We like a Q-car but the Cupra takes the concept a little far and looks a bit, well, dull. Given the firepower and tech, and memories of older hot SEATs, both inside and out this new one looks a bit like a dowdy Audi. The Golf GTI gets its plaid seat trim and S3s the crisp modernist interior design but the SEAT seems almost deliberately downplayed.
Slippy track perfect for comparing slippy diffs
This extends to the driving experience too, at least initially. On the road the steering's springy weighting, the light-action gearshift, diesel-like power delivery and grabby brakes are all very much standard fare for equivalent cars from The Group.
Previous experience of the VAQ 'diff' suggests need to power through initial understeer to wake it up and let it distribute torque to where it's needed. Still not sure how it works? Read this! You really need to switch the ESC off to let it do its thing - it's a bit of a faff through the touchscreen menus but possible - and then remain stubborn on the throttle. It's counter intuitive and demands you MTFU but the effect is dramatic and in the dry it feels like the front wheels are clawing chunks out of the tarmac as the nose of the car is pulled back into the turn.
SEAT can be provoked into some decent angles
Cushy in the Comfort setting, this and the more sophisticated multi-link rear axle - the Megane has a simpler twist beam - mean the Cupra feels more planted to the road which may or may not be a good thing depending on your tastes. Certainly the SEAT needs a lot more provocation than the Renault to bring the rear end into the equation, at least until a sudden summer downpour transform's Bedford's tarmac from grippy to slippy.
Finally the SEAT's wild side gets a moment to shine and on the devilishly fast, and now devilishly slippery, left-right at the back of the course trailed brakes let you rotate it into the corner and then exploit the clever torque distribution across the front axle pull you out of it. It takes some bottle and rather brutal inputs but the Leon responds in kind and finds impressive traction out of the corners despite the puddles and slippery painted kerbs.
Leon's a plusher car on bumpy B-roads
There remain inconsistent interventions from the ESC though, even having gone through the 'are you really sure?' warnings when turning it off. Sometimes it'll let you ride out a slide under power, sometimes it'll grab a wheel here or there in an attempt to take over. Scrappy fights over who's in control of the situation can ensue, ruining the flow when it does happen.
With peak torque from 1,750rpm rather than the Megane's 3,000rpm the power delivery feels snappier, despite being 10lb ft down. Unfortunately this and the grabby brake pedal make it harder to modulate in these knife-edge conditions, the sudden reactions from both pedals too often unsettling the chassis rather than balancing it like you can in the Megane. It's a blunt tool but an effective one and though there's no figuring today the SEAT feels consistently just a little faster, if perhaps not quite as fun.
Leon Cupra Bedford lap