SEAT Leon MK2 Cupra R 2010

Jimbobcook

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Make – SEAT

Model – Leon

Sub Model – Cupra R

Year – 2010

Engine – 2ltr

Colour – Speed Blue

Power – 265 BHP / 258 ft-lb


Before I start I would like to let you know that I am far from a professional reviewer so below is a real human (sober) review of day to day events and general thoughts along with plenty of rubbish grammer/spelling and lack of technical facts.


I purchased my Cupra R (Shirley) in January of 2018 having loved my previous 2007 Leon TFSI FR, it seems that the MK2 Leon is one of my favourite cars to date due to the solid parts from VW which is then passed over to the not so boring Spanish who made a lovely shape that I think will stand the test of time.



I got the car stock as far as I could tell and it looked like it had been well looked after, currently on 34,000 miles with a full SEAT service history. After purchasing I had the dreaded long journey home listening for any noises that may cost me money but all seemed well, the journey very quickly turned from a casual drive to testing out what I had bought.

Performance:

The 2ltr engine produces a smile making 265 BHP and 258 ft-lb of torque and a 0-60mph time of 6.2 seconds, which in non-technical terms means you go from stationary to needing new pants quicker than you can drink a pint of beer. I have recently driven a 2015 Golf R (300) which admittedly felt more refined with regards to acceleration but my Cupra R feels more savage in its power delivery which in my mind makes it more of an experience, which in turn makes me happy. I find that now the car is 8 years old that the engine sounds a little loud, but I'm sure that's to do with either the lack/poor design of the sound insulation or I need to get the car in for a Terraclean to see if I can clean it out a little.

When moving from a standstill I find that 1st and 2nd are pretty much just there to see you to 40 then once 3rd kicks in you are all good to speeds that should only be done on the Autobhan (it's fun).



Brakes:

Normally brakes wouldn’t get their own section but I find that these brakes are worth it, the standard option are 345mm vented discs, it took some getting used to as once pressed you get a very sharp jolt to let you know that the brakes are doing their job, but I find that once over that first press you don’t get much feedback for further pressing like it was all or nothing from the beginning. Also, worth noting that getting in a normal car afterwards makes it feel like you’ll never stop in time, the time in my partners fiesta has been entertaining to say the least.

Goodies:

With the R’s on the MK2 they added more stuff as they went on, as mine is the first model I got Heated folding mirrors, tinted windows, black Potenza alloys, short shift Cupra gear stick, Bluetooth module for the RNS 310, full leather seats, Bi-Xenon headlights.



Styling:

I’ve been a fan of the MK2 Leon for quite some time now and the Cupra R in Speed Blue was too good to let go. My Cupra R came with 19-inch 5 twin spoke Potenza alloys in black, I’ve found that if these wheels get stone chipped it’s quite obvious and as such I have had to touch one wheel up already. It’s good to see the R badge front and centre on the front grill and then again on the back, it shows off the brand but not going over the top, since buying the car I have added the Cupra badge on the front bumper which definitely adds to the looks. The exterior of the car doesn’t have many issues in my personal taste but they could have fitted a shark fin antenna and front splitter to greatly improve the look.





Interior:

This is the SEAT’s downfall in my eyes, everything on the centre console looks almost lost in the vast space available. No boost gauges to be seen, fancy pedals with the R badge on or a glove box that can fit more than the service manual, half a bag of Aldi Juicy sweets and the ODBEleven dongle… But what they did put in was some bloody nice seats! I’m normally not a fan of full leather as my body seems to run hot so leather makes me sweat a lot on long journeys but with these I have been most comfortable, they keep even the skinny lanky guys like me in position. Then when you look at the back of them you get possibly the most annoying (to keep clean) Gloss black plastic rear, which when cleaned properly looks like a mirror and gives the car that extra race car feel until someone puts a scratch in the plastic… It’s almost like curbing your alloys when you see it. One final downside is the lack of factory fitted arm rests for the front, surely this is billy basics for any car of this price range.





