MK3 Leon SC unveil

[seatturbopower]

here is the mk 1,2,3.the mk 2 is ok but i still wouldnt want one its just looks to big,as a guess if you was to have a track day the mk1 is bad enough car to corner on compared to smaller cars you can just feel the weight in the front of the car in the straights its fine.it has changed quite abit in 12 yrs though............diffrent veiws on the car i guess for diffrent people.from thepicture it just looks like the leon is getting blander and blander,abit like the audi a3

 

[Bobanegra]

I like the Mk3, it's not as 'out there' as perhaps the Mk2 was and I think that's the angle SEAT have gone for - they want something that will please a potentially bigger market while keeping the SEAT fans happy at the same time. I don't think that this particular design will date as badly as the Mk2 did before it's facelift.

In comparison to the new Golf or the new A3 I'd say it's definitely the best looking of the 3, followed closely by the Golf with the bland A3 lagging behind as the Leon has a little bit of an edge with the sharper styling (no pun intended)

People comment that the Astra GTC is an all round better looking car but in my honest opinion I don't think the GTC will age well - that's a car that has facelift written all over it in 24-36 months time.

At the moment if I was to buy a new car in this particular market it would be a Mk3 Leon or one of these new Kia Cee'd/Pro Cee'd GTs that are to be released soon, very smart looking cars and while not the quickest by any means for cars with around 200BHP, that's made up for with the 7 year warranty.

I've had 2 SEATs (from new) that between them have spent their fare share of time in garages getting repaired and broken at the same time. As much as I loved driving the cars, the customer care and general skill levels of the mechanics has been appalling (in my experience of course) and that will always play on my mind if I was to buy a new one.

 

[EndlessNameless]

In comparison to the new Golf or the new A3 I'd say it's definitely the best looking of the 3, followed closely by the Golf with the bland A3 lagging behind as the Leon has a little bit of an edge with the sharper styling (no pun intended)

I'm with you there. The new A3 is exactly the same as the old one, and the Golf is a Golf - a good looking car that will probably age pretty well, but it's not exactly a high water mark in automotive aesthetics. The Leon looks a bit more interesting.

But then what do I know? When the Mk2 Leon was new I hated it. Now I drive one...

 

[Rob66]

It looks good to me, but a little to much like a bigger Ibiza IMO. Also seems to be a lot of black plastic on the lower dash 'doing nothing'.

As Bob says above quite like the look of the Proceed GT and also have a soft spot for the DS3.

In defence of SEAT dealers though, i think its more the dealer than the brand as i have had no problems at all with mine in 6 years(2 LEONs and an IBIZA).

 

[markmeus]

here is the mk 1,2,3.the mk 2 is ok but i still wouldnt want one its just looks to big,as a guess if you was to have a track day the mk1 is bad enough car to corner on compared to smaller cars you can just feel the weight in the front of the car in the straights its fine.it has changed quite abit in 12 yrs though............diffrent veiws on the car i guess for diffrent people.from thepicture it just looks like the leon is getting blander and blander,abit like the audi a3

To be fair, the early mk1 Leon Cupras were as bland as it gets.

 

[knoted]

But then what do I know? When the Mk2 Leon was new I hated it. Now I drive one...

As one of the people who liked the MK1 and the MK2 from their respective starts, I don't think my opinion on the NK3 is going to do a 180 degrees turn.

 

[seatturbopower]

To be fair, the early mk1 Leon Cupras were as bland as it gets.

yeh id agree with you there mate,before when i was looking into the mk 1 seen that one and then the face lift for the extra bucks i got the face lift,the all round looks and even inside is just a diffrence in all togther.....i suppose seat was testing the water..........

 

[EndlessNameless]

To be fair, the early mk1 Leon Cupras were as bland as it gets.

I've never really liked that 3-part grille. It reminds me of some particularly boring Mitsubishis (and also a Tapir [which is a kind of south american pig like creature]).

The Mark 1 is overall a pretty conservative shape and general design. The Mark 2 was/is much more distinctive silhouette (which is probably why I wasn't keen to start with), but the Mark 3 goes back to being a bit more generic.

 

[S.E.C.T.]

I think it looks good from the outside, particularly like Syphons Cupra concept - I just cant get used to how basic the interior looks. The middle section looks like wasted space

 

[Rob66]

Theres a good video on youtube of the SC, just search Leon SC.

 

[Syphon]

Theres a good video on youtube of the SC, just search Leon SC.

Good one. Here's the link http://youtu.be/ZP0w9rlmWHs

6 mins of SC pron

Scott

 

[JK1]

Very nice, shame no shots of the interior in the dark. Want to see this red/white interior lighting stuff!

