10:02PM - 10.01.'15
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News Source: autoblog.com
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European hot hatch enthusiasts have a lot to like in the latest Seat Leon Cupra. It did, after all, briefly steal the front-drive Nürburgring lap record away from Renault, and packs as much as 280 metric horsepower into its stylishly angular form. But those looking for more utility than the existing three-door or five-door versions can offer will be even more enticed by the reveal of the Leon ST Cupra. The long-roofed version of the Spanish hot hatch adds extra cargo capacity into the mix, but doesn't lose any of the Cupra's go-fast bits along the way. Motivation comes courtesy of a 2.0-liter turbo four channeling 261 horsepower to the front wheels through a six-speed manual transmission for a 0-62 time of 6.2 seconds. Opt for the DSG and that time drops the 6.1 secs. There's a more potent version with 276 hp that also reaches 62 in 6.1 seconds with the manual but drops to 6.0 flat with the DSG. That makes it incrementally more sluggish than the shorter-roofed hatchback version, which will run to 62 in as little as 5.7 seconds (though top speed remains limited to the same 155 miles per hour). In return for a few ticks off the line, though, you get 52 cubic feet of cargo space, which makes us wonder why anyone would need a performance crossover when a hot little wagon like this will get the job done with less fuss. Seat will be revealing the little power wagon at the Geneva Motor Show in March. Now if we could only get one over to the US, or convince parent company Volkswagen to bring over the even hotter Golf R Variant, we'd be all set. |
