Formerly a sub-brand of Seat, Cupra is now a standalone performance marque. We’ve looked at the back-catalogue of the fastest machines from the Spanish company.
With a name formed from a combination of ‘Cup’ and ‘Racing’, the Cupra badge has been applied to both road and track cars. From motorsport origins to the latest hot hatches, expect lots of yellow paint and performance. Oh, and a few SUVs.
The Cupra story officially starts in 1996. However, Seat had enjoyed a substantial racing pedigree since the 1970s, rallying models such as the Group 4-spec 124 seen here.
It was Seat’s entry into the FIA 2-litre World Rally Cup that kickstarted the creation of the Cupra brand, though. Using naturally-aspirated front-wheel-drive cars, but with dramatically widened bodywork, the 2-litre Cup was a support act to the regular WRC.
The Ibiza Kit Car proved to be a runaway success on the rally stage, taking three straight Manufacturers’ titles in 1996, 1997 and 1998. This propelled the Ibiza from leftfield budget hatchback to competition-proven hot hatch. Victories in the British Rally Championship also ensured the UK market was well aware of the Ibiza Cupra.
Based on the Mk3 Volkswagen Golf, the second-generation Seat Ibiza had featured a GTI model that used the 2.0-litre engine from the German car. With the late-1996 facelift, Seat opted to apply the Cupra badge to a road car, to celebrate its WRC success.
The 150hp 16v Ibiza managed 0-62mph in 7.6 seconds and a 134mph top speed. Although ‘GTI Cupra Sport’ may have been a bit of a mouthful, it marked the move to Seat developing a standalone performance name.
As a product of rampant Volkswagen Group platform-sharing, the first-generation Seat Leon was again able to pluck the best bits from the Golf GTI and add some Spanish flair. Initially badged as ‘Sport’, it didn’t take long for the Cupra name to be added, while the option of yellow paint certainly made this Leon stand out.
Inserting a 180hp 1.8-litre turbocharged engine into the handsome five-door hatchback resulted in one that undercut, and outperformed, its German cousin. European buyers were also given the choice of a 204hp 2.8-litre VR6 version with four-wheel drive.
Continuing the theme of yellow paint and a 1.8-litre turbocharged engine, another facelift of the second-generation Ibiza added both in 2000. Swapping a naturally aspirated engine for a boosted one increased power to 156hp, although performance stayed on par with the previous version.
Where the 1.8 turbo engine scored highly was the ease with which it could be modified for more power, making it a favourite of boy (and girl) racers.
After the success of the Ibiza in the 2-litre division, Seat attacked the full World Rally Championship with a competitor based on the Cordoba coupe. With the WRC of the late 1990s at its most spectacular and competitive, the Cordoba rally car failed to repeat the success of the earlier Ibiza, with just a handful of podium places claimed.
Regardless of its lack of wins, Seat still made a Cordoba Cupra road car to celebrate, sharing the same 156hp 1.8-litre turbo engine as the smaller Ibiza.
With the second-generation Ibiza fast approaching almost a decade in production, Seat rolled out an even quicker Cupra R version. Limited to just 200 examples, the R benefitted from an increase in power to 180hp with 173lb ft of torque, dropping its 0-62mph time to 7.2 seconds.
Top speed increased to 140mph, with revised suspension and the addition of Brembo brakes to keep everything under control. Additional badging and OZ Racing alloy wheels were the only clues to the extra performance.
Following the trend for performance diesel hot hatches created by the Golf GT TDI, Seat slotted the same 1.9-litre TDI unit into the Leon Cupra. Although 150hp was the headline figure, it was the 236lb ft of torque that made the Cupra TDI quick in the real world.
The promise of 0-62mph in 8.9 seconds, matched with the potential for 52mpg, was an attractive option. Just don’t mention those NOx emissions…
The range-topping Cupra R debuted in 2002, using the same 1.8-litre turbo engine, but with power increased to 210hp. A year later, the ultimate first-generation Leon was created, using the 225hp tuned engine from the Audi S3.
