SEAT Ibiza Cupra

Expert Rating:

What is it?

This is SEAT's flagship Ibiza. Based on the SC (SportCoupé) three-door model, the Cupra (Cup Racing) is SEAT's GTI, a hot hatch boasting 180bhp that's intended to take on the likes of the Renaultsport Clio 200 and MINI's Cooper S. That's a big ask, so SEAT has thrown some serious technology at it. Under its beautifully sculpted bonnet there's a 1.4-litre Twincharger engine that's both super- and turbocharged. There's also a DSG (Direct Shift Gearbox) twin-clutch, seven-speed, paddle-shifted transmission, promising fingertip control of this flagship sporting model. It all sounds tremendously promising...

Is it any good?

There's a lot to like about the Cupra. Not least its looks. With its gaping air intakes filled with menacing grilles and foglamps, large alloy wheels, black mirrors, Cupra badging and a rear diffuser-like under bumper insert containing a trapezoidal exhaust, the Ibiza Cupra looks brilliant. If you want an even more exclusive version you can throw your SEAT dealer an additional £700 and ask for the 1,000-a-year only Bocanegra. Like the show car, which introduced the three-door Ibiza back in 2008, the Bocanegra gets a black face - the name literally translating to black mouth - along with unique badging and some liveried seats inside.

As the Bocanegra comes with nothing other than styling revisions the standard Cupra makes more sense, and it looks no less impressive on the road. The chassis delivers some sporting promise too, the steering is quick and light and grip levels are high. Like its Golf GTI cousin the Cupra boasts XDS - a limited-slip differential aping electronic device that helps the Cupra stay neat through the bends. It works too, the Cupra hanging on well even when pushed hard.

Where the real trouble lies though is that with the Cupra you don't feel as inclined to push it like you might its Renaultsport and MINI rivals. On paper it's just as fast, with a 0-62mph time of 7.2 seconds, but SEAT's decision to fit a seven-speed DSG transmission as standard robs the driver of any real interaction and also has the engine squealing up at high revs or lugging down low thanks to all those ratios. It should work, but the DSG hinders any flow you might have, and clever as fingertip control is it's no good if the gearbox constantly second-guesses you and overrides many of your decisions. It plays too dominant a role in the driving process - and not for the right reasons.

Should I call the bank manager?

Forget the bank and speak to SEAT about financing it. That said, we'd probably spend our money on something other than the Cupra in its current guise. If it did without the DSG and cost around £1,000 less as a result then SEAT would be onto a winner. The gearbox decision does mean that the Cupra is very economical, 148g/km of CO₂ and over 44mpg on the official combined cycle very impressive indeed given its performance, but that's simply not enough to make up for the lack of real fun to be had behind the wheel.

Summary

The Cupra should be a feisty, riotous little hatch from SEAT, but instead of it snapping at the heels of its competition it's taken a completely different path. Sure, it's economical and loaded with new technology, but in engineering it so SEAT has taken a lot of the fun out of actually driving it. And when its rivals captivate and involve the driver so extensively it's difficult to get excited about the detachment the Cupra delivers. Great looks aside the Cupra misses the cut against its more enjoyable competition.

Kyle Fortune