New Leon mk4 thoughts

r3d

Active Member
Nov 21, 2018
56
33
I saw one mk iv fr a few days ago at the dealers. Doesn’t cut it for me. The design is too generic, interior in my opinion even worse than mk3 even when not taking new touch buttons in consideration.
I hate the clamp on tablet infotainment design and removal of buttons. Cabin materials seem worse, no alcantara on doors, just GRAY leather imitations on door panels (I thought it was all plastic before I touched it). Nothing seems like improvement over mk3, it only has maybe an inch more knee space in the rear.
It seems as if they made it to save money, not to improve on the previous generation.
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Yern

Active Member
Apr 25, 2019
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311
I wonder how much for the 'G' reg one in the corner of the showroom o_O
 

SRGTD

Active Member
May 26, 2014
2,387
1,278
Certainly a nicer looking car IMO than the new Golf. Desire Red suits it well - that’s no doubt why the car in current TV ad is Desire Red.

I like the contrasting grey door mirrors, front bumper trim and grille surround. They might not look so good with some other body colours though.
 

SRGTD

Active Member
May 26, 2014
2,387
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I do like white cars, and my next car will probably be white, but if I were considering a mk4 Leon, given the choice between Desire Red or White, I think I’d go for Desire Red.
 
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ryzzey

Active Member
Jan 18, 2018
165
42
Dorset, UK
I took the new Leon for a test drive at the weekend as I'm still indecided as to whether or not I actually like it. It felt the same to drive as my current FR but I have to say the touchscreen is a pain to use while driving, couldnt change the fan speed for the air con. I also couldnt get the ACC to work for the life of me, tried everything but it was all symbols and touch settings.

I do quite like the look but as others have said, no FR badge on the front and nothing to really make it stand out against other variants, horrible alloy wheels too! I also looked at the FR First Edition which was £7000 more for DSG and a couple of extras like rear view camera etc, absolutely not worth the extra cost in my opinion.

I'm torn between the new Leon and the new Golf but I think I might just stick with my facelift FR for the time being, as I absolutely love it and would miss a few things such as physical buttons inside.
 

SRGTD

Active Member
May 26, 2014
2,387
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I'm torn between the new Leon and the new Golf but I think I might just stick with my facelift FR for the time being, as I absolutely love it and would miss a few things such as physical buttons inside.

You’d have the same issues with using the touchscreen while driving in the Golf as you did in the new Leon as it’s pretty much the same set up. IMO the only area where the Golf is better as far as driver controls are concerned is the location of the touch pad for the light controls - it’s higher up on the dashboard so should be easier to use.

I personally think the Leon is a better looking car than the Golf. Looks are very subjective I know but of the four (Leon, Golf, A3 and Octavia), I think the Golf must have been at the back of the queue when looks were being handed out. If the Golf was a child, I think it could be described as having the looks that only a mother could love - just my opinion though. There’ll be those that like the way the new Golf looks, but from discussions on various VW Golf forums, the general consensus seems to be it’s not a good looking car.
 

SteveW

Active Member
Jul 1, 2020
102
88
Salisbury, Wiltshire
I had a quick look at a Mk4 when we were at the dealers ordering stepson's new Ibiza at the weekend.

I know I'm very new to Seats (not even owned my 2016 Leon a month yet), but one thing that really attracted me to the Mk3 ST was it's sleek(ish) looks, especially for an estate. The Mk4 loses that completely in my opinion. And also, I'm another one that doesn't like the infotainment system in the Mk4 - it looks like an afterthough just stuck to the dashboard.
 

ryzzey

Active Member
Jan 18, 2018
165
42
Dorset, UK
Yeah the Golf has also done away with the buttons, I also thought the touch sensitive headlight switch buttons were fiddly and so sensitive I could find myself struggling at night, I know they are auto but with fog lights etc it might be a struggle at first, but yes better higher up on the Golf.

I like the rear of the Golf and the front of the Leon haha. To be honest I haven't heard one nice comment about the looks of the new Golf wheras the Leon is growing on me and certainly looks better in the flesh than on screen.

I have to say I do like that the new Leon has no optional extras (apart from tow bar etc) whereas the Golf has a huge number of extras which does put me off. The FR First Edition has most of the features as standard that the Golf would charge extra for which does tempt me.
 

ryzzey

Active Member
Jan 18, 2018
165
42
Dorset, UK
Just looking at the price list now and the FR First Edition comes with the following on top of thr FR spec:
Black roof lining, 18" wheels instead of 17", reverse camera, adaptive chassis control, road sign display, predictive cruise control, mild hybrid engine, keyless start instead of just entry, is also only available in DSG.

In my mind those extras are not worth the extra £7k!
 
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Seriously?

Active Member
Apr 20, 2018
1,237
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Just trying to work out what the benefit of having the eTSI is over the straight petrol 1.5 when the 'hybrid' is quoted on the pricelist as having a worse CO2 figure and (slightly) worse mpg as well as costing £2K more :think:
 
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