Introducing the PH long-term test car fleet:

Seat Leon Cupra

By Walter Bell / Thursday, 26 July 2007 / Loading comments

Say hello to our long-term test Seat. We’ve opted for the Darth Vader look rather than the typical canary yellow because we felt it suited the dark alloys and reinforced the menace inherent with having 237bhp in a hatchback.

With nearly 8,000 miles on the clock, the Cupra feels nicely run in, and nothing short of superbly quick. You can really feel the benefits of the revised turbo and cylinder head at the top end of a rev range over a Golf GTi. Feed it proper super unleaded and it’s so quick, you realise just how much faster this class of car has got in recent years – and how difficult it is for supposedly grander cars to stay ahead on a decent road.

Fast, grippy and surprisingly frugal

Over the coming months we’ll be taking the Cupra to PH events, trackdays and general hoonage and reporting on it here. If you’re running a Cupra, or an FR for that matter, get in touch and let us know how you’re getting on at

news@pistonheads.com