Photo: CarPix
The SEAT Leon Cupra has had all sorts of variations over the years, but it looks like Volkswagen is finally willing to let magic happen. A recent rumor suggested a 4Motion system will be added to the ST Cupra wagon, but from the look of these spy photos, there will be a Leon 5-door hatch with AWD.
In fact, we wouldn't call this a Cupra at all, just like the Golf GTI and R belong to completely different brands. But the folks at SEAT don't have anything else to call it, so we think they will bring back the Cupra R name from the last generation. They might also use the CUP name as a motorsport reference.
How do we know this is an AWD car? Well, engineers left the hubs exposed just to give us something to talk about. And you can see the prop shafts sticking out from both the front and the back wheels.
But there's also the fact that we are dealing with an all-new mule, whereas the regular Cupra facelift is at an advanced stage of development and will debut in just four months. Meanwhile, this R model might take until the summer of 2017 to debut.
The prototype has a 5-door body that sits even lower than a regular Cupra on what seem to be 20-inch wheels. The standard dual exhaust system has been replaced by the quad-tipped muffler imported from Golf R. Heck, it even looks like they imported the Golf's diffuser.
We've heard that the AWD super-Leon will be available exclusively with a DSG gearbox and that it will feature a more aggressive body kit. That's something many owners of the previous Cupra have been complaining about - that the current car looks too ordinary.
Of course, this doesn't mean that every Leon will be fitted with all-wheel drive, only that the company is being allowed to develop a hyper hatch to take on the increasingly popular Ford Focus RS.
The Cupra R might also be the only production SEAT model to be allowed access to the 12.3-inch digital dashboard that both Audi and VW offer. But if only half of what we said turns out to be right, it will still be a great car.
How do we know this is an AWD car? Well, engineers left the hubs exposed just to give us something to talk about. And you can see the prop shafts sticking out from both the front and the back wheels.
But there's also the fact that we are dealing with an all-new mule, whereas the regular Cupra facelift is at an advanced stage of development and will debut in just four months. Meanwhile, this R model might take until the summer of 2017 to debut.
The prototype has a 5-door body that sits even lower than a regular Cupra on what seem to be 20-inch wheels. The standard dual exhaust system has been replaced by the quad-tipped muffler imported from Golf R. Heck, it even looks like they imported the Golf's diffuser.
We've heard that the AWD super-Leon will be available exclusively with a DSG gearbox and that it will feature a more aggressive body kit. That's something many owners of the previous Cupra have been complaining about - that the current car looks too ordinary.
Of course, this doesn't mean that every Leon will be fitted with all-wheel drive, only that the company is being allowed to develop a hyper hatch to take on the increasingly popular Ford Focus RS.
The Cupra R might also be the only production SEAT model to be allowed access to the 12.3-inch digital dashboard that both Audi and VW offer. But if only half of what we said turns out to be right, it will still be a great car.
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