New Seat Leon Cupra Revealed With More Powerful 290PS Engine

Seat has given its flagship hot hatch, the Leon Cupra, even more power, stretching the 2.0-litre turbo four-cylinder to 290PS and plans to unveil the car officially at the 2015 Frankfurt Motor Show. 

This power upgrade takes the Leon CUPRA very close to the Volkswagen Golf R's output and well clear of the Renault Megane RS 265 (or Megane RS 275 as well) or Ford Focus ST.

When fitted with the optional DSG dual-clutch transmission, Seat claims the Cupra 290 needs just 5.7 seconds to complete the century sprint, topping out at its 250km/h electronically controlled limit.

The new Cupra 290 also brings with it better fuel economy to go along with the added grunt, with a claimed 5.5-litres/100km possible with the DSG transmission option. Even with a manual, however, the car will still return an impressive claimed figure of 5.72-litres/100km. All that frugality means low CO2 emissions of between 149g/km to 156g/km.

Seat has fitted their new top tier Leon Cupra with a number of components in the pursuit of speed such a front-axle mechanical differential lock, progressive steering, and a finely tuned Dynamic Chassis Control (DCC) system.

It also gets 19-inch wheels as standard, full-LED headlamps and LED rear lights on the outside while on the inside the driver and passengers enjoy Alcantara sports seats, satellite navigation and infotainment functions through its 6.5-inch color touchscreen as well as LED ambient interior lighting.

The optional Sub8 performance pack adds higher-performance tyres, a bespoke wheel design and an uprated braking package.