Unbelievably, yes. Since it first arrived in 2013 with a choice of either 265bhp or 280bhp, Seat killed off the 265bhp version, then boosted it to 290bhp, and sometime after having had a crack at the Nürburgring lap record, messed around with the bumpers, ruined the infotainment and gave us this: the Leon Cupra 300. Go on, guess how much power it’s got?
Is it fast?
Efficiently and effortlessly so. With the six-speed paddleshift gearbox doing the legwork for you, it’ll get from 0-62mph in a claimed 5.8 seconds – but a lot more consistently than you’ll manage the same in a manual Civic Type R, say – and do the standard 155mph all out. As you’re no doubt familiar with this 2.0-litre direct-injection turbo engine from Golf GTI, Golf R, Skoda vRS, Audi and so on, it’ll come as no surprise that there’s very little turbo lag to work around.
So it sounds good too?
Um, no. It sounds flat. There is some audio-massaging going on, but it’s not as warbly as a Golf R or Audi S3. It’s as if Seat (and Skoda) are denied as rorty an engine note as their more premium cousins in an effort to create some clean air between the brands. But it’s not as if the Seat is a bargain – a DSG five-door Cupra is £31,805. That’s north of what the new Type R will cost you, and £2,445 less than a Golf R. Monthly payment-wise, an equally-specced Cupra is £405, and the Golf R is £445. So, one night out fewer a month and you get the VW. But no friends. It’s that close.
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