Seat Leon ST Cupra 290
SEAT LEON ST CUPRA 290
(LOVE, DRIVING NIRVANA AND ….)
Words by Alessandro Marrone
Photos by Ilario Villani
I love her! Still, I’m not crazy or at least not for the moment and especially not after having had the obligatory morning coffee. But in the end of this grueling but crazy 2016, I find myself writing a piece on a car that quiet as a mouse has been one of my favorite. It is not a supercar, it has not 700 horses or huge aerodynamic, rather it is also a car suited for the family and front-wheel drive too. Now you will be firmly convinced that I’ve lost the way, but I assure you that when I left the key of this Cupra at the VW HQ for the first and only (so far) time I turned around looking at it, as I walked away sadly. The first and only time that a car has been able to touch me deep inside and not with the strength of fear, with speeds worthy of an interstellar cruiser, but for its ability to do everything that I was asking it, and in the best way possible. During the weeks of testing it has never disappointed me in any respect, and even though its 290 horses have been a source of a consistent number of “green letters” in the mailbox, I do not even regret a moment of those spent together. I was sure that it couldn’t have a soul, but it has one indeed.
In 2016, Cupra is celebrating its first 20 years of activity and does that giving birth to a series of models that have been able to outperform not only the competitors, but also the bigger sister Golf R. In fact, the sedan version of the Leon Cupra seems to be faster than the VW at the ‘Ring, despite having front wheel drive only, instead of the AWD system fitted on the most powerful Golf in the list. Weight matter, question of dynamics, but a front wheel drive with a good mechanical limited slip can do great things. Happy to get my hands on the ST version of this 290hp CUP-RAcing, I immediately feel as it maintains the classic simplicity of the German properties, while Seat makes it clear that there is something special and deliberately prone to sportiness – it is about the huge alloy wheels concealing a braking system able to deal with a mountain pass dive and a chassis that stiffens depending on your wishes. There is no room for frills or aesthetic charms, there is only room for what you need and everything works beautifully. The day before the main shooting morning I sit at the desk with Ilario (Villani, the photographer in charge) and I share with him how I wanted to bring the Leon ST Cupra along some winding road also for testing it properly, in order to understand if it would have been up to the task. We have long studied the map and zoomed where the curves became more insidious and viewing ‘em from above seemed almost the guts of some immense creature. Then, once we found the right place that would allow us to also have a fairly open landscape in order to unleash the cavalry, it was time to start preparing the equipment. Evening came, then night and the Cupra was in the garage sleeping, unaware of what would have expected it the following day (and those after that).
The first lights of dawn accompany us as we head towards a seemingly middle of nowhere spot that unites the Piedmont and Liguria regions – where the hills are beginning to brown and where the smell of mountain roads with hairpin bends and curves that were not sure designed for a front-wheel drive with almost 300 horses. On this battlefield, a rear wheel drive with a reduced wheelbase would be the better choice, the easier to burn both petrol and tires, but today we are struggling with an estate costing about € 35,000, designed for a normal family, with dad having that desire to heavy pounding immediately after leaving his children to school. Plenty of space, the front seats are comfortable but restraint well, rear ones too and the luggage compartment abundantly hosts the photographic equipment. The attention to detail is the one to which we have become accustomed talking about Volkswagen, with everything at hand, a fast and accurate navigation system, an infotainment system up to today’s needs and the 6-speed DSG double-clutch box (also available with a 6-speed manual). I insert the key in the dash and start the engine, once warm I go straight to recall the CUPRA mode, the one that prepares suspension, steering and gas pedal for a sportier driving, move the shift lever to manual, turn off traction control and I put my hands on the steering wheel. Here we go violent on the throttle and the front wheels try in every way to give me the necessary grip to avoid being stopped in an unnecessary cloud of smoke – lightening just enough and it runs forward with the tachometer needle that pinches the rev limiter before I click on the right paddle calling into the game the following gear. Second, third and the straight section already ends, I enter into corners almost as if to try to break down the precise set-up, but it did not even think about losing the control of the situation. I know these roads well and I ask more than I’ve ever done with other cars, the Cupra answers quickly, and you always conveys the confidence that allows you to hold down the throttle, from one curve to the other and especially in the midst of them.
The Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tires are among the best around and in spite of the reduced shoulder and the width of the tread which results in a slight pitch when the road surface is not in perfect condition, you’ve got the best front grip. Slipping slightly to the outside with the inside wheel that receives the optimum power delivery, the lost time is minimal and driving pleasure is almost never affected, resulting in the confirmation we were looking for, the one that states that this Cupra is phenomenal. The DSG is fast and accurate, but the rev scale and the generosity of the turbo allow you not to have to downshift in order to have the right momentum to slingshot yourself towards the next target. We cross a bridge and we throw ourselves headlong down a very driven strip of asphalt, then turn right at the second, and after making sure not to scratch the low front bumper, we climb up for a less civilized road. Strangely the asphalt is smooth, but the pace is lower because the road is narrow and we would not end up in the ditch at the side. We climb effortless and in less than no time we’re at about 1000 meters high, with the 2.0cc that absolutely does not want to give up. Too bad for the dual exhaust at the back, which despite their size are too shy to emit a full bodied sound, regardless of the driving mode you’ve chosen. And then comes the hairpin, that one – there is always a particular hairpin that awakens in us the most primal instinct that makes us immediately go looking for the hand brake lever (which in this case is still old-fashioned). Down a gear, heavy on the gas entering wide, pull the lever and steering hard right – the following moment I free the lever, push on the throttle again counter steering as if there were no tomorrow. As an ice-colored bullet, the Leon is shot towards the horizon, at the frantic search for another test to prove its ability. We stop on the roadside, it’s time to take some other photograph and while I sit nearby, watching the valley, so apparently distant and silent, my look approaches along the road leading up to our Seat, parked and quiet and waiting for Ilario to finish his work, always eager to make us understand that its racing spirit is there as the practical side that it’s able to offer to its master.
The approximately 15 days have passed more or less like this, to confirm that the money spent on petrol are not always thrown away, but invested in our mental and physical wellbeing. Keep in mind the fact that fuel consumption is, all considered, acceptable and that if driven with the transmission in automatic and in comfort mode, you do not find yourself anywhere near the potential that you have under the seat – I do not hide the fact that the Cupra has been one of the best cars that I’ve ever driven. We must analyze the big picture, starting from a distance and calling into question some important factors such as price, components and practicality, aspects that sometimes, especially talking about supercars of hundreds of thousands of Euros, we take for granted or we do not even face and maybe because if you own a McLaren the last thing in your mind is where to fit your weekend luggage. For that, you’ve got other cars. That’s right, this time we have the total package. That’s why the day before bringing it back to VW, I drove accompanied by a beautiful sunset, just where we began to know each other. I parked in the same spot and I observed it in a different way, with the understanding that I was in front of a mature car which is no longer a Series B VW. I spoke to it, I turned around watching as if it was a mid-engined two seater with a horse on the hood, but actually it’s a Seat, well a Cupra – and keep in mind that when you see Cupra 290 written on the tailgate of the car in front of you, it will be better not to make it angry , or you could hurt your ego as it runs away from you. The sun settles behind the hills and everything gets dark, I jump back on board, turn the key and reverse – needless to say that I could not resist: one last time and the Leon agreed too, traction control off and we head down that little corner of intimate paradise as if we were racing against the time. That time that day after day becomes less and less and that thanks to smart cars like this can be experienced with a smile, without sacrificing the convenience that daily life imposes on us. Hello baby, thank you for allowing me to meet you.
SEAT LEON ST CUPRA 290 (2015-)
Layout – front-engined – front wheel drive
Engine – 4 cylinder 1984cc – turbo
Transmission – 6-speed automatic gearbox
Power – 290 hp @ 5600-6500 rpm
350 Nm @ 1750-5600 rpm
Weight – 1466 kg
Acceleration – 6 sec.
Top Speed – 249 kph
Price – from € 35.000