Friday 25th February 2011

PH Fleet Update: SEAT Leon Cupra R

It's a case of weeping washers and whooshing woofers for RacingPete

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For the past 17 years I have been sticking little bits of silicone into my eyes so that I can see properly - it certainly aids in avoiding the walls in the office. Likewise, making sure I can see out the front of our long-term SEAT Leon Cupra R is pretty important. So after a week of watching the windscreen washer light flash to take action, I decided to fill up the reservoir tank.

As I stood on a chilly garage forecourt refilling the washer fluid, casually considering my next B-road attack, a pool of water gathered around my feet and, as I looked under the car, I saw a torrent of water pouring from underneath. Time to phone the local SEAT dealer.

The helpful dealership in Hampton booked the car in for the next day and I dropped it off for them to have a look at what had caused the Leon's incontinence. Within an hour they had phoned back having found that the pipe to the tank had fallen off and replaced it. Before my tenure, this Cupra press car had spent its time being sorely tested by motoring hacks, and jumping off kerbs around UK race tracks had worked the pipe loose.

A full valet inside out and a statement of work with a big fat zero cost on the bottom gets the thumbs up from me for SEAT after-sales care. I'm hoping I don't have to visit the dealers too quickly again with the car, but I know it will be a pleasant experience if I do.

Since my last long-term piece, I have also been doing further research on the controversial engine cockpit noise amplifier that caused a bit of a stir last time. From the deepest corridors of power at SEAT, I have unearthed a diagram (see right) of how the speakers are mounted in the car.

The blurb from the marketing guy explains: "The structure-borne sound system fitted to Leon and Ibiza Cupras (including Bocanegra) is essentially a sub-woofer bolted and bonded to the inside of the scuttle under the windscreen. It is activated by a control unit, which constantly looks at engine load, throttle position and vehicle speed to increase or decrease the 'noise and vibration' through the body, depending on the driver 'request'.

"This system does not play engine noise, etc, but rather gives the actual engine noise a depth and tone that cannot be achieved mechanically without affecting vehicle emissions and noise constraints.

A few colleagues have been keen to hear how this all works and, after a few spirited drives, it is getting a mixed reaction (Or is that just your driving, Pete? - Ed). I still maintain it is a little false in high gears, but others have been impressed and to be fair it is starting to grow on me. Though I have found the ultimate solution to the sound problem.

On a recent load-carrying trip to the tip, I had to have the rear seats down and the parcel shelf off. Slightly addicted to the 2.0-litre turbo's apparently exponential acceleration, I left the foot in for a little while longer than strictly necessary, and a gorgeous whoosh took me by surprise. Repeating the exercise, the same gorgeous noise from the back of the car filled the cabin.

So if you happen to see a Cupra R with its rear seats on the floor, it isn't to lower the centre of gravity to drop seconds from your 'Ring time (as some in the forum would believe). It is so that its driver can hear that exhaust breathing from the back of the car. Though my eyesight requires some artificial help, I hope my hearing doesn't anytime soon - as I am starting to really enjoy the R and the noises it makes.

It will be fascinating to hear what our competition winners think when they take the car to Geneva next week. Should be a fun trip, that!

[Crusoe]

No thanks, one step up from one of these fitted as standard http://www.turbowhistler.net/

[Moley RUFC]

Crusoe said:

No thanks, one step up from one of these fitted as standard http://www.turbowhistler.net/

That is pretty grim

[TobesH]

Crusoe said:

No thanks, one step up from one of these fitted as standard http://www.turbowhistler.net/

That's fantastic! I'll fit it to my gf's KA!

[BILL PAYER]

Seems to me these engine noise amplifiers are the adult version of a peg and a fag packet stuck in the back wheel of a kids push bike

[CliveM]

Sorry - but that's pathetic.
To accept a manufacturer putting speakers in a car to make an engine noise sems to me to be the aural equivalent of Ferrari selling cheap bodykits for an MR2 and PH saying they seem good value.

[Chris-R]

CliveM said:

Sorry - but that's pathetic.
To accept a manufacturer putting speakers in a car to make an engine noise sems to me to be the aural equivalent of Ferrari selling cheap bodykits for an MR2 and PH saying they seem good value.

All engine noises are 'engineered' one way or another these days, and exotic supercar soundtracks more than most. Can a line be so easily drawn between what's acceptable and what's 'fraudulent'?