Going into the back I’m happy to say that being a 6ft 2 guy I don’t normally fit very well in the back of hatchbacks so when I sat behind the driver’s seat which is setup for me I could fit easily and swing my knees around, this is a big win knowing that I do give people lifts and I know I no longer need to move my seat forward to get them in. Also, the leather flows across all 3 seats and even onto the door trims… mmmm nice!





Going further back into the boot is also a nice sight as the boot is pretty big with 341 litres (thanks Google) of space, again in human terms that’s about 5 big Tesco bags for life, 2 crates of beer and my goodie holder with screen wash etc inside. Also located in the boot on the left is a little netted cubby hole which I am yet to find a use for apart from the cd case for the Sat Nav.

 

Jimbobcook

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Stereo/NAV:

As my R was one of the earlier MK2 R models I got the RNS 310 which seems to do the job… just. It has Full UK and Europe maps that is shown on an old school 2D map, along with traffic updates which you can change the route automatically with reports coming in and also do the usual gubbins apart from I cannot seem to be able to set a postcode and then a house number, even after the fun of updating the device it’s still not the greatest Sat Nav for the best car SEAT had out at the time.



Next issue would be the Bluetooth module which it seems was an added extra for this 310, phone calls etc work fine but you are unable to stream music from your phone or change tracks using the voice button on the steering wheel. This personally doesn’t bother me as much as I use an iPod (using an eBay cable to enable it in MDI) but I can see this being an issue for some in this streaming era.



As for the sound I feel a little bias as I previously had the new style Focus with the upgraded Sony system which had a sub built into the spare wheel, so most older system will sound poor in comparison so it’s possible that the quality is satisfactory to most, you get 2 speakers in each door (mid and tweeter). I see most people on this site have changed from the standard units to either the later RNS 510 or a custom Android device and then added an amp etc. The base has to be cranked up to recognise it and no matter how I change the treble it still seems tinny. Not great, but I’ve heard worse.

On the RNS 310 you get the usual FM/AM radio (mine didn't come with DAB), Sat Nav, Traffic reports, Media (CD, Bluetooth, AUX, MDI) and phone functions. The setup doesn't give you an amazing amount of options and it seems when ever I change the turn on volume it never saves, along with a phone screen which only seems to work properly when you update the device to the latest firmware. The MDI (iPod for me) is quick to load and streams directly from the device without having to build a database on the stereo, for me this is a big win as I have well over 20k songs on this iPod and my previous car took well over an hour to build it up to start playing. Once the MDI is running the controls work normally from the steering wheel. I have not tried the AUX but one assumes it works as any other AUX does. The CD is a single unit so not 6 CD changers here, it's quiet and pretty quick to load etc with track remembering for when you turn off and back on.

Noise:

With noise being an issue for waking up dogs, sleeping babies or the local hobo I must say this R isn’t very loud at all with the stock exhaust. Once the exhaust has warmed up I find the noise is nice and deep with no real fuss when engine braking so you don’t look like that guy who goes around the roundabout 5 times to hear everything nice and loud, one thing that would make me go for a custom exhaust would be the lack of exhaust pops, the newer cars get DSG farts and I’m missing out!



Costs:

If you don’t like spending money then you probably shouldn’t get this car… (mental note, put this at the top next time) The car takes about £70 to fill up (V-Power) and depending on the journeys will last between 200 and 400 miles. I normally get around 300 miles to a tank with mixed short and long ish trips at the weekend, that may not sound as bad as you think but this car is quite addictive so you find yourself doing unnecessary trips (I’ve done a 3 mile trip for 2 wham bars).

Car tax is always a lovely subject, for this beauty it’s currently £290 a year… Worth it. Being 34 and only having 2 years no claims (company car wiped my 10 previous out) my insurance only came up as £360 which is a bargin!

Daily Running:

Obviously, this car isn’t really designed for the very short trips to the local Tesco or taking kids to school due to the back of the front seats children would probably give you cleaning issues on the gloss plastic, the leather seats would be a benefit for easy wiping of any crumbs etc.

The alloys do stick out a little so parallel parking I try to keep to a minimum, the boot would fit a pram or a full food shop I would imagine but without having a child of my own it’s hard to test. It does however have room for my Samurai umbrella in the boot.

I see this car more of a party piece, clean it, put it in the garage then when you think the time is right give it the full English beans and away you go.