Although it lacked the Audi’s four-wheel-drive system, the reduced weight made for a more frantic and involving driving experience. Zero to 62mph took a tyre-scrabbling 6.9 seconds, while the top speed hit 150mph.
With a third-generation Ibiza finally launched in May 2002, a revised Cupra version appeared two years later. Predictably, the 1.8-litre turbocharged engine still featured, this time with 180hp as standard.
In keeping with the times, Seat also launched a diesel Ibiza Cupra, making use of the ubiquitous 1.9-litre TDI unit. This time it had 160hp and 240lb ft of torque, and looked identical to its petrol brother. Both wore 17-inch wheels and more sculpted bumpers.
A shapely new second-generation Leon appeared in 2005, with warm variants found in 2.0-litre TFSI and FR flavours. But it took until 2007 for a new Leon Cupra to be launched, making use of a 240hp version of the 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine seen in numerous other VW products.
Sports suspension, 18-inch alloy wheels and bigger brakes were part of the deal, with high-backed sports seats inside. As the most powerful Seat to date, the new Leon Cupra was a big attraction, enough – seemingly – for Duncan James from boyband Blue to pick one.
Continuing the theme started with the Ibiza Kit Car, Seat ensured that motorsport formed a major part of the second-generation Leon’s CV. In the World Touring Car Championship – where it competed in various guises between 2005 and 2012 – the Leon achieved two manufacturer titles and numerous wins.
In the British Touring Car Championship, Seat Sport UK ran the Leon Cupra for two seasons in 2005 and 2006. Jason Plato, pictured here, took second place in the drivers’ championship both years, while Seat claimed a manufacturers’ title in 2006.
After the fourth-generation Ibiza hatchback launched in 2008, hot supermini fans didn’t have to wait long. A Cupra and special Bocanegra variant launched in 2009, the latter wearing a distinctive ‘black nose’ in honour of the Seat 1200 Sport from the 1970s.
Cupra power came from Volkswagen’s 1.4-litre twincharger engine, which used both a turbocharger and a supercharger to produce 180hp. The engine also saw service in the contemporary Polo GTI and Skoda Fabia vRS, but was beset by excessive oil consumption issues. A seven-speed DSG dual-clutch gearbox was the only transmission offered.
Sticking with the pattern established by the first-generation car, the ultimate iteration of the Mk2 Leon Cupra spawned an R version in 2010. Like before, adding the uprated engine from the Audi S3 resulted in more power, peaking at 265hp and 258lb ft of torque.
Marked out by additional badging, 19-inch alloy wheels and a chunkier front bumper, the Cupra R also gained Alcantara bucket seats. Zero to 62mph took just 6.2 seconds, while the top speed was so explosive it had to be limited to 155mph.
An arms race between hot hatch manufacturers meant that the Cupra version of the new Mk3 Leon would need substantial power. That meant 265hp would be the semi-skimmed Cupra output, with a 280hp version for those who wanted full-fat. Both used the same 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo petrol engine, with choice of manual or DSG gearboxes.
The option to have a three-door ‘Sport Coupe’ Leon, as opposed to just the traditional five-door hatchback, was also new. Both versions were keenly priced, undercutting the less powerful Golf GTI. Zero to 62mph times of less than six seconds – regardless of engine tune – were a new accolade for the Leon Cupra.
No self-respecting hot hatch would be without a Nürburgring-Nordschleife lap record, and Seat staked its claim with the third-gen Leon Cupra in 2014. A time of seven minutes 58.4 seconds not only made it the new class leader, but also the first hatchback to dip below the eight-minute mark.
