help me choose

terminator2000

Active Member
Oct 13, 2011
70
0
i have a mk2 leon that will be out of warrenty in october. Its 1.6 diesel with stop start, however its only done 15000 miles so not really benifitting from a diesel.
any way now looking at a new 1.2 petrol as similar performance.
what i want to no is i fancy an auto but should i go for manual or auto.
Will i notice a huge difference in fuel economy

Also i wanted another white one but they now charge £175 for white as its a popular colour..
apparently the new colour to have in future will be bright red so no doubt they will charge for that soon too.
 

weatherlight

Guest
1.2 petrol will have better performance as the specs suggest (0-100km in 10.0s vs 10.7s), torque range is wider. If you can shift to the correct gear at the right times (upshifting probably before 2K), you might have slightly better FE compared to a DSG (If you can use hypermiling techniques go for the manual as well). Otherwise DSG will probably offer better FE for people who dont want to constantly change gears at the right times (for example wife :) ).

Tech specs also suggest that DSG has better FE in city (5.6L vs 5.9L). However the manual gearbox can only shift up to 3rd gear as test standard, where DSG shifts up to 5th at the 50km cruise portions of the test. That might be the reason for DSG's better FE spec. So If you would shift to 4 at 50km for example, spec would definately be lower than 5.9L.

Also this little engine is treated like a diesel (DSG treats it that way) revving between 1300-2000 rpm. Try to keep that in mind if you buy a manual and you might beat official figures.
 

terryt

Active Member
Aug 16, 2013
505
10
I paid the small extra for white, dealer told me red was £175 earlier in the year and white was free. This might change as red is getting more popular which it seems to be. Seems a joke that they charge when they want to get more money.
 

ZBOYD

Looking up at the stars!
May 19, 2001
9,468
15
Cheshire
www.seatcupra.net
I drove an 5 door 1.6TDI DSG over the weekend, very nice car and though the engine was smooth and I'm sure the economy is good I found it very week in terms of its power delivery.

Runs out of usable torque quite quickly which surprised me really, but enjoyed the test drive otherwise, coming from a modified Mk2 Cupra to a 1.6TDI i guess my objectivity isn't the best, but they do feel a bit gutless.

In comparison to driving my mum's Skoda Yeti 1.2 TSI, that pulls really well, with nice usable torque feels much more powerful than it actually is.

Considering the overall horsepower figures of the 1.2TSI and 1.6TDI are the same. I think the petrol is the better buy for the mediocre differences in economy. But that's just my opinion.
 
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J400uk

Active Member
Jan 7, 2010
1,978
3
London, UK
In your situation the petrol is definitely the better buy IMO

1.2 TSI is a great engine but I'd suggest trying the 1.4 TSI too. It suits the new Leon exceptionally well and doesn't use much more fuel than the 1.2 so could be worth the extra.

I paid the small extra for white, dealer told me red was £175 earlier in the year and white was free. This might change as red is getting more popular which it seems to be. Seems a joke that they charge when they want to get more money.

I think its more to do with controlling how many of each colour are on the road. If White was permanently free then they'd be a large number of Leons in that colour.
 

LeonMunkee

Active Member
Jan 5, 2008
165
0
Reading, Berkshire
I drove an FR 5 door 1.6TDI DSG over the weekend
Are SEAT thinking of add a 1.6 TDi engine option on the FR then? I thought the diesels on the FR were both 2 litres, 150PS and 184PS. I assume for the FR the 1.6 TDI would be given more than the 105PS it gets in the S/SE trims..
 

J400uk

Active Member
Jan 7, 2010
1,978
3
London, UK
Are SEAT thinking of add a 1.6 TDi engine option on the FR then? I thought the diesels on the FR were both 2 litres, 150PS and 184PS. I assume for the FR the 1.6 TDI would be given more than the 105PS it gets in the S/SE trims..

Well VW and Audi have recently announced the new 110PS 1.6 TDI. Its an all new engine based on the newly developed EA288 engine series. Should make its way into the Leon over the next year or two but maybe not in FR form.
 

ZBOYD

Looking up at the stars!
May 19, 2001
9,468
15
Cheshire
www.seatcupra.net
Are SEAT thinking of add a 1.6 TDi engine option on the FR then? I thought the diesels on the FR were both 2 litres, 150PS and 184PS. I assume for the FR the 1.6 TDI would be given more than the 105PS it gets in the S/SE trims..

Sorry that was my bad, it was an SE 1.6TDI DSG i drove, its a freudian slip because I was looking at FR's :) The dealer didn't have one I could try at weekend.

I wasn't paying much attention to the trim level, I just wanted to try out the driving position and gearbox.
 
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mryanski

Leon FR no 3, must be good cars then :)
Aug 13, 2013
29
1
Castle Douglas
I have just taken delivery of a 1.4tsi FR (in white which i didn't pay extra for) The 1.4 is a fantastic engine, plenty of torque and giving me mid 40s MPG and that is with my heavy right foot :)
 
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