difference between fr and cupra ?

BenH

Active Member
Sep 16, 2016
658
31
Nottingham
That would be a downside if I had to pay it ;) although I have a stinking diesel so it's only £30 per year but the lease company pay so that's a bonus
 

BenH

Active Member
Sep 16, 2016
658
31
Nottingham
The FR trim makes the Leon go and handle pretty well for a standard car



*ignores bias name*

I totally agree, the cupra is the speedy speedster, the FR is the daily runner, still quick and solid all round, apart from the rattles, but we won't get into that
 

Perfect_g

Active Member
Jul 24, 2016
132
19
*ignores bias name*

I totally agree, the cupra is the speedy speedster, the FR is the daily runner, still quick and solid all round, apart from the rattles, but we won't get into that



Sorry for the shift of topic - but I am a bit surprised by rattles being brought up on a regular basis. Is it something that is common in the Leon??

I had a rattle in the passenger side back door which the local Seat dealer fixed in less than a hour (noticed it trying to sleep in the passenger seat when the wife were driving). Have not had any other rattles at a bit more than 18k km (and I am "allergic" to even the smallest of rattles so it is not because I am just ignoring them).


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BenH

Active Member
Sep 16, 2016
658
31
Nottingham
Sorry for the shift of topic - but I am a bit surprised by rattles being brought up on a regular basis. Is it something that is common in the Leon??

I had a rattle in the passenger side back door which the local Seat dealer fixed in less than a hour (noticed it trying to sleep in the passenger seat when the wife were driving). Have not had any other rattles at a bit more than 18k km (and I am "allergic" to even the smallest of rattles so it is not because I am just ignoring them).


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Apparently so, mine is coming from the front passenger door card somewhere, considering taking it in but have been ignoring for the time being as it seems intermittent/goes if I give the door a gentle punch
 

romster1

Active Member
Nov 26, 2016
107
6
W London
Ive got the FR 1.8 DSG and extremely happy with it especially after having come from a Honda civic 1.8 vtec. the
 

Lentäjä

Full Member
Jan 19, 2006
503
2
Helsinki, Finland
Here we go again...Cupra owners bashing about how Cupra is so special...but it is not really.
Someone said better interior...like how?
What is different inside...black roof and pillars, different color stiching, nothing else.
Seats are same, if you dont get an optional Cupra buckets.

Engine...yes more power. (1.8tsi is actually pretty much the same engine, shorter stroke version.)
Drivetrain...same if you get 6-spd manual.
DCC...yes...for FR option only...but who would want that since you need coilovers anyway.
Twin exhaust tips...anything else than a visual...no...personally i think they look ****. MK2 with center pipes was way cooler.
Bigger brakes in front with a different hub...better braking performance than 184/180FR...no... just more weight. For better performance, you need to tick option list again.
Bigger rear brakes...yes...again more weight, not really better performance.

Cupra is also a trim level...265 or 280 or 290, not really anything SO special...still just a Leon.
Dont get me wrong...Cupras are very nice cars.
I would have get one, if the price would have been closer to my 180TSI,
but with options the price difference went up to 10000€...not worth it.
My top spec 180TSI 34000€, Cupra280 would have been 45000€.
 

JACUPRA280

Active Member
Jun 18, 2015
932
55
Somewhere
Here we go again...Cupra owners bashing about how Cupra is so special...but it is not really.
Someone said better interior...like how?
What is different inside...black roof and pillars, different color stiching, nothing else.
Seats are same, if you dont get an optional Cupra buckets.

Engine...yes more power. (1.8tsi is actually pretty much the same engine, shorter stroke version.)
Drivetrain...same if you get 6-spd manual.
DCC...yes...for FR option only...but who would want that since you need coilovers anyway.
Twin exhaust tips...anything else than a visual...no...personally i think they look ****. MK2 with center pipes was way cooler.
Bigger brakes in front with a different hub...better braking performance than 184/180FR...no... just more weight. For better performance, you need to tick option list again.
Bigger rear brakes...yes...again more weight, not really better performance.

Cupra is also a trim level...265 or 280 or 290, not really anything SO special...still just a Leon.
Dont get me wrong...Cupras are very nice cars.
I would have get one, if the price would have been closer to my 180TSI,
but with options the price difference went up to 10000€...not worth it.
My top spec 180TSI 34000€, Cupra280 would have been 45000€.

Nobody has bashed FR. FR's are good cars.

