New Leon on Fifth Gear

Ol' Timer

Full Member
Jun 20, 2004
873
2
Norfolk
Anybody see the "in depth" review of the New Leon on Fifth Gear tonight – all three minutes of it? Tiff started off by more or less describing it as the forgotten car, although it was a lot cheaper than a Golf, much better looking and felt solid and Golf-like inside but with more room.

He then drove it round the track and complained that they had given him the 1.9 diesel version which was rather noisy and ran out of steam at 4000 revs. The track was really wet but he commented on how effective and unintrusive the ESP was. He then switched it off and did a deliberate 360 degree spin and carried on without stopping. He reckoned the handling and steering were very good and overall gave it a thumbs up but then concluded by saying that it wasn't on anybody's radar as an obvious purchase. And that was the end of the review. :rolleyes:
 

Tallpaul

Full Member
Jul 2, 2005
821
0
JK1 said:
lol, still more than Top Gear have said about it... :(


let's face it. as it stands it is a very forgettable car. A hot version might change that.

The original Leon was exicting because it was BETTER than the Golf and brought a breath of fresh air to the platform. The new one does nothing new that i can see, and the Golf GTI stands as the only version worth talking about (and then only because of the heritage of the GTI badge).
 

Starbank

Full Member
Sep 22, 2005
187
0
Edinburgh
Tallpaul said:
let's face it. as it stands it is a very forgettable car. A hot version might change that.

The original Leon was exicting because it was BETTER than the Golf and brought a breath of fresh air to the platform. The new one does nothing new that i can see, and the Golf GTI stands as the only version worth talking about (and then only because of the heritage of the GTI badge).


Baaaaaah Humbug!

Utter bollox.
 

Tallpaul

Full Member
Jul 2, 2005
821
0
Starbank said:
Baaaaaah Humbug!

Utter bollox.

lol.

an utterly unbiased opinion of course!

i'm sure you and your new car will be immensly happy together.

still don't rate it though!
 

Tell

Full Member
Staff member
Moderator
I wandered over from the Altea site since that is what mine is to say, yes impressive photography when Tiff spun it.

coooo I got dammed on the Altea threads when I rubbished the new Leon before it was out, but that was more to do with the seating. It's great on the drivers side, nice and high so you can get it to feel like the Altea, but on the passenger side it's like any other supermini your sitting low.

You can't beat sitting high up... least when your over 50... the days of motoring with your knees in the air are long over. So if the passenger side had height adjustable seating I might rate it.
 
The thing is that the motoring review shows seem to dislike SEAT as a brand and for some reason I can't fathom they just seem to ignore it. I'm fairly certain that Top Gear never reviewed the LCR (I only ever heard it mentioned once!) and I'll be amazed if they do more than merely mention on their news section when the Mk2 Leon Cupra comes out.

I don't get it :confused:
 

andycupra

status subject to change
GreyKnight said:
The thing is that the motoring review shows seem to dislike SEAT as a brand and for some reason I can't fathom they just seem to ignore it. I'm fairly certain that Top Gear never reviewed the LCR (I only ever heard it mentioned once!) and I'll be amazed if they do more than merely mention on their news section when the Mk2 Leon Cupra comes out.

I don't get it :confused:

while id have liked them to have reviewed the leon...

you do need to think, exactly how many cars that are for anyone earning less than £500,000 a year did they actually review.
not that many!
the shows great, but its a bit pointless if your expecting feedback on your next car.

seems there is a total lack of quality tv concerning cars for 99% of us.
 
They review the top of the range cars from most of the regular brands quite often. Subaru Imprezza, Mitsubishi Evo, Honda Civic Type R, Renault Megane 225, Renault Clio 182, VW Golf GTi, Alfa Romeo 147GTA, Skoda Fabia vRS, Mini Cooper S, Ford Focus RS, Ford Fiesta ST, Ford Focus ST etc etc. All of these have had proper coverage on Top Gear, so why not the SEAT equivalents?
 