Ride comfort:

Having 19 inch wheels and sporty suspension you would expect a hard ride, you’d be right, but somehow it’s still comfortable. You will need to start avoiding pot holes unless you fancy a nice loud bang, but apart from that it’s much the normal driving just expect some sturdy noises when going up speed bumps and you’ll be fine.

Issues so far:

Currently after nearly 5 months I have only come across minor issues like the standard SEAT find that rattle noise (turns out mine was the rear view mirror), door motors which seem to be poor design and need a quick 15 minute fix with a drill and some WD40. The biggest issue I've had so far is finding a sweet cup to fit in the drinks holder so it doesn’t rattle.

Upgrades:

From what I’ve seen on the forum and my previous mods on my FR these are the sort of items and prices to expect.

Stage 1 map - £300-£500 – This sort of cash should get you to the 300 BHP mark with no other hardware. Winner!

Air intake - £200-£300 – most intakes need you to take off your engine cover for the pipes etc to fit but sounds great and gets your engine more of that yummy oxygen (recommended for Stage 1 but needed for Stage 2)

LED interior upgrade - £15-£30 – Nice and easy to install and gives the interior a nice upgrade

ODBEleven - £60 – This is for the pro version with a dongle, great bit of kit as it acts like a VCDS but a fraction of the cost.

Samuria umbrella - £30 – no need to explain

RNS 310 Update – Free – you need to download and burn a few cd’s but it’s better than paying a garage to do it.

Boost gauge - £30 – seems easy to fit but either takes up room on the A pillar or the right side air vent.

iPod cable (eBay) - £8 - without this cable the iPod will not show or play any music so it is a must unless you have the iPod cable under the front seat.

I hope you have enjoyed this half done/shoddy review but I liked doing it so there!

Maybe it will help a like minded person out when buying one.

Cheers
 

Jimbobcook

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Wow shocked by the amount of detail in this post. Very high quality. Great overview!

Thanks very much, wasn't sure if I was droning on haha I'm not very technical at all but I know my glossy plastic haha

Cheers
 

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Looking forward to seeing it in the flesh at donnington on 8th July (plug)
 

Jimbobcook

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I've got the day before for prep lol hopefully she's going to be on top form!

Should be a fun day!
 

JayClarke

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Apr 18, 2018
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36
Derby
Great review bud.
Such a nice colour and those seats are amazing - may need to get the back of mine sprayed in gloss black :drool:

Look forward to seeing it at Donnington, looks like there'll be a bit of competition for the cleanest car too ;)
 

Jimbobcook

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Great review bud.
Such a nice colour and those seats are amazing - may need to get the back of mine sprayed in gloss black :drool:

Look forward to seeing it at Donnington, looks like there'll be a bit of competition for the cleanest car too ;)
Why would you start a competition like that haha now I'll have to buy the little detailing brushes.

The back of the seats are good till they are scratched then I don't know how to restore it lol
 

JayClarke

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Apr 18, 2018
88
36
Derby
Why would you start a competition like that haha now I'll have to buy the little detailing brushes.

The back of the seats are good till they are scratched then I don't know how to restore it lol

I’ve just seen that post about your seats, have you tried a touch up pen and build up the layers to fill in the scratch, then polish it? That should help take the eye off it if it’s that bad.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Jimbobcook

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I’ve just seen that post about your seats, have you tried a touch up pen and build up the layers to fill in the scratch, then polish it? That should help take the eye off it if it’s that bad.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Yeah I've literally just tried that for a first coat and gloss black touch up isn't as gloss as the seats so I'll have to see what happens with other coats and a polish.

Cheers
 

JayClarke

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Apr 18, 2018
88
36
Derby
Yeah I've literally just tried that for a first coat and gloss black touch up isn't as gloss as the seats so I'll have to see what happens with other coats and a polish.

Cheers

Trying adding a clear coat to it, that should help bring the gloss up - if you haven’t tried that already.


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Jimbobcook

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Trying adding a clear coat to it, that should help bring the gloss up - if you haven’t tried that already.


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That's next on this list, at least it's not a white scratch anymore lol
 
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