Seat Leon Cup Racer - An Off-The-Shelf Touring Car (Part 2)

It weighs 1,120kg, and the interior is naked, with just a smear of carbon fibre here and there. Flick the metal floor, and it plinks. It’s a little echo chamber in here and – in the Spanish heat in which we find ourselves for this test – a torture chamber. The transmission whines and whirrs and bores right into your skull. It’s a classic touring-car noise, straight from the onboard footage familiar to tin-top racing fans. From outside, it’s all metallic and angry, with venomous spits when you come off the power and a cackling cough as the ’box bites into the next gear.

From outside, it’s all metallic and angry, with venomous spits when you come off the power and a cackling cough as the ’box bites into the next gear

The steering is fairly light, even at garage-exit speed. And the ride is soft enough to feel a slight tip as you press the brakes, with a whiff of roll as it turns into a corner – nothing compared to the weighty lollop of a road car, but enough to let you know what the car is doing, or what it intends to do. Of course, you could wind up the springs and firm up the dampers, but it’s unlikely that it’ll slap you around the face. Provided you warm up the slicks.

The Seat motorsport crew has given us a set of short gear ratios for this mediumly fast and twisty circuit at Castellolí, north-west of Barcelona. Which means that short-shifting is the order of the day. Tug the lever. Full throttle. Whoosh. Shift again. Whoosh. Ride that turbo. It’s fast but not terrifying, and there’s a full aero kit to help sucker it down along the straights. Otherwise, it’s all about the mechanical grip; after a few laps you feel the tyres chewing harder into the road (it’s front-wheel-drive), the rubber warming like putty in hot hands.

And the ride is soft enough to feel a slight tip as you press the brakes, with a whiff of roll as it turns into a corner

This sequential version is a shade under $152,000. A DSG-equipped car is $120,000 – about the same price as some track-day specials. A BAC Mono, for example, will set you back over $160,000. The Cup Racer looks like decent value next to that. Alright, so you’ll have to tow it to the circuit, but with the 20 grand you’d save by going for the cheaper gearbox, you could buy another Leon. With a diesel engine. To which you could attach a trailer…

The Cup Racer looks like decent value next to that.

Verdict

·         An off-the-sheft touring car in which to humiliate track-day mortals

·         And with flappy paddles fitted, it’s not just for the pros…