Seat Leon FR 2006 While the footloose and fancy free youth of Britain were kicking back and enjoying the seemingly endless summer days, we were back at our desks for Seat’s Formula Racing Academy If only this type of schooling was on the curriculum back when we were the straggly, oily-faced revolutionaries of tomorrow; there would have been tentative faces all around. What better incentive to do our homework than an opportunity to drive some fine Spanish machinery around Prodrive’s very own test track in Warwick?
Well, we had to wait twenty years for it but we were more than happy to be pupils for a day at the first official drive of the Seat Leon Formula Racing (FR) model. Just one week earlier it had its UK debut at the British Motor Show alongside the even more outrageous Cupra which made its world debut in London. Clearly our little island across the water is a big player in Seat’s books, when it comes to sporty hatchbacks we’re lapping them up like fish and chips. In fact around 40% of Leon sales went to the previous FR model. Not one to be greedy, Seat has priced their latest FR model at £16,995 for the turbo charged petrol FSI model even though it has plenty of standard equipment and safety features as well as a top speed of 142mph a 0-62mph time of 7.3 seconds.
Our classroom briefing was more than enough to whet our appetite for the high-speed circuit. We were also treated to a test drive through the corkscrew-turns of the handling course as well as a skid pan lesson and a variety of road routes to see how it faired in real driving conditions. There were also some Ibiza and Altea FR models to test, these were launched earlier in the year and were there to demonstrate the common attributes of these models which account for Seat’s sportier end of the market. We were given free reign with the Leon and the Ibiza models both on the track and the roads but the Altea, being a compact MPV was given considerably more protection from the bruising of playground games, never the less it felt surprisingly like a hatch-back car on the roads.
All the FR models benefit from a chassis designed for high speed stability as well as agility, even the £11,975 entry-level Ibiza FR has stiffer dampers and intelligent power steering assistance which is speed sensitive. The Leon and Altea’s suspension are pretty much identical and provide an even more rigid set-up with an aluminium subframe at the front and a multi-link axel at the rear.
Out on the circuit the Leon FR proved very competent, powering out of corners and tucking in tight around the series of cones. Its smoothness understandably grew more impressive as the day went on; this was in relation to being taught how to make the most of its power by thinking ahead and not being too vigorous with the steering inputs. Once our lines were more accurate, it was easy to feel at one with the car and marvel at the way it optimises the traction.
There’s definitely something about this hot hatch that gets you hooked. Its sense of freedom; a harmless rebelliousness that is guaranteed to thrill. Perhaps it’s the feeling it gives us that clinches the sale or the fact that it’s the kind of car we pined after in youth and now that we can afford it, darn right we’re going to have one. The FR certainly offers excitement without the intimidating edge; Seat is a straight talking brand with no heirs and graces. What you drive is what you get so if you don’t feel the auto emocion then, no sales talk is going to make it happen.
Although Seat has created a brand identity for itself, there are of course times when having a popular big brother comes in handy especially when you want to pull some punches. A glorified 197bhp turbocharged petrol engine seems to do the trick. This direct-injection T-FSI version is the same unit used in the VW Golf GTi. You’ve also got the penny-pinching TDI Diesel model which delivers 47mpg on a combined cycle while also utilising168bhp and a mighty 258lb ft of torque.
The FR could not really have been able to borrow the engine without the DSG gearbox though, this would have been like having a video player with your 42” plasma flat screen TV. This Direct Shift Gearbox of course features a double multi-clutch design; while one clutch is responsible for selecting 1st, 3rd and 5th the other is ready to engage 2nd, 4th and 6th keeping the power in full flow. With out interruptions there is no slump in energy so the performance feels more optimum and the fuel economy is also better.
The Leon FR is also has very alluring visuals. Remember back to being at school and having your first crush; she wasn’t any Cindy Crawford but every time you imagined kissing her behind the bike sheds it made your voice go up an octave and your palms go sweaty. And if you had an Leon FR back at college instead of a pushbike, who knows her law firm might be paying for your holidays now instead of the meat-head she left you for.
Still, inside the FR’s extreme body armour you’re no longer a fifteen stone heffer with a smoker’s cough, no there’s hope for you yet up the quarter mile. People will marvel at those pumped up front and rear bumpers, exhaust pipes made from stainless steel, side wing mirrors painted in matt silver and bold five-spoke alloys measuring 17 inches. Inside these Formula Racing models you’ve also got white instrumentation, a leather steering wheel shaped eloquently for grip, an oblong gearstick with its two-tone shade and of course the FR logos embroidered on to the seats.
SEAT FR UK range overview
- SEAT Ibiza 1.8 20v T FR: £11,975
- SEAT Ibiza TDI FR: £13,120
- SEAT Leon T-FSI FR: £16,995
- SEAT Leon TDI FR: £17,495
- SEAT Altea T-FSI FR: £17,295
- SEAT Altea TDI FR: £17,795
Verdict
FOR: Fresh, fun image, incredibly smooth, very practical, safe and fairly priced
AGAINST: The Cupra is only £2,500 more but is clearly the Mac Daddy so there is a concern the FR may get overshadowed.
CONCLUSION: Make no mistake the FR is still very potent, it may not have the overtly sporty features of the Cupra but it still reigns in plenty of respect in the hot hatch field. Drive it how it should be driven and it’s a tidy buddle of fun; it’s smooth out of corners and provides plenty of pull to keep you engaged.
Spec
ENGINE: 2.0 T FSI
Co2 (g/km)/tax: 190/
POWER: 200ps @ 5100rpm
TORQUE (lb/ft): 206 @ 1750rpm
0-62mph (sec): 7.3
TOP SPEED: 142mph
MPG: 25.7/45.6/35.8 (urban/extra-urban/combined)
TRANSMISSION: 6 Speed Manual
LOADING CAPACITY: 341 Boot capacity (ltrs)
WEIGHT: 1418(kg) Kerb weight
PRICE: £16995.00
RIVALS: Skoda Fabia VRS, VW Golf GTi, Vauxhall Astra VXR, Honda Type R, Ford Fiesta ST
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