive Cruise Control and front assist £500, space saver £95 and Dynamic custom paint £695).
Last month at a glance: Not a teary farewell but the Leon will be missed nonetheless!

Previous reports:
A 280hp Leon arrives, all discussion is on the damn paint
Against racer and hot hatch nemesis the Leon does just fine
Quick and capable yes, but could it be more so?
Slower Cupra battles faster Cupra. Wins. Huh?
Cupra driven by others, verdicts mostly positive
An Anglesey road trip plays to the Leon's many strengths
Others may excite more, but the Leon's hard to fault
Things the Leon could learn from its rivals and its forebears

[Pics: Ben Lowden]

[AdamBingley]

Current Golf R owner:

I didn't even consider the SEAT, the car I was upgrading (if you like) from was a Scirocco 2.0 TSI which was in my opinion a better car, albeit slower than the Leon, specifically talking about build/fit&finish/looks.

The golf R was the only natural upgrade choice, after the annoyance of too much wheel spin exiting corners or setting off that was my main priority.

My other car choice was the M235i which was great to drive but again lacked 4 wheel drive also I thought looked far too similar to a 220d for my liking.

note: I fully understand what your saying about the golf feeling slower at road speeds, in my opinion it feels more like 250HP not 300 I think it needed more torque with a more aggressive throttle map, the quoted 0-60 of 4.5 tricks owners into a false sense of security thinking it could possibly go up against cars such as E92 M3's when in reality once your rolling it just can't.

I think Revo will be getting my hard earned soon for the extra 70 HP + lb/ft!

[GTEYE]

Interesting that there are no pics above of the interior, which is one of its weaker aspects.

I guess as Seat is fairly well down the VAG pecking order, they had to deliberately design a fairly naff looking interior (albeit from decent materials) to maintain the hierarchy of Audi and Volkswagen above it.

It seems the Leon is a decent enough car, but I really struggle these days to see the USP of Seat as a brand, and it kind of looks like VAG struggles as well. Skoda successfully picks up the budget end, Audi and VW pick up the "premium" end, seemingly leaving poor old Seat stuck between a rock and a hard place.

[AlexIT]

GTEYE said:

It seems the Leon is a decent enough car, but I really struggle these days to see the USP of Seat as a brand, and it kind of looks like VAG struggles as well. Skoda successfully picks up the budget end, Audi and VW pick up the "premium" end, seemingly leaving poor old Seat stuck between a rock and a hard place.

I find this point interesting, as I was thinking about this while travelling around in the past weeks.

Over here in my area of Italy, you might find yourself asking the same question about Skodas.
You see quite a good number of Octavia Estates around, but a Fabia is a rare sight, a Yeti not far off and the CityGo totally missing (I have seen only one).
On the other hand you can see a lot of Ibizas and now you start to see many Mk3 Leons; occasionally you also see the Mii (more often than the Up! TBF).
So it seems that the Entry level stage of VAG here is strongly in the hands of Seat.

I was driving in Germany 2 weeks ago and also there the only Skoda which seems very popular is the Octavia, but in this case I must also say that 90% of my driving was on motorways, so most probably smaller cars such as the Fabia might be more present around towns, but despite this I always see a good number of Ibizas.

I think that on the lower scale Seat and Skoda have taken their internal group-leadership depending on the countries. I don't know the sales figures of the 2 brands, but I read recently that Seat seems to be performing quite well -at least far better than in the recent past-.

Regarding the Cupra, I must admit that from a pure look I find it quite uninspiring. I prefer by far the look of the FR models. I had hoped for a little more aggressive design on the Cupra, but manufacturers in general don't seem to agree with me. I would -and will- however consider the Cupra ST in the future, as the understated look goes pretty well along with an Estate.

[Matt Bird]

AdamBingley said:

Current Golf R owner:

I didn't even consider the SEAT, the car I was upgrading (if you like) from was a Scirocco 2.0 TSI which was in my opinion a better car, albeit slower than the Leon, specifically talking about build/fit&finish/looks.

The golf R was the only natural upgrade choice, after the annoyance of too much wheel spin exiting corners or setting off that was my main priority.

My other car choice was the M235i which was great to drive but again lacked 4 wheel drive also I thought looked far too similar to a 220d for my liking.

note: I fully understand what your saying about the golf feeling slower at road speeds, in my opinion it feels more like 250HP not 300 I think it needed more torque with a more aggressive throttle map, the quoted 0-60 of 4.5 tricks owners into a false sense of security thinking it could possibly go up against cars such as E92 M3's when in reality once your rolling it just can't.

I think Revo will be getting my hard earned soon for the extra 70 HP + lb/ft!

Cheers for the insight Adam, interesting to know!

[zeDuffMan]

I'd love to have a go in one. I bet that 81kg weight saving more than makes up for the lost 20hp.

[Matt Bird]

zeDuffMan said:

I'd love to have a go in one. I bet that 81kg weight saving more than makes up for the lost 20hp.

Someone sees the light! All it needs now is a competitive lease deal...

[rllmuk]

Hmm. I think it's telling how little interest this car gets on here - perception is king and despite vast improvements in the interior quality people can't seem to see it. Admittedly a near 30k FWD hatch is never going to be getting PH motivated, especially one from a 'lesser' brand.

I'm a 2 Seat family, one of them being a new shape Leon, but there is no doubt the Golf/A3 is a more 'premium' product to most, despite the underpinnings. I think anyone would take the Golf R over the Cupra if cost wasn't an issue, but it is, so I'm glad the Cupra is available. It is also vastly cheaper once discounts are taken in to account, and the standard spec. is enviable. Should be some good 2nd hand bargains too (hopefully of the ST!)

Now Seat, get a Cupra R on the way please...

[JackReacher]

rllmuk said:

Hmm. I think it's telling how little interest this car gets on here - perception is king and despite vast improvements in the interior quality people can't seem to see it. Admittedly a near 30k FWD hatch is never going to be getting PH motivated, especially one from a 'lesser' brand.

Yes that's it, vast majority of the public just want a car with a decent badge, even on PH there is a fair amount of badge snobery and love of soft plastics. Hence sales of Audi/BMW/Merc/VW rocket compared to the Ford/Vauxhall/Seats etc. The demand for the "premium" brands keeps residuals good and hence PCP and lease deals cheap, only fueling the desire for them. No surprise that the southern European countries where Seat does better, are also places that judge you less on the car you drive, unlike UK and Germany.

[Msportman]

I'd consider this car except for the fact that both the Golf R and Cupra share the same engine and my plan was to buy the car and go straight to stage 2 tuning upgrade from APR.
This will give 400bhp and only 4WD will cope with these levels
of power. A 2WD car even with a tricky electronic diff would not cope. A race car set up for track would use a plate diff, sticky rubber and would be horrible for the road. It would be power wasted. Even the Edition 30 running stage 2+ struggled even with a Quaiffe diff to deploy these levels of power. This unit is very tuneable hence for me choosing this over say an older C63 or RS4 or V8 M3 makes sense and would give the new M4 a hard time on a wet twisty road!