(That's a question, not a statement!)

[iain1970]

If it's the ruination of an otherwise acceptable car, just unplug it.

[Joebristolgym]

My mate has a Focus ST and I think his has a pipe that goes from engine bay to behind the dash for a similar reason to this one - to get more engine sound into the cabin of the car.

Guessing it's to get around noise emissions, but seems a bit false to me.

[louismchuge]

They replaced a hose that had fallen off? Why not attach it again?

Tuning an exhaust and intake for engine noise is one thing, falsely amplifying it into the cabin is another

[ocdgeek]

louismchuge said:

They replaced a hose that had fallen off? Why not attach it again?

Tuning an exhaust and intake for engine noise is one thing, falsely amplifying it into the cabin is another

I'm guessing because it had fallen off - i.e. become completely detached from the car and was absent, lying on a piece of tarmac somewhere.

[Mark Wibble]

Joebristolgym said:

My mate has a Focus ST and I think his has a pipe that goes from engine bay to behind the dash for a similar reason to this one - to get more engine sound into the cabin of the car.

Yep that's right. I didn't know about it and found it had come partially disconnected... what's really embarrassing is that I thought it might be inlet-related and having reconnected it I was convinced the car was faster! LOL

At least the ST version is simple. Having a specific bit of audio equipment to do something similar... I think that's a bit OTT.

In principle it's all totally unnecessary- with people where sound matters, they'll probably get a louder exhaust fitted anyway. That said, I leave my sound pipe thingy connected, so maybe they work well enough as far as the manufacturers are concerned...

[BBS-LM]

Crusoe said:

No thanks, one step up from one of these fitted as standard http://www.turbowhistler.net/

hahahaha, just what I was thinking. What a stupid idea.

[Crusoe]

TobesH said:

Crusoe said:

No thanks, one step up from one of these fitted as standard http://www.turbowhistler.net/

That's fantastic! I'll fit it to my gf's KA!

Wonders what four on the back of the m3 would sound like....

[Steve vRS]

Crusoe said:

Wonders what four on the back of the m3 would sound like....

TobesH said:

That's fantastic! I'll fit it to my gf's KA!

Like 4 Kas.

Steve

[P4ROT]

Mark Wibble said:

Joebristolgym said:

My mate has a Focus ST and I think his has a pipe that goes from engine bay to behind the dash for a similar reason to this one - to get more engine sound into the cabin of the car.

Yep that's right. I didn't know about it and found it had come partially disconnected... what's really embarrassing is that I thought it might be inlet-related and having reconnected it I was convinced the car was faster! LOL

At least the ST version is simple. Having a specific bit of audio equipment to do something similar... I think that's a bit OTT.

In principle it's all totally unnecessary- with people where sound matters, they'll probably get a louder exhaust fitted anyway. That said, I leave my sound pipe thingy connected, so maybe they work well enough as far as the manufacturers are concerned...

I think R53 cooper s works and R56 cooper s has the same sort of thing from engine bay to the back of dashboard- I dnt see a problem with these kind of things as long as the end result is good

[DexterBerkeley]

I'm with you on putting the back seats down. I used to run a TFSI FR and I did a similar trip to the tip, but did't put the seats back up afterwards. Got my foot down of a particularly nice roundabout exit on the way to work the next day and thought their might be something wrong with the car to start with. Quickly figured out what was up and never made it beyond 4th that day

[Martin_Hx]

Sound amplifier, put your window down ! If its raining pfft, wind deflectors are handy for that

[Crow555]

Joebristolgym said:

My mate has a Focus ST and I think his has a pipe that goes from engine bay to behind the dash for a similar reason to this one - to get more engine sound into the cabin of the car.

Guessing it's to get around noise emissions, but seems a bit false to me.

The 2.0 Litre sport MX-5 has a similar system, really don't know what to think of it myself.

[southpaw]

Racing Pete said:

So if you happen to see a Cupra R with its rear seats on the floor, it isn't to lower the centre of gravity to drop seconds from your 'Ring time (as some in the forum would believe).

Its not to lower the centre of gravity, it makes the back seats weigh less because the weight is spread out more, duh

[mainaman]

If you didn't know,you would have never guessed that something was ''amplifying'' the engine noise in the cabin.It works well,enhances the driving experience and as already mentioned,it is widely used in many other contemporary performance cars.