Leon Cupra VS Leon Cupra R

Snoopie

Impossible
Feb 5, 2006
349
0
Enfield
Tonight I went around to my cousins house and he's got a Leon Cupra remapped by Jabbasport. We both drove each others cars, some gentle driving, and then driving with some 'character.'

He got straight into my car, And I got straight into his, immediately felt comfy in each others cars, everything is layed out the same, seats are supported the same although they varied in colour from the Cupra R. Out on the road, they felt the exact same to be perfectly honest. It was hard to tell the two apart when driving briskly, they Leon Cupra being remapped pulled really early in the lower gears, the turbo spins up a lot quicker and therefore you can drive it quicker and more effortlessly. 6th gear in the Leon Cupra took off at 45-50mph.
The Leon Cupra R in 6th takes a while to get going, most probably because of some turbo lag, but once it builds up they pretty much feel the same again.
For pure flat out driving, coming off a roundabout immediately you'll notice how the Leon Cupra will take off, and the LCR does take time to be wound up. But once the speed rises, the LCR will gain back on the Leon Cupra, not by much, infact, hardly by anything, but the bigger turbo allows stronger pulling up the rev range and all the way to the redline over the Leon Cupra.
After a few minutes of brisk driving, there comes the braking, the brakes feel the same in normal everyday driving, but when you start to press on, you can feel that the Leon Cupra doesn't bite back at you like the Leon Cupra R still does. That must be the Brembo's with the slightly bigger discs kicking in. There not any more stronger than the Leon Cupra's at all, they just seem to hold and last longer.
Handling is pretty much the same to be perfectly honest, there both reasonably comfy to drive normally at sensible paces, and beyond this too.
The best part of them is the styling, parked next to each other on the drive they look identical in most places, but with the added touches that the Cupra R has, there is an obvious difference.

So, On the road, the only time the Leon Cupra R really stands out is when you hit silly speeds, it pulls on a little stronger, but If your sensible enough it's rare you'd ever do this.

Between the two, If your not sure about which car to get, and you don't want to pay the slightly extra fuel bills, the insurance and so on...
Then a remapped Leon Cupra is perfectly up to the job of matching a standard Leon Cupra R, and in some cases, a bit quicker.

Cheers
 

scottzedal

How Fast!!!!
Aug 31, 2006
80
0
Nantwich, Cheshire
Good interestin read Aaron

Would say if you for the balance of the post though that if you're not too fussed about fuel bills etc, you'd prefer high speed, neck wrenching acceleration get a remapped LCR.

I doubt the Cupra would still be such competition.

Scott
 

ajoellew

Active Member
Oct 24, 2006
123
0
Bristol
Interesting post Snoopie. One thing I was wondering is how does the suspension set up feel? Is the LCR noticeably firmer than the LC or are they pretty similar?
 

Snoopie

Impossible
Feb 5, 2006
349
0
Enfield
Once on the road, they feel almost identical. There really isn't any different notice. It could be the fact that I've not driven my Cousins car a lot. But the minute I took his car out, the gear change movement was a tad bit longer on the Leon Cupra but smoother and the same with the suspension, although they felt the exact same to drive at normal speeds, somehow, somewhat the Leon Cupra felt smoother.

Aaron
 

J@mes

e46psi.com ;-)
Jun 14, 2004
2,842
0
.
the remapped cupra is less laggy and comes into life quicker because it has the k03s turbo, as apposed to the LCR's k04 turbo (which is bigger, thus slightly laggier!)


as a result you will have to keep the LCR on the boil slightly more, i.e. rev it more

also a remapped cupra should have slightly more torque than the LCR too which will help it.


all in both are close and its more than likely down to the drivers over who is quicker! :yes:


the above comes from my 10k mile experience of spirited driving against tris in his jabba'd cupra before mine got mapped!



snoopie get ur LCR mapped and it will be a whole different game! :yes: ;)
 

Leon Pete

Guest
Hello

I was the other test pilot tonight our test comparison, and i must say i agree with most of what Aaron said.

I think the main thing Aaron and I agreed on tonight was how similar the cars felt even when they were pushed towards the limits.

The Cupra R has definately got more power above 5500rpm no doubt and the brakes held up better against fade.

Please remember my Cupra is remapped and has an after market dump value and Aaron's Cupra R is totally standard(at the moment).

I thought the Cupra R did handle just little bit better, you can tell it had been worked on, I pushed the car pretty hard through some well known bends and it was impressive.

For me however my Cupra is enough, but maybe when Aaron gets his Remap and I have a go in that, I will change my mind.:D

Pete.
 
