Seat Ibiza Cupra – grown up hot hatch

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Seat Ibiza Cupra

Given that the Seat Ibiza Cupra shares the same engine and chassis as the VW Polo GTI you would expect a similar drive, however Seat have made their own mark on the Cupra and it is hard to tell that these two cars share 99% of their DNA.

First of all the Cupra is much faster than the Polo, Seat’s engineers have fettled with the Turbo and fuel injection systems to up the power from 148bhp (Polo GTI) to 177bhp and the torque rises from 162lb ft to 181lb ft. So the Cupra is much quicker of the mark and has a more lively feel to the drive. This is borne out by a 0-60mph time of 7.3 seconds and more importantly a 30-70mph time of 7.1 seconds, this is a fast car without doubt. In addition this 4 cylinder 1.8 unit from VW has been soldieing on in one form or another in VW’s and Audi’s for over 20 years and is a well proven and unburstable unit as long as basic maintenance, particularly oil changes has been carried out,just look at all those high mileage Golfs and Audi 80’s still running around!

Somehow the gearbox and brakes seem slicker and stronger than the VW Polo also so it looks like Seat’s engineers have been busy in that department also. It has tobe said however, that compared to cars like the Clio 197 or Ford Fiesta ST, then the Seat trails the leaders of the pack when it comes to handling, although better than the Polo GTI. Driven in isolation this is still a sharp handling car with accurate steering and sharp handling but the ride comfort is poor with the Ibiza seeming to find every bump in the road and the harder the Ibiza is driven the less feedback seems to be available from the steering. Realistically though, away from the test track, most drivers would be unlikely to reach the limits of the Cupra’s handling and while not the best handling car at the limit in its class its certainly not the worst either!

The exterior styling of the car is sexier than the Polo with an injection of Spanish flair although the interior is rather sombre even gloomy but looks well made with sporty seats and decent trim with the centre of the dashboard angled toward the driver BMW style and neat stitched leather steering wheel with white dials. This car really appeals to younger drivers but as always remember to try and find a cheap young driver insurance quote prior to making any buying decisions.

In terms of running costs this high performance car from Seat has an insurance rating of group 15, which for a sports hatch with 177bhp is about average. A combined economy figure of 35mpg is good and we knowfrom personal experience that on a long motorway run keeping to speed limitswill easily return in excess of 40mpg. A list price of #14425 before discounts is a major attraction for this car undercutting many rivals however its retained value over 3 years is only around 41% which is less than average for this class with cars like the Skoda Fabia and Fiesta ST retaining around 50% of their value. This all adds up to a cost per mile of around 45p.

In summary the Seat Ibiza Cupra is a middle of the road hot hatch, not as staid as the Polo GTI, but not as exciting as a Renaultsport Clio 197. However it offers good value for money, plenty of power and decent handling, making it a good buy both new and second hand.

Tags: Audi, Autos, BMW, Ibiza Cupra, Volkswagen, Volkswagen Polo, Škoda Fabia