The facelifted version of the Seat Leon Cupra will hit the market early next year with an extra 10bhp and all-wheel drive in estate form.
For the 2017 model year, the standard Leon has undergone a number of minor revisions, with new and updated engines, styling tweaks and equipment upgrades.
At the launch of the updated model in Barcelona, Seat bosses revealed that from February the facelift will also apply to the Cupra model.
The current model feeds 286bhp through the front wheels, but this will be increased to 296bhp. The Spanish manufacturer’s hot hatch has been well received and is widely considered to be one of the best front-wheel-drive performance cars on the market.
However, the estate variant will now come with all-wheel drive, marking the first time that we’ve seen a Leon Cupra put its power through all four wheels since the turn of the century.
This puts it directly in competition with its VW Group stablemate, the Golf R. With all-wheel drive and an identical power output, that car is available as both an estate and a hatchback.
The decision not to give the three- or five-door Leon Cupra all-wheel drive is likely political – with comparable Seats less expensive than their VW counterparts, there’s a good chance Golf R sales would suffer at the hands of the Cupra.
The hot hatch will also receive the Leon’s updated interior, which includes an impressive eight-inch touchscreen infotainment system debuted in the Ateca SUV.