Sorry, but Cupra is not a trim level just like a Golf R is not a trim level and an Audi S3 is not a trim level. 265, 280, 290 are distinct performance models. The 265 is no longer in production, the 290 replaced 280.

I answered the OP's question with an accurate answer. FR is a trim level and Cupra is the performance model.

Why is that fact so hard to grasp?
 
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Juicelow

Active Member
Jan 20, 2017
3
0
Hi folks.....newbie here just about to purchase a cupra 300, I have spent a lot of time lately flipping between buying the fr or the cupra...for sure the cupra is a sportier more powerful car, but in the real world daily driving I'm not sure there is a crazy difference in the driving enjoyment. I personally think the fr is a great car and not just a trim level. In the 180 for instance the suspension is lowered, bigger brakes and independent rear axle , so it's not only trim. I've driven both by the way.
At the end of the day I have been seduced by the cupra badge and power and the fear of the niggling thought 'should have bought the cupra' if I buy the fr.
Jeez! What a sucker I am :)
 

BenH

Active Member
Sep 16, 2016
658
31
Nottingham
I agree it's a trim not a super duper model, at the end of the day it's a seat Leon cupra, not just a seat cupra?

Get the car you feel is right, end of. Cupra is a fast, slightly sportier FR. FR has miles better economy, cupra has a lot more power, if I wanted a car that I fill up every 3 days I would of got a cupra, I do 1000 miles+ per month, I got a diesel 184.
 

ggs mk1 fr

Active Member
Jan 9, 2014
43
0
Sheffield
Yeah you are correct fr or cupra
I mean it's not like you can frash the crap out of any of the 2 unless you take either on a race track & they are both nice car's but it all boiles down to what you would like to use it for but saying that each to their own

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JACUPRA280

Active Member
Jun 18, 2015
932
55
Somewhere
Strange then that SEAT's own website lists the Cupra as a trim level along with all the others, as opposed to listing it entirely separately.

giphy-facebook_s.jpg
 

QuietQuackers

Active Member
Feb 14, 2007
276
14
Cheshire
I've had both and the FR is a very nice car and can be quick with a remap or tuning box, but the Cupra is a huge leap on again. Handling, brakes, engine and just how it makes you feel. Fuel economy isn't that bad and is actually fairly good. If you're a petrol head, the FR just won't tick the right boxes once you've driven a Cupra. Well that's how it was for me anyway!
 

Redline

Active Member
Nov 3, 2016
169
30
CUPRA is M / AMG / RS
FR is M kit / AMG Package / S-Line

:)

it's actually harder than expected to find the exact technical differences.
Can anyone throw up a nice comparison chart?
 

Mickle

Active Member
May 25, 2016
30
0
CUPRA is M / AMG / RS
FR is M kit / AMG Package / S-Line

:)

it's actually harder than expected to find the exact technical differences.
Can anyone throw up a nice comparison chart?

I wouldn't really say the FR is alike to an S-Line car or the rest, though I see where you're coming from. You get a lot of kit in an FR compared to the base models, unlike an S-line which is normally just wheels and a body kit.

Having just gone from an FR to a 290 though, the FR as a package is great and such good value, but it didn't have me driving the long way home nearly every day! :worship:
 

Perfect_g

Active Member
Jul 24, 2016
132
19
- I had an C-class AMG for 3 years. I loved that car; it made me smile every time I turned the key (and cry leaving the petrol stations) and I could find myself just driving for the enjoyment of it.

- my friend had a C-class 350 AMG line at the same time which I drove in a couple of times. It was a nice car and I liked it, but it was just not the same.

- shortly after the AMG I got an A4 3.0 tdi Quattro s-line loaded with everything it could be and tuned to 310 hp. I liked it, I really did. I can however not remember having taken it for a drive just for the sake of driving. Ever. Except in snow playing snowplow..

- one of my other friends bought an FR ST this summer. I like it and it's a nice car. I know he likes it. He does however not love it or love driving it. At least I have not heard him once talk about how much he loves to drive it or of just driving around for the sake of it.

- I have a Cupra now and for the first time since the AMG I find myself driving detours on my way home in the evening, and grabbing the keys at odd times of the day for no other reason than driving. I love that car. Why? I can't fully explain it - I could go into a lot of details but individually they just do not add up to why: it just makes me smile.

To me that is the difference between trim levels/sports packages and the performance models. The individual differences can not explain the sum of the change in those rare cases were they manage to get it just right. For me at least, that is the case of the Cupra. And that does not make me cry leaving the petrol station ;)


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