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DoneDeal of the week: Two cars that are fast, fun and functional
The SEAT Leon ST Cupra and Volkswagen Golf R look unassuming but both hide some potency.
THIS WEEK WE have two cars that are practical and offer serious levels of performance.
First up, this 2016 SEAT Leon ST Cupra
The SEAT Leon ST is a very handsome estate indeed – but underneath its practical form is some serious performance. This particular car is finished in Nevada White metallic paint and has silver roof rails, body coloured bumpers, tinted rear windows, black mirrors and around the back is a black diffuser with two large exhaust pipes. This car comes with 19-inch Cupra Machine alloys.
The interior is spacious and has plenty of storage and the boot can hold 587 litres with the rear seats up and 1470 litres with the rear seats folded. The interior features Alcantara sports seats finished in a two-tone coffee-black scheme. It looks fresh and adds a bit of style to the cabin.
There is an on-board trip computer and a 6.5-inch touchscreen in the centre console from where you can control most of the car’s functions including selecting any of the four drive modes. There is a flat-bottomed, multi-function leather steering wheel with Tiptronic, a sports gearshift knob, Bluetooth, 12V, AUX and USB, as well as voice activation facilities.
Safety features include a tyre pressure monitoring system, rear parking distance control, daytime running lights, rear fog lights, cruise control system, Hill Hold Control and Electronic Vehicle Immobilisation Device.
It is powered by a 2.0-litre petrol engine with a six-speed automatic transmission driving power to the front wheels. It produces 290hp and goes from 0 to 100km/h in 6.0 seconds and onto a top speed of 250km/h. The official combined fuel economy figure is 6.6 litres/100km.
It falls into tax band C, which means it is €390 to tax a year and has just 147km on the clock and a €40,515 price tag.
Next is this 2015 Volkswagen Golf R
The Volkswagen Golf R offers serious levels of performance. No, really, serious levels of performance. And buckets of fun to drive. It is a very capable car and handles the road well and feels very planted thanks to that 4Motion all-wheel-drive grip.
This particular car is finished in Tornado Red, and we all know how fast tornados and red cars go: very fast, in case you were wondering. It looks similar to the regular Golf but this car sits 20mm lower and the bumper features deep air intakes to help keep that engine cool. The rear features double-flow chrome tailpipes, a body-colored spoiler and discreet R badging. The wheels are 19-inch Cadiz alloys.
The cabin is roomy, has plenty of storage and the boot can hold 605 litres with the seats up and 1620 litres with the rear seats folded. The interior is finished in Titan Black fabric with Pearl Grey headliner and Piano Black inserts. There are subtle blue accents and ambient lighting to remind you that you are in an R and not a regular Golf. It’s a nice touch. There is a leather-wrapped multifunction sports steering wheel, a sporty aluminium gearshift knob, Bluetooth, 12V, AUX and USB, as well as composition media and radio with a multi-function colour display.
Safety features include adaptive cruise control ACC, a tyre pressure monitoring system and an electronic stabilisation program (ESP) with driver steering recommendation including ABS with brake assist, ASR, EDL, and EDTC.
It is powered by a 2.0-litre petrol engine with a six-speed manual transmission driving power to all four wheels. It produces 300hp and goes from 0 to 100km/h in 5.1 seconds and onto a top speed of 250km/h. The official combined fuel economy figure is 7.1 litres/100km.
It falls into tax band D, which means it is €570 to tax a year and has 9,989km on the clock and a €37,995 price tag.
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