In the UK, an additional £2,485 would buy you a Cupra with the same specification as the ’Ring machine, with uprated Brembo brakes, Michelin Pilot Sport 2 tyres and some very orange 19-inch alloy wheels. It didn’t get you touring car ace Jordi Gené, who set the record time, though…
Fast estates are always popular, but a Sport Tourer version of the Leon Cupra was still something of a surprise. Only offered with the high-output 280hp engine, the added bulk of the ST body meant 0-62mph in 6.1 seconds. Still, this was sufficient for the Leon Cupra ST to notch up another Nürburging record for the Seat brand.
Almost 1,500 litres of boot space with the rear seats folded flat enabled the Cupra ST to do all the usual estate car tasks – just slightly faster than usual.
Following a facelift in 2013, Seat updated the Ibiza Cupra with a new engine. Ditching the controversial 1.4 twincharger unit, a new 1.8-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine was shared with the similarly updated Polo GTI.
An extra 12hp boosted the total to 192hp, yet it was the 240lb ft of torque that changed the driving experience the most. A six-speed manual gearbox dispensed with the DSG restrictions, and performance improved – with 0-62mph now taking just 6.7 seconds.
Adding more power became an almost yearly occurrence, with a 290hp Leon Cupra appearing in 2016. With 300hp now almost mandatory for the fastest of hot hatches, it took Seat just a year to endow the Cupra with a further 10hp. Torque also increased to 280lb ft, with the new engine available in all Leon body styles.
The ST estate also gained the option of four-wheel drive, matched with a standard DSG gearbox, making it ever closer to its in-house VW Golf R rival.
2017 Seat Leon Cupra R
True to form, as the years ticked by for the third-generation Leon, the Martorell factory prepared an even more powerful version of the Cupra. Wearing the R badge again, peak power rose by 10hp to a Golf R-matching 310hp total. Powering just the front wheels means 0-62mph is pegged at 5.8 seconds, whilst top speed comes in at 155mph.
Limited to 799 units worldwide, only 24 were destined for the UK and sold out almost immediately, despite a £34,995 price tag. Widened bodywork and special front and rear bumpers mark out the hottest Leon yet. Copper trim appears on the badge lettering, wing mirrors, 19-inch wheels and even the stitching for the bucket seats.
The attention may have been on Cupra as a new sub-brand, but Seat chose to reveal a new performance Seat-badged car at the launch event. As a final hurrah before Cupra became established in its own right, the send-off was an estate version of the sold-out Cupra R.
How do you kick off a new performance brand in the 21st century? With a hot SUV, of course. Given the huge popularity of the Ateca, using it as the basis for the first official Cupra offering possibly made sense. It also offered plenty of real-estate to host the new tribal tattoo-inspired Cupra logo.
Off-the-shelf VW Group components – a 300hp 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine, four-wheel drive and a DSG gearbox – help the Cupra Ateca achieve 0-62mph in 5.4 seconds. A substantial bodykit marks this out as no ordinary SUV, while the interior features plentiful amounts of Alcantara.
Seat hasn’t forgotten its racing origins in creating the Cupra brand, with motorsport also amalgamated into the new operation. With the existing Leon already proving highly competitive under TCR touring car regulations, a Cupra makeover was the logical next step. An all-electric Cupra e-Racer will also compete in the Pure ETCR series, supporting the World Touring Car Championship.
A concept version of a Cupra Ibiza was shown at the brand launch. Sadly, the hot supermini has since been put on ice, in favour of (you guessed it) more SUVs. Shame.
The Formentor is Cupra’s first standalone car: a coupe-SUV based on the latest Seat Leon. It launches as a front-driven plug-in hybrid with 245hp, or a four-wheel-drive petrol version with 310hp. Cupra promises 31 miles of electric range from the PHEV version.
There’s plenty of copper trim – including on the dashboard – while the 12-inch central touchscreen offers Android Auto and Apple CarPlay connectivity.
Named after a fashionable part of Barcelona, the electric el-Born hatchback is Cupra’s take on the Volkswagen ID.3. The only performance stat released so far is a 0-31mph time of 2.9 seconds, while range from the 77kWh battery pack should be up to 310 miles. We’ll find out what it’s like to drive in 2021.
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