Spaniards are a passionate people who live life to the full and the same applies to their cars. The Seat Leon FR might be a Golf GTI in drag but has enough of its own Spanish-flavoured character to stand apart from its German cousin.
It was launched recently as a more outgoing, party-animal branch of the extended VW family, with the catch-phrase "Auto emocion".
The Leon range was launched in South Africa in June, 2006, as part of a Seat line up that includes the Altea mini-MPV - also based on the Golf platform - and the Polo-sized Ibiza hatchback.
The FR is a seriously good car, with more flamboyant styling and a slightly lower price tag than its GTI cousin. It comes with a ready-made reputation thanks to its VW underpinnings and is covered by a three-year/120 000km warranty and a five-year/90 000km service plan, as are all Seats.
It's driven by the GTI's 147kW, two-litre turbocharged petrol engine and Seat says it's capable of 0-100km/h in a rapid 7.2sec with a top speed of 240km/h at sea level.
The Leon's big drawcard, however, is its curvaceous and exotic styling; it looks more like a coupé than a hatchback, with its wind tunnel-massaged lines and Alfa-inspired invisible rear door handles (concealed in the door frame).
The big "S" symbol in the middle of the hatch is also the release, a Seat signature feature, while 18" alloy rims tell the GTI Joes they're not dealing with a garden-variety commuter.
Settle yourself into the tightish bucket seat behind the thick, leather-wrapped steering wheel and you discover a cabin environment that's sporty without looking like a Fast and Furious kitsch-mobile.
It has a solid feel and quality interior trimmings nearly on a par with the Golf, though its German sibling's soft-touch plastics still radiate more class.
The fascia is dominated by two liquid crystal displays, a small one for the automatic air-conditioning and a large one for the audio system that's backlit at night in an appealing soft red hue.
The digital displays are surrounded by a neat and not-too-extensive array of buttons, mostly well marked and intuitive in use, except for the ventilation system where buttons instead of simpler-to-use knobs are employed to set the temperature and fan speed.
You need to jab-jab-jab the buttons to adjust the settings instead of giving one knob a quick twirl. The air conditioner also switches on every time you press the recirculate button whether you want cold air or not, an annoying feature that's inexplicably becoming more prevalent in modern cars.
Hands free
The FR comes with a lot of tricks for the money, including Bluetooth hands-free communication that requires no physical connection between the car and your cellphone. You can link it to the car's network and use it "hands-free" via the steering wheel's buttons and multifunction control lever.
The car also has automatic wiper and headlights switches, cruise control and a rear parking aid; safety equipment includes anti-lock brakes, traction control, six crash bags (eight, optionally), seat belt pre-tensioners and tyre-pressure monitors.
Seat is well known in Europe for its World Rally championship and Touring Car exploits and the Leon FR gives petrolheads the chance to buy into that image.
You already know this car is quick from the performance figures above but it's also civilised and easy to drive with no annoying idiosyncrasies. Its claimed 280Nm of torque is delivered from only 1800rpm and stays constant to 5000rpm, giving it a spirited power delivery without any significant turbo lag.
It pulls with great gusto throughout its rev range, aside from a slight hesitation at low revs at Gauteng altitude.
Clinging to the road
The FR also rates high on the enjoy-o-meter in the corners, doggedly clinging to the road with the aid of a traction control system that can be switched off if the driver chooses.
It handles with the body roll-resistant, understeer-on-the-limits characteristics of most hot hatches, its electrical power-steering becoming heavier as the car's speed increases.
The ride is firm and leaves no ambiguity about this car's sporting role; stopping takes place in a hurry when you need it thanks to the all-disc ABS anchors.
It's an entertaining drive all round, with power delivery that paints a smile on your mug, but without any raucous engine or wind noise. The only downside is the greedy 12.4 litres per 100km combined fuel consumption, much higher than Seat's claimed 8.1.
SUMMARY
For some reason Seats are generally more expensive in South Africa than their VW cousins, the opposite to Europe. The Leon FR is the exception; it costs R5000 less than the Golf GTi.
That makes it good value as well as a terrific car all round: fast, agile, great-looking and high-spirited.