First verdict on Mk4 SEAT Leon
All-new hatchback impresses with its blend of sporty handling and cutting-edge technology
Spanish hatch completes VW Group’s set of new MQB models Maintains SEAT’s position as a sportier alternative to VW Golf
YOU’RE certainly not stuck for choice if you’re after a fresh-faced family hatchback these days. This year has already brought us the eighth generation of the Volkswagen Golf, and we were impressed recently by the latest incarnations of its sister cars, the Skoda Octavia and Audi A3.
This generational shift within the VW Group means there’s one more model that has to be renewed, and here it is: the Mk4 SEAT Leon.
On paper at least, the premise of the Leon hasn’t changed too much. Within the ‘mainstream’ trio of models (so ignoring the A3), the Golf is premium-centre, the Octavia is focused a little more on practicality, and the Leon is supposed to embody some Latin styling flair, a slightly more focused drive and a little more technology inside. In other words, it’s the car you turn to when everyone in your street has a Golf and you want to stand out with something a little more sporty.
Familiar
Of course, the underpinnings for all of these cars are essentially the same, and that remains unchanged with the new Leon. It sits on the VW Group’s MQB evo platform, so the range of powertrains will seem curiously familiar after the refreshed Golf, Octavia and A3.
The line-up starts with a 1.0-litre threecylinder turbocharged petrol with 109bhp. Then there’s a 1.5-litre unit with either 128bhp or, as tested here, 148bhp, and a 2.0 TSI that has 187bhp – as potent as a petrol Leon can get, before the Cupra Leon hot hatch arrives.
There are also a couple of 2.0-litre diesels, incidentally, with 113bhp or 148bhp, and a plug-in hybrid –a first for the Leon – that features a 1.4-litre petrol engine and can travel up to
38 miles on electric power alone.
All cars get a six-speed manual gearbox as standard but if you choose the automatic on the 1.0 or the 148bhp 1.5, you can add 48-volt mild-hybrid assistance. It’s little more than a belt-driven starter-generator that uses recouped braking energy to assist the engine under acceleration – but it’s also sophisticated enough to allow the car to cut out completely when you’re cruising along.
The 148bhp 1.5 TSI certainly feels punchy enough. With 250Nm of torque, it gets the Leon from 0-62mph in 8.4 seconds, and if you find somewhere suitable, you can reach 137mph. It’s very comfortable in a car of this size, in other words – although we’d be interested to see
“The connection between the car and the road is closer than you’ll find in many other family hatchbacks”