Tallpaul

Full Member
Jul 2, 2005
821
0
Top Gear Magazine, or indeed any of the other mainstream motoring magazines are the places to look for reviews of 'ordinary' cars (lets face it, the Leon is just a family hatchback).

Personnaly i watch the TV shows to see the cars i can't afford get thrashed round a track etc etc. What's particularly new or exciting about the Leon that has the mass appeal? TV shows are all about RATINGS.

Anything obtainable i like, i'll just go and test drive... if i like it, there are more than enough forums like sc.net to trawl through to find out what the salesman won't tell you!
 

Bunglebonce

Bunglebonce
Jan 21, 2005
247
0
The Blackcountry
When I first saw a photo of the new Leon I thought - Hmm it looks ok.
Not as aggressive looking as the old one, but as a car in its own right , I quite liked it as it looks a bit like a 147 - which I've always liked.

However, having walked round one in the flesh the other day in a showroom my "personal" opinion was that it looked to round and peoplecarriery.

The photos make it look more squat and sporty than it actually is and with this I came to the conclusion that if I was in the market for a car now rather than six months ago, I wouldn’t buy a Leon. :(

Will be interested to see what the Cupra looks like though as the touring car pics on the main page of this site, give me the impression that I may change my views when its all sported up :)
 

Starbank

Full Member
Sep 22, 2005
187
0
Edinburgh
Tallpaul said:
lol.

an utterly unbiased opinion of course!

i'm sure you and your new car will be immensly happy together.

still don't rate it though!


Just a bit biased!

The comments about it looking a bit peoplecarrier like - PERSONALLY I think the lower sports suspension really helps!
 

Triple D

Guest
GreyKnight said:
The thing is that the motoring review shows seem to dislike SEAT as a brand and for some reason I can't fathom they just seem to ignore it. I'm fairly certain that Top Gear never reviewed the LCR (I only ever heard it mentioned once!) and I'll be amazed if they do more than merely mention on their news section when the Mk2 Leon Cupra comes out.

I don't get it :confused:
I think someone will have to get in touch with them and let them know that bill's (badger5) ibiza will beat majority of the high performance cars around their test track, maybe they'll take more notice of Seat's then. Also i think they should get rid of the suzuki and have it as ''A star in a Fr'' ibiza or leon.
 

sted

random wierdo
spaniels fr said:
I think someone will have to get in touch with them and let them know that bill's (badger5) ibiza will beat majority of the high performance cars around their test track, maybe they'll take more notice of Seat's then. Also i think they should get rid of the suzuki and have it as ''A star in a Fr'' ibiza or leon.

changing the car invalidates all current times as a bemchmark though. Also rnning a tuned car against a std car is an exercise in futility as if you spent a comparable percentage on a performance car as someone spent modding a seat that would blow it into the weeds.

Seat dont seem to have any PR or an image and until they do they are always going to be obscure and largely ignored by the mainstream press
 

LEO LION R

if you need to ask . . .
Mar 25, 2002
5,653
0
on the edge
GreyKnight said:
They review the top of the range cars from most of the regular brands quite often. Subaru Imprezza, Mitsubishi Evo, Honda Civic Type R, Renault Megane 225, Renault Clio 182, VW Golf GTi, Alfa Romeo 147GTA, Skoda Fabia vRS, Mini Cooper S, Ford Focus RS, Ford Fiesta ST, Ford Focus ST etc etc. All of these have had proper coverage on Top Gear, so why not the SEAT equivalents?


POLITICS [:@]
 
sted said:
changing the car invalidates all current times as a bemchmark though. Also rnning a tuned car against a std car is an exercise in futility as if you spent a comparable percentage on a performance car as someone spent modding a seat that would blow it into the weeds.

Absolutely. A SMART car can be made to out perform a Murcielago if enough cash is pointed at it. Modified cars aren't the cars they are based around any more...
 
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