Review: the refreshed 189bhp Seat Ibiza Cupra

What’s this?

More significant than it looks. Seat’s Ibiza Cupra supermini has had a facelift so miniscule we won’t bother playing spot the difference here, but the mechanicals have gone somewhat old-school.

Hand-crank start, is it? Carburettors?

Not that old-school. But we’ve got a new 1.8-litre turbocharged engine and a manual gearbox. Doesn’t sound too thrilling, but the old Cupra had a 1.4 twin-charged engine that traded revs and fizziness for torque and economy, and compounded the boredom by only offering a twin-clutch automatic gearbox. That’s all in the bin, and we’ve got a six-speed manual or nowt this time.

And has it made the Cupra more exciting to drive?

Yes, though the powertrain isn’t actually the best thing about this car. For what it’s worth, the motor is just as tractable as before but pulls far harder above 4500rpm, and you get a good dollop of noise in reward.

Meanwhile the gearshift isn’t entering the hall of fame for great stick-shifts, lacking the mechanical precision of a certain Ford product I could mention here, but won’t. But just by being there, by offering a lever to wiggle around and a third pedal to control, this Ibiza instantly feels more alive in your hands, and erm, feet. It’s fun to be busy in a buzzy little hatch like this.

How about the handling?

We’ll explore this in more detail later this week on TG.com when we twin-test this car against its aristocratic German stepsister, the VW Polo GTI. But suffice to say, the Ibiza thrives a high corner entry speed and being thrown at corners. It feels so, so planted, like its centre of gravity is a foot lower than it ought to be.

It’s not as playful as that Ford product, but there’s been times in a Fiesta ST when I’ve found its tail-happy rear end robs the car of some cross country pace. If point-to-point pace over larking about is how you like your pocket rockets, the Ibiza Cupra makes a sterling case for itself.

Good car, then?

Yes – a demonstrably improved one, in fact. At £18,100 (this ‘Black’ edition offering glossier 17-inch rims and standard sat-nav, is another £700), it’s usefully cheaper than the Polo GTI, but the discount-happy shadow of that pesky Ford hangs heavy over the Seat. The Ibiza is eons closer to the top of the class than before though, and proves a point RenaultSport should heed nicely – hot hatchbacks are best when they’re kept nice and simple.

Photography: Simon Thompson