Wednesday 15th November 2017

PH Footnote: Why the Cupra R costs so much

SEAT has launched the most powerful Leon ever - but that's not the only reason for its £35K price tag

---

If you want a measure of how deadly serious SEAT is about its Cupra brand, then you only need to consider the size of the price tag attached to its latest model, the limited-edition R. For a scant 10hp more than standard, a whiff more camber at the front and some additional styling confetti, Martorell has heaved almost £5,000 onto the Leon's starting price.

More than just a expensive hot hatch...

At £34,995, the new model is around £1,600 more expensive than a standard five-door Golf R - arguably the definitive hot hatch of the decade, and a beneficiary not only of four-wheel drive but also the hallowed Volkswagen badge. Of course there's slightly more to that figure than first glance suggests (the most expensive Leon is very well equipped, the Golf less so) but SEAT's unusually ambitious pricing could hardly be more pointed.

If the manufacturer is intent on making Cupra work as a performance sub-brand - a strategic move apparently penciled in for next year's Geneva show - it needs reassuring that people are sufficiently excited by the badge to pay a hefty premium for a car wearing it. Which makes the R less interesting as the most powerful Leon yet built, and more intriguing as a test balloon for what is still to come.

The logic of separating Cupra out from SEAT is well-worn. After decades of loss-making, its parent is at long last in the black - but owes a good part of its success to being fiercely competitive on price with its mainstream rivals. Until recently, this characteristic extended to its hot hatches: the front-drive Leon typically ranking as more powerful than the equivalent Golf GTI - and several thousand pounds cheaper.

Recently, the power advantage has grown (the standard Cupra is over 50hp more fiery than a Performance grade GTI) and the price gap closed. With the R, Martorell has tentatively advanced the notion that the Leon can be made more expensive than even Wolfsburg's hot hatches - albeit cloaked in the exclusivity of a low volume production run (just 24 examples of the range-topper will be coming to the UK).

Expect more from this badge soon

SEAT will need this idea to take hold. "In the past SEAT has been one dimensional. Cupra gives us the opportunity to have another dimension," remarked CEO Luca de Meo at Frankfurt. Given that the Leon is the only model currently badged Cupra, that suggests the spin-off will incorporate more than just hot hatches. A Cupra-badged version of the Ateca is certainly already in the works, and Martorell has recently trademarked Tango, Salsa and Bolero - all previously concept cars.

This suggests that 'Cupra' - also registered with a ferocious new badge - might sustain standalone models in the same way that Polestar is intending to. If so, that'll be for down the line. For now, SEAT could do with its test case model selling out immediately. And for every buyer eschewing a Golf R for the most expensive, powerful Leon ever, expect a Martorell-based executive to be turning cartwheels. 

[Source: Autocar]

[bobmcgod]

So Cupra is going to be to SEAT what Abarth is to Fiat?

[Nickp82]

£34,995 seems a bargain now we know it takes you to another dimension - where do I sign?

[GTEYE]

I'm not really convinced that either the Seat or Cupra "brands" are quite strong enough to warrant this.

The article does smack slightly of desperation in trying to justify the clearly ridiculous price....

[Ultrafunkula]

It's going to have to be quicker than the Clubsport S or Civic Type R around the ring to justify that price, I think SEAT should be going in a different direction with the CUPRA badge.

[andrewparker]

Yeah, good luck with that.

[hondansx]

I don't get it.

[Fetchez la vache]

Seat's Tango and Salsa concepts were very promising back in the day (must be something like 2000!). If they can create halo stand alone products maybe it could work, but I can't see it succeeding by solely producing limited editions of existing Seat products - e.g. this Leon, however "in" copper looking bits are.

[IanCress]

"There will be a Cupra badged version of the Ateca"

Sounds more like they're going to water the badge down, rather than make it work as a hardcore sub-brand.

[toon10]

So is this more expensive than an M140i?

[culpz]

Nickp82 said:

£34,995 seems a bargain now we know it takes you to another dimension - where do I sign?

The price isn't even the worst bit for me, it's the dilution of the badge. The Cupra R moniker used to mean something. It translated to a significantly better product than the Cupra, which this does not appear to be.

It may turn out to be good to drive, but the R letter now represents an uglier and overpriced version than the model below, which it is supposed to be the complete opposite of.

[loudlashadjuster]

Stop saying Martorell.

[Trophy-GTA]

This article seems like PH is trying to justify the price on behalf of their masters at VAG.

[anonymous-user]

The Crack Fox said:

Cupra is not a brand. It's a badge. It's a cheap Volkswagen. It means nothing and I'm not sure anyone cares.

My sentiments exactly. What exactly is the point in Seat??

[Jonny TVR]

I know the cost of cars has increased since 2004 but I remember my new Cupra in 2004 costing just under £18K. I got it as the Golf equivalent was considerably more than this. The other option at the time for similar money was a Honda type R but that was only a 3 door.

[Ultrafunkula]

dme123 said:

My sentiments exactly. What exactly is the point in Seat??

If VAG had any sense they'd place it more as a German version of Ford. The sports models could inject some pizzazz into the VAG lineup, go a bit crazy with the aero and arches, a bit of noise etc. Right now it's just cut price VW.

[LG9k]

As we know, list prices are pretty meaningless. The discounted price is more relevant, and I'd wager you'll get more off a SEAT than you will a VW.

Then there's the PCP/Lease pricing can of worms to think about.

[Jonny TVR]

LG9k said:

As we know, list prices are pretty meaningless. The discounted price is more relevant, and I'd wager you'll get more off a SEAT than you will a VW.

Then there's the PCP/Lease pricing can of worms to think about.

Probably true but the max you could ever expect I would think is 18% if it was dealer and manufacturer supported. It would have to be a model they really wanted to shift. This is a new model so you are unlikely to get much of a discount I would have thought.

[WCZ]

bizarre article, made absolutely no sense - one of the worst I've read on PH for ages.

[Uncle Ron]

Someone from Seat been on the phone clearly. They cocked the product up. They should have taken the back seats out, that usually adds around £5k to the price! On a serious note it needed more content change.

[ghost83]

If there's only 24 I don't see it been discounted and considering you can easily get 5k off a golf r it puts the seat on the back foot!

I don't see the point tbh I wouldn't have one either and I'm more than happy with my "cheaper" golf gti