Last edited by a moderator:

cuprablue

Active Member
Nov 12, 2006
201
0
Interesting posts.

I think Snoopies comments about the brakes and suspension differences particularly revealing. From my own experience I would say that moving from "better" brakes/suspension to "inferior" ones should be imediately noticeable if there is any significant difference in reality. I've often found that initial impressions of improved set ups are underwhelming. It's only really when you jump back to the previous set up that you realise the improvement that was gained. A clear case of realising the improvement only once it's gone. So for someone who is used to the handling/brake set up on an LCR to feel that the LCs brakes/suspention aren't significanly worse (for road use of course) says quite a lot. It's particularly informative given that the two cars in question essentially had the same straight line performance. It's very easy to draw the wrong conclusion about the relative capabilities of a suspension/brake set up between two cars which have significant performance capability differences in a straight line.

IME when a suspension is working well (or better) it makes the vehicle feel slower. In fact IMO the best way to evaluate the suspension set up on a vehicle is the feeling of speed you get, or more to the point the lack of it. If the suspension is coping with what's being asked of it then it won't feel flustered and the vehicle as a whole will feel more stable/settled and so give a less "exciting" feel of the pants experience, which adds up to the car feeling slower.


cuprablue
 

tris

The Daddy
Feb 25, 2005
3,493
1
Kent & Track Days
www.leoncupra.net
also a remapped cupra should have slightly more torque than the LCR too which will help it.


all in both are close and its more than likely down to the drivers over who is quicker! :yes:


the above comes from my 10k mile experience of spirited driving against tris in his jabba'd cupra before mine got mapped!

Tho when both cars are re mapped by Jabba the LCR Kicks the LC into next week

As i no only to well :cry:
 

Ruddmeister

Everything in Moderation
Jun 23, 2003
8,218
1
Weston-super-Mare
en.wikipedia.org
Nice review of the two cars, I wonder how much you were pushing the cars through the bends?? I have owned both and the most difference I found was the rear end of the LC felt very loose when pushing hard, the LCR felt more controlled.

One other thing was the weight of the LCR steering, always noticably heavier maybe a little more confidence inspiring IMO.

I would agree with the difference in the brakes, std LCR Brembo's are not night and day better, infact after I got my LCR back in mid 2003 I questioned how good the Brembo's were

http://www.seatcupra.net/forums/showthread.php?t=20907&highlight=brembo+fantastic (yes my spelling was terrible before anyone mentions it)

......however after a pad (or even pad and fluid) change the Brembo's start to show their worth IMO
 

Reg

Professional Detailer
Oct 10, 2005
962
0
Berkshire
Nice comparison, but just one thing.I would be suprised if its cheaper to fuel and insure a remapped (and therefore modified) Cupra compared to a standard Cupra R. I don't have any figures, but knowing how touchy insurance companies can be over mods, particularly those that make a car faster, I would have though it cancels out.
 

Snoopie

Impossible
Feb 5, 2006
349
0
Enfield
Nice review of the two cars, I wonder how much you were pushing the cars through the bends?? I have owned both and the most difference I found was the rear end of the LC felt very loose when pushing hard, the LCR felt more controlled.

One other thing was the weight of the LCR steering, always noticably heavier maybe a little more confidence inspiring IMO.

We pushed the cars pretty heavily into a deserted area full of small roundabouts. I suppose the LCR felt more stable but to a small degree atleast, Leon Pete pushed my car more than I did, So hopefully he'll give his opinion on that later.
As for the steering, thats a perfect point, I put it down to the LCR being heavier that is has something to do with the 18inch Wheels.

Aaron
 

chris_m

Full Member
Aug 30, 2004
264
0
Newcastle upon Tyne
I've always found the R noticably better in the twisties than the standard Cupra. Its flatter, more poised, more adjustable and more fun.

Theres no way a Cupra runnning standard suspension, remapped or not, will stay with a good R driver on a twistie road... its too underdamped, has too much roll, has poor brakes, and understeers too much.
 

Snoopie

Impossible
Feb 5, 2006
349
0
Enfield
Ok, considering that. A remapped Cupra has more torque than a standard LCR, therefore it can get out of bends quicker using a smaller turbo and more low down power.
Down a few twisty roads and a few roundabouts, After driving the two cars somewhat extensively....I don't think theres a huge difference in the two cars with different suspensions, The only thing I can say, is the Cupra R can get better traction coming off a roundabout, therefore possibly can make up time a little quicker.
There are variations on everything, what gear your in etc, It's not just down to highest hp figure, and different suspension. It's how the power is situated to the ground.
As for the standard brakes on a Leon Cupra, I don't think there poor in anycase, there more than capable and up to the job. It might not just be the brakes, it might be down to the pads your using or even the fluid.
 

