By Kris Ashton for the Open Road magazine
2023 Cupra Leon VZx review
If the name Cupra doesn’t mean anything to you, perhaps its progenitor SEAT might be more familiar.
It was a Spanish car brand on sale here in the 1990s and its biggest claim to fame was appearing as the major prize on Wheel of Fortune.
Volkswagen took a controlling interest in SEAT back in the 1980s and the associated motor racing subsidiary, SEAT Sport, was later renamed Cupra Racing.
VW split the Cupra brand into its own separate entity a few years back – and that brings us to the Cupra Leon.
How much does the 2023 Cupra Leon cost?
A hatch in the vein of the Volkswagen (VW) Golf, the Cupra Leon comes in four variants: V ($43,990), VZ ($51,990), VZe ($59,990) and VZx ($59,990).
The V runs VW’s 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine (140kW/320Nm), while the VZ has the same engine uprated to Golf GTI output (180kW/370Nm).
The VZe is a plug-in hybrid combining VW’s 1.4-litre engine and an electric motor for a total output of 180kW/400Nm.
The VZx (our test vehicle) gets close to the full-fruit Golf R engine tune, with 221kW/400Nm.
2023 Cupra Leon VZx interior and design
Anyone who has driven one of VW’s hot hatches will feel a sense of déjà vu sliding behind the wheel of the Leon VZx.
The toggle gear shifter, driver-facing touchscreen, sports seats, and leather steering wheel are all recognisable as reskinned VW items.
Copper-coloured badging and stitching combine with dark materials to make the cockpit feel like the helm in an alien spacecraft, something further accentuated at night with strip lighting across the dashboard and front doors.
This ‘interior pinstriping’ changes colour depending on the drive mode selected – blue for eco, red for sport, orange for Cupra, and purple for customised settings.
2023 Cupra Leon VZx performance and handling
Performance and handling offer no surprises to those au fait with the performance Golf range.
Acceleration in sport mode is lively and paddle shifters allow for more timely gear changes in and out of corners on an empty country road.
The suspension tune isn’t a notable departure, either, finding a midpoint between ride comfort and handling rather than the riding-on-rails feeling prevalent in harder-edged sports cars.
The interior is fairly well insulated against noise, although low-profile tyres mean some roar is inevitable.
The one area where the Leon exhibits a substantial physical difference from its VW cousins is in its sloping roofline.
This does imbue it with a flatter, more road-hugging stance, but it’s at a cost to practicality, with the Golf boasting around 100 litres more boot space.
Other shortcomings?
The touchpoint for central locking is recessed into the door handle and can be unresponsive; the exhaust pop on the overrun in sport mode feels contrived and perfunctory; and the back-end styling lacks the sleek simplicity of its VW brethren.
Which is to say, there’s not much to criticise.
The real issue with the Cupra Leon range is it has little of substance to distinguish it from the equivalent VW models and prices.
So unless the Cupra’s slightly more out-there styling appeals, prospective buyers might as well just get a Golf.
Cupra Leon VZx price and specs
- Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo
- Transmission: Seven-speed DSG
- Power: 140kW
- Torque: 320Nm
- Fuel consumption: 6.2L/100km (claimed)
- ANCAP: Five stars
- Price: From $43,990 (plus ORC)