/superficial

 

[AndyG_TSi]

It is a nice looking 3 door car, BUT, it just looks like a larger Ibiza and I think SEAT have missed a trick here.

The 3 Door Leon should have been more 'Scirocco' ish and styled a bit differently.

we now have to bear in mind that FORD are not doing a 3 door variant of the Focus and as such, there will be no Focus RS in it's latest guise, so there won't be a progression from Ford for the Sierra/Escort Cosworth & MK1/MK2 Focus RS into the future as a 'sporting heritage' car.

If the 3 door Leon was a bit more 'focused' (no pun intended from previous paragraph) and styled as a 'drivers car' with sporting potential then the Cupra version of the 3 door could steal sales from Ford and other competitors as customers look for something 'sporty' with a bit of heritage/pedigree.......

In short, SEAT could of had a stonking modern true 'hot hatch' on their hands, but have opted for conservative.

It is nice, dont get me wrong, but it could have been more, like the picture posted by
Gaffer1986 on page 2.

Put it this way, If SEAT put a RWD or 4WD 300bhp 3 door Leon Cupra on sale, suitable styled, they'd be a queue of people round the block wanting one!

 

[knoted]

we now have to bear in mind that FORD are not doing a 3 door variant of the Focus and as such, there will be no Focus RS in it's latest guise, so there won't be a progression from Ford for the Sierra/Escort Cosworth & MK1/MK2 Focus RS into the future as a 'sporting heritage' car.

.....but, there will be a new RS in 2015....

http://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/new-cars/new-ford-focus-rs-expected-2015

 

[AndyG_TSi]

.....but, there will be a new RS in 2015....

http://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/new-cars/new-ford-focus-rs-expected-2015

Unless its a 3 door its not a proper RS.

You dont sully the fabled RS badge by putting it on a 5 door family barge

What next, an RS Mondeo, or RS Kuga 4×4

 

[EndlessNameless]

Unless its a 3 door its not a proper RS.

You dont sully the fabled RS badge by putting it on a 5 door family barge

Why not? They're putting a 4 cylinder engine in the Mustang, and BMW are going to make FWD cars.

Nothing's sacred (Whether that's a good thing or not is something you could debate). Maybe one day Vauxhall will abandon their policy of making shite cars...

 

[AndyG_TSi]

Thats another one mate, if you want a mustang its because you want the v8, not a 2.0L ecoboost lol.

Some things are sacred other wise things become diluted and sticking an RS badge on a 5 door just dilutes the marque imho of course. Otherwise it just becomes another notch on the trim level rating

Anyhow, lets hope theres a stonking cupra version of the 3 door leon

 

[EndlessNameless]

Thats another one mate, if you want a mustang its because you want the v8, not a 2.0L ecoboost lol.

Some things are sacred other wise things become diluted and sticking an RS badge on a 5 door just dilutes the marque imho of course. Otherwise it just becomes another notch on the trim level rating

Anyhow, lets hope theres a stonking cupra version of the 3 door leon

I'd buy a mustang diesel. Though it would have to be a V8 diesel. A 2.0l ecoboost? No thanks.

Some things should be sacred, but actually I don't think the RS focus has to be a 3 door...

But that has nothing to do with the Leon SC. Which is too conservative IMO, and the 5-door looks better.

 

[AndyG_TSi]

I'd buy a mustang diesel. Though it would have to be a V8 diesel. A 2.0l ecoboost? No thanks.

Some things should be sacred, but actually I don't think the RS focus has to be a 3 door...

But that has nothing to do with the Leon SC. Which is too conservative IMO, and the 5-door looks better.

Was on top gear last sunday.

Ford are going to sell the mustang in ghe uk in right hand drive. But hou cant have the v8. The petrol will have a 2.0l ecoboost. Which sort of defeats the point of a mustang lol

I agree with you about the 3 door leon which is what I was getting at in my 1st post, it is too conservative.

 

[seatturbopower]

Why not? They're putting a 4 cylinder engine in the Mustang, and BMW are going to make FWD cars.

Nothing's sacred (Whether that's a good thing or not is something you could debate). Maybe one day Vauxhall will abandon their policy of making shite cars...

come on now who cant forget the lotus carlton........ now there is a good car from the vauxhall people.i was in a hotel with the g/f and what was sitting there a lotus carlton could not belive it it was a real one also the size of the front disc were massive,the rears were not far off nice touch with a little help from lotus team.i will say though there cars are super reliable and cheap to repair also.