GTi overthrows Seat of power
I’m hammering along through the soggy Welsh countryside in a Seat Leon Cupra 280. The Leon is our benchmark; the hot hatch we don’t think has yet been bettered by any direct rival.
In Alor Blue the Cupra looks electric. There’s an anger; a purpose to its lines that really comes out fighting in this colour.
Good lord, the Leon is quick. Keep your foot down and shift anywhere near 6,500rpm for relentless pace that crushes the speed limit like an elephant squashing a snail.
The “enhanced” noise in Sport and Cupra driving modes does no favours (the Peugeot 308 GTI’s equivalent is even worse), but keep the revs up and it’s truly mega across difficult roads. It’s also impressive around town.
There’s a consistency and smoothness to the controls, a tight and accurate gearbox, and, in Comfort mode, a plush ride that’ll make you forget you’re driving a proper sports car-baiter.
Peugeot’s 308 GTi 270 and Seat’s Leon Cupra 280 are the two hottest hatches around.
The 308 is just as gorgeous; a prettier and shapelier kind of stunning than the Leon but one that carries the same intent.
Warming it up through town, though, it’s not quite as well resolved.
The clutch is springier and less consistent, and the gear lever has further to travel across a slacker ‘box. Although the lever, topped by a bulky and oddly-shaped grip, is feather-light across the gate it’s at odds with the rest of the controls.
No complaints about the suspension, though. It’s firmer than the Leon’s Comfort mode but it’s superbly damped; never crashy and beautifully controlled over manhole covers.
It’s suppler than the harder modes in the 280 at low speed. As the road opens up the GTi does the same, smacking you in the face with a swell of “wherethe-hell-did-that-come-from?”.
A crispness about the 2.0litre Leon’s off-boost throttle response makes you expect the torque when it comes, but the 1.6-litre 308’s softer delivery belies a huge midrange. It’s mightier, even, than the Leon’s, which back-to-back feels a bit flat and needs more revs to surpass the 308’s sudden surge of speed.
In wet corner exits there’s a world of difference. The linear and predictable Leon uses faster steering to attack the apex more cleanly but it ultimately struggles for exit traction, while the 308, fuzzier and less precise at first, ultimately goes berserk.
Get on the throttle hard and its mechanical Torsen differential yanks at the wheel in the direction you’re turning.
Stay hard on the power and god only knows where it finds the grip through its staggering Michelin Pilot Super Sport tyres.
The Leon is ultimately the happier at high speed on this trickiest of roads, bypassing the big numbers easier and with greater composure. It’s the better car, with talents that extend to higher and lower speeds than the 308’s sweet spot. The GTi’s playfulness at a canter becomes its weakness at full gallop.
It’s so active, so busy and so demanding at full chat on such rough roads that you just have Price: From £28,210 (£30,990 as tested) Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo petrol producing 276bhp and 258lb/ft Transmission: Six-speed manual driving the front wheels Performance: Top speed 155mph, 0-62mph in 5.9 seconds Fuel Economy: 42.2mpg (26.4mpg on test) Emissions:
put them head to head
156g/km Price: From £28,155 (£29,570 as tested) Engine: 1.6-litre four-cylinder turbo petrol producing 268bhp and 243lb/ft Transmission: Six-speed manual driving the front wheels Performance: Top speed 155mph, 0-62mph in 6.0 seconds Fuel Economy: 47.1mpg (24.5mpg on test) Emissions:
139g/km to dial it back and go slower for safety’s sake.
The Leon is more capable and overall is quicker today, but which is more exciting? That’s the Peugeot.