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Changing to a Cupra from a Clio 182

drewbear11

Guest
Hey guys

Looking for some advice really,

Im thinking about changing from my clio 182 FF for a Leon Cupra after looking at my neighbours white 08 plate Cupra with the full BTCC kit on

The build quality was pretty good, nice seats and hell it was fast its had a stage one remap and an intake, and he reckons about 300bhp, much faster in gear than my clio.

My main concern is that i dont want to lose the agility and and handling of the clio... Has anyone else made the same move, how does it compare handling wise ?
I know the eibach's or H&R's are well recommended? for a nice drop for looks and better handling ? Bearing in mine my Clio has now done 70k and I think it might be getting a bit tired.

I didn't really get to chuck it about but it felt very smooth and planted, much smoother than the 182, does anyone know how they compare on handling ? It definitely felt faster than my 182.

I've set myself up for poor mpg so im not worried about that really.... although I hope it isn't too bad :p :p

I like the idea of the dual zone climate and cruise control which is something you don't think on many other hot hatches.

I don't really want to go to a much bigger car but I was suprised the leon isn't that big and you cant really tell its a five door car :)

Is there anything I need to watch out for ? I imagine the engine is pretty solid being the S3 engine ? But anything else I need to consider ?


Thanks for any info guys, im sure i'll think of some more questions :):):D
 
Last edited by a moderator:
I had a 182....
newcliosport182010.jpg


I cant comment on the newer cupra's but i had a 53plate cupra r and handling wise it was like a boat compared to the 182. But power delivery is alot better. So handling wise suspension mods will be needed to get close to a 182 in the twisties ;)
 
Its not just about the suspension set up, the leon carries a hell of a lot more weight and so inertia. The leon will never change direction like a clio but the leon is so much more grown up and is sooo much faster in the real world if not quite as much fun. Put it this way in a clio when your doing 100mph it feels like ya doing 100mph. the leon you dont.
 
drewbear11 said:
Hey guys

Looking for some advice really,

Im thinking about changing from my clio 182 FF for a Leon Cupra after looking at my neighbours white 08 plate Cupra with the full BTCC kit on

The build quality was pretty good, nice seats and hell it was fast its had a stage one remap and an intake, and he reckons about 300bhp, much faster in gear than my clio.

My main concern is that i dont want to lose the agility and and handling of the clio... Has anyone else made the same move, how does it compare handling wise ?
I know the eibach's or H&R's are well recommended? for a nice drop for looks and better handling ? Bearing in mine my Clio has now done 70k and I think it might be getting a bit tired.

I didn't really get to chuck it about but it felt very smooth and planted, much smoother than the 182, does anyone know how they compare on handling ? It definitely felt faster than my 182.

I've set myself up for poor mpg so im not worried about that really.... although I hope it isn't too bad :p :p

I like the idea of the dual zone climate and cruise control which is something you don't think on many other hot hatches.

I don't really want to go to a much bigger car but I was suprised the leon isn't that big and you cant really tell its a five door car :)

Is there anything I need to watch out for ? I imagine the engine is pretty solid being the S3 engine ? But anything else I need to consider ?


Thanks for any info guys, im sure i'll think of some more questions :):):D
Click to expand...

It'll feel slower on the twisty roads compared to the clio, but a hell of a lost faster on the straights and long bends
 
^ agreed (I had a Clio Trophy) and it was fun while I had it.

But don't underestimate the Cupra with a few suspension tweeks!

I must admit, although my K1 is completely standard, and having owned it for 3 years) I still have the grin factor...remap to come soon (hopefully).
 
hon_n_gem said:
^ agreed (I had a Clio Trophy) and it was fun while I had it.

But don't underestimate the Cupra with a few suspension tweeks!

I must admit, although my K1 is completely standard, and having owned it for 3 years) I still have the grin factor...remap to come soon (hopefully).
Click to expand...

What suspension tweeks would you recommend? lowering springs?
 
Okay well thats good to know, what can you do to make it more agile ? Springs and ARB's ??
It was definitly quicker than the clio straight line but i just want to make sure im not taking a step back with the handling :)
 
I went from a Leon to a brand new 200 with Recaros etc and was back in a Leon within a couple of months.

Build quality of the Leon blows the Clio out the water. My 200 had climate and cruise btw.
 
Well, I came from a Toyota Celica T-sport. It was extremely agile and you could throw it around much like the Clio I guess. It was glued to the road and driver feedback was excellent.
My FR 2.0 TDI wallows around. The back end feels a little bit disconnected and I'm too scared to throw it into bends.
But as has been said it is quick in a straight line and the torque is very handy!
I miss my Tsport! (Had to change it because of ill elderly parents).
 
Your not always gonna get the best of both worlds, but with a cupra for the price of a couple grand you can have a stage 2+ 360+ beast that's so far gone on the straights the bends don't really matter, lol
 
I had a new clio 172 back in 2004, but unfortunately I had a bad one that was always falling apart, so was never really confident in driving it fast round bends incase something major fell off it. I appreciate I'm not comparing like for like as the 182 was superior and maybe it was just because I had a complete dog of a 172, and have no good memories of that car what so ever (only kept it just under a year), but I don't recall the handling being that great, certainly not good enough to make me think twice about changing it for a Cupra.
 
10man said:
Your not always gonna get the best of both worlds, but with a cupra for the price of a couple grand you can have a stage 2+ 360+ beast that's so far gone on the straights the bends don't really matter, lol
Click to expand...

:lol::lol:

Im sure the clio handled well and it is a fair bit smaller than the leon but theres plenty of options if you find you want better handling, coilover, walk kit, ARB's, engine mounts etc.. Just depends how far you want to go
 
I moved to a 2007 Cupra earlier this year from a prodrive'd scooby. The Cupra is a hugely capable machine - not as sharp as the scooby - and has oodles of grip. I find the suspension really hard and well damped. I was missing the power of the scooby but have just had it superchip'd and it has transformed the power delivery. You need to be aware though that is a much more of a car than clio and hence is heavier.
 
Duke! How did she find out? Can you give me some tips to avoid this? Getting mine remapped on the 19th. :think:
 
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