SEAT Leon - Travel Story
A lengthy motorway journey followed by a close encounter with some twisty, undulating B-roads. It was a trip with all the ingredients to provide an accurate impression of any cars true abilities. The Peak District was the destination and SEATs Leon was the car.
The general consensus of opinion pre-trip was that the smartly styled SEAT would devour the motorway mileage with a flourish and barely a flicker of its fuel gauge. The Peak Districts serpentine back roads, it was thought, would present more of a test - putting the cat firmly amongst the pigeons. In the end, thats just about how things panned out but there were more than a few surprises along the way. Like most cars of its ilk, the SEAT Leon is well equipped to soften the hard edges of long distance motorway travel.
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Meanwhile, the high quality sound system provides the entertainment and the satellite navigation system that was fitted to our test car deals a terminal blow to the tired old road atlas. Actually, we took the tired old road atlas anyway - past experiences have taught that a healthy mistrust of satellite navigation is often, well, healthy. Just 50 miles in and it was apparent that motorway cruising is a walk in the park for the Leon. Concerns that the car was prone to horrendous wind noise proved unfounded once we realised that one of the windows was very slightly open and the suspension was obliterating the carriageway expansion joints to impressive effect.
Even with the manual gearstick occupying the 5th gear slot, a prod of the throttle rapidly puts on the 10mph you need to bypass a pair of overtaking HGVs. The torque emanating from the 2.0-litre turbo diesel engine means accelerating back up to speed out of heavy traffic is a breeze and even if you drop down to speeds of 40mph, the Leon will still pick up easily.
"On our trip, the car averaged 40mpg. And it was driven hard."
The roads around the village of Warslow in the Staffordshire Peak District could have been created expressly to upset the equilibrium of a modern family hatch. Winding across the landscape connecting clusters of small stone houses, the narrow tracks twist up inclines and plunge into shallow valleys. These roads would ask big questions of a well-balanced roadster - an observation conformed when a convoy of day-glow Vauxhall VX220s, complete with grinning drivers, blasted past in the other direction. The SEAT fared better than many people would imagine here.
The suspension still soaks up the undulations and ruts to a great extent, which can be a little disconcerting, but when you ask it to brake in a hurry or turn sharply around a dry stone walled hairpin, it does so with reassuring agility. The gearbox isnt slick enough for this kind of driving and finding the required ratio quickly can be difficult. Performance-wise, the 2.0-litre engine is a real pleasure to punt around.
Its smooth and quiet but when you stir it up theres genuine bite to the acceleration. 0-60mph in 9.3 seconds is the official performance figure but powering out of a corner up a Peak District hillside, the flexibility of the powerplant makes it feel considerably quicker than that. The Leons handling on some taxing but enjoyable roads felt very secure, which is more than can be said for yours truly during a night at Warslows Greyhound Inn.
The 17th century pub was brimming with character and hospitality but the landlords spirited rendition of the ghost story attached to the building did little to facilitate a good nights sleep. Still, £35 a night for a well-appointed double room and breakfast seemed excellent value. The next morning it was a short drive through rolling hills bordered by streams and criss-crossed by the dry stone walls to a destination that would put the Leons high speed manoeuvrability firmly in perspective Alton Towers. With names like Nemisis, Submission and (I can hardly bring myself to type it) Oblivion, the rides at this theme park lead you to suspect that youre in for something mildly unpleasant but the reality made the Greyhound ghost story seem like an episode of The Tweenies.
When youve had your sense of direction turned inside out by the dizzying Spinball Wizzer, been fired headfirst through the woods by Air and endured a 50ft vertical drop into a misty pit on Oblivion, the Leons cosseting interior was a joy to collapse into for the drive home. The trip proved that this SEAT can function both as a family runabout and a more than capable long distance cruiser if need be. Its also actually very capable in the twisty stuff for a car of its kind. The gearbox wasnt conducive to quick, fluent changes but the engine was outstanding for powering up the Peak Districts many inclines, traction was near faultless and the chassis remained poised on some testing thoroughfares.
Leon buyers will be pleased to know that their car can cut it cross-country but theres no doubt that the motorways and A-roads are its preferred habitat. Effortless performance, well-crafted interiors and a quality ride all help here but the biggest draw of all for SEAT Leon customers may well be the fuel economy. On our trip, the car managed nearly 50mpg. Thats very impressive for a medium range family-sized five-door being driven reasonably hard.
FACTS AT A GLANCE
CAR: SEAT Leon TDI range
PRICES: £13,412-£17,512 - on the road
INSURANCE GROUPS: 5-11
CO2 EMISSIONS: 132-151g/km
PERFORMANCE: [2.0TDI] Max Speed 125mph / 0-60mph 9.8s
FUEL CONSUMPTION: [2.0TDI] (combined) 50.7mpg
STANDARD SAFETY FEATURES: Twin front, side and curtain airbags, ABS
WILL IT FIT IN YOUR GARAGE?: Length/Width/Heightmm 4315/1768/1458