Leon Pete

Guest
Some people on here seem to think that the Cupra is some wishy washy pretend hot hatch, that is softly sprung with a " very Loose back end" when compared to the Cupra R and this is not the case.

The back end will come out on the cupra, as many people have found out but is easy to contol in my experience and progressive with it.

I've taken my car around the Nurburgring number of times so i know how the car handles and how to drive it, it's not as good as a Cupra R as i have said, but the cupra is not that far behind especially the later ones (with 225/45 tyres).

Cheers
Pete.
 

Ruddmeister

Everything in Moderation
Jun 23, 2003
8,218
1
Weston-super-Mare
en.wikipedia.org
the cupra is not that far behind especially the later ones (with 225/45 tyres).

Cheers
Pete.

That's a fair point as I was making comparison to my 2001 LC

Snoopie Quote said:
As for the steering, thats a perfect point, I put it down to the LCR being heavier that is has something to do with the 18inch Wheels..

The suspension is quite different when you look at the components and the LCR steering rack is different too hence the extra weight and slightly different 'feel'

I would agree with both of you that the differences are not night and day though and even with a remap the LCR won't be miles ahead
 

VectraSRi

Guest
good read that thanks, I went for a test drive today, decided that I will probably go for the petrol version, I did look at two cars in one garage, one the standard Cupra the other the Cupra R both very nice cars, the Cupra was priced at £6500 ish for a 52 plate that had done 89,000 miles, that put me off... the Cupra R was priced at £10.700 ish very well presented car but tbh the dealer was abit pushy so we walked away...... we went next door and they had a beautiful Cupra R in Yellow, same mileage as the previous one but £2000 cheaper, apparently he has trouble selling it?

has anyone else experienced this? to me the Yellow of the Cupra is like the white of a Vectra ST or the Orange of teh Focus ST, it sets them apart and people dont have to ask what the car is.....
 

Snoopie

Impossible
Feb 5, 2006
349
0
Enfield
even with a remap the LCR won't be miles ahead

I believe this statement to be very true. We'll make the review again shortly after mine has the same adjustment tweaks to compare. But I cannot see a remapped LCR being miles ahead, just more progressive power and stronger curve all the way up to the redline.
 

J@mes

e46psi.com ;-)
Jun 14, 2004
2,842
0
.
good read that thanks, I went for a test drive today, decided that I will probably go for the petrol version, I did look at two cars in one garage, one the standard Cupra the other the Cupra R both very nice cars, the Cupra was priced at £6500 ish for a 52 plate that had done 89,000 miles, that put me off... the Cupra R was priced at £10.700 ish very well presented car but tbh the dealer was abit pushy so we walked away...... we went next door and they had a beautiful Cupra R in Yellow, same mileage as the previous one but £2000 cheaper, apparently he has trouble selling it?

has anyone else experienced this? to me the Yellow of the Cupra is like the white of a Vectra ST or the Orange of teh Focus ST, it sets them apart and people dont have to ask what the car is.....


i was told by a dealer that onvi yellow on average sells for about £500 less than the other colours (2nd hand obviously!)

i see what he was getting at... what i think he meant was the fact that its a love or hate colour (personally i love it! almost ordered mine in onvi! :yes: ) and as a result they can be that much harder to shift off the forecourt!

this is a good thing for the buyer though... the place that has this onvi LCR will more than likely be willing to give you a good deal if you flutter a wad of cash under their nose... assuming the onvi lcr has be sat there for a while! ;) :whistle:
 
Last edited:

J@mes

e46psi.com ;-)
Jun 14, 2004
2,842
0
.
I believe this statement to be very true...But I cannot see a remapped LCR being miles ahead, just more progressive power and stronger curve all the way up to the redline.


agreed! :yes:

but all the same its not a huge difference but still a good difference! :)


its higher up the rev range u notice it... from 100mph + is when i think my car finds it legs!


a good comparison @ pod....

most remapped leon cupras will get high 14s low 15s

best time i have seen from a mapped leon cupra was 14.67 @ 93mph (done by me in rob's (Stretch79) car!)

and the best i have done is 13.8 @ 100.4mph



but like i said its from 100mph onwards that i think my car stretches its legs! :yes:
 
Last edited:
Chris Knott Insurance - Competitive quotes for forum members