That's true. Yet strangely VW has a tyre lottery system where the Mk8 Golf GTI and R come on one of three summer tyres: Goodyear Eagle F1 Super Sport, Bridgestone Potenza S005A (Auto Express say Potenza Sport for the R, so maybe this has changed) or Hankook Ventus S1 evo3. So you don't even know which tyre you will get.
@@BlackFlag94 it is not just the tyres, the golf clubsport and gold R are all-wheel-drive and the cupra just front wheel. All in all i think the cupra is faster and stronger even with this "handicap"
I love all the Videos that are now appearing with Steve driving. He seemed to go missing for a couple of years to a large degree. It's brilliant that he is now back, showing us how it's done :)
@@Tpviper Excellent. i am not going to dis it.because i have not driven or seen one. if you get as much enjoyment out of it as i have with my 2 Golf R and my TCR then happy times for you driving it!,
I mean, I have the 1.0l 110hp 6spd manual Seat Leon and even that feels fun and light on its feet. It’s responsive and when it’s safe to, you can really throw it in to a corner. Granted the electric power steering really doesn’t give me too much feedback but it’s really fun to drive and for a 110hp 1.0l 3 cylinder turbo, once you’re on boost, it’s just gets up and goes. The only bad part of the whole Leon range is the infotainment as there are a number of errors and bugs and glitches that occur
A few tenths between each car? Doubt you can say anything conclusive other than they're all about as fast as each other. It's not that the CS is better than the R, and the Cupra is better than the CS on the track - it's that they're all pretty good.
but considering the R is supposedly running more power than the other two says a lot as well (I don't believe for a second that A. the R has 360 (people reckon it's more) and B that the Cupra is 296 (I bet it's almost the same as the R)
GTI Clubsport all the way...as said the difference maybe it’s on the rubber..and it looks obviously better than the Cupra and the Golf R. All great cars!! Nice comparison!
Might have missed it, but would have been great to know if the Golf R was equipped with active dampers, or not and what “mode” it was placed in. I’m sure Steve would have set it up as best as possible, but mentioning its state of config would have been a good addition to the vid. I wish VW South Africa had not bungled the Seat offering in SA; it was never going to sell well against the VW Golf / Polo equivalent at a similar price point. Such great handling cars.
Add to that the engagement and “fun” factor. That’s what makes people love cupras. At least here in the uk. Too bad they got rid of the lux option and instead used vz configuration. The cupra with a vz2 is now over 40 grand 😢
Yet another Golf-beating Golf from Seat. I could see why Seat were given better options in the early days with the original Leon having the 180bhp 20VT lumps from the TT compared to the GTI’s 150bhp (in non-Anniversary form) to boost their reputation, but even with exactly the same engines Seat show they’ve got some kinda engineering voodoo. It’s all money in the same pot to VAG but it’s still slightly surprising given the GTI’s status as a “halo” product.
From many previous generations too, the Cupra's always seem to be the sharper instruments for carving up the track when compared to the equivalent VW models. The general VW focus tends to be vanilla and middle of the road, while the Cupra models are a little more eccentric and special. Thanks for a great comparison! 😎👍🏼
Great to see Sutters back more regularly! So there we have it, Golf R for 95% of the time (as a daily), Clubsport or Cupra if you do track days (or even better, a Type R or a Focus RS)
Goodyear Eagle F1 is not a specific tyre. It is a family of tyres. Eagle F1 Asymetric 1 to 5 or Eagle F1 Supersport are all specific tyres. Poor reporting!
As the previous generation, the best sporty golf is the léon cupra. This one will remplace my 5f in few years for sure. It is what tudor is for Rolex. 👌
Golf Rs have almost no discount. The Clubsport does offer decent discounts, hence the difference in cost new is possibly £6K. The Clubsport also avoids extra tax as even the list price (which nobody should pay) will come in (with sensible options) at under £40K
You just like your dark horse which is the SEAT. I've always like the respect you give the car. Great test you had with them... At least the SEAT wasn't the best lawnmower today lol.
The uk spec cupra doesn’t have the brembo brakes, dcc, that paint, or the switchable drive modes on the steering wheel. No wonder they sent over a left hooker
Really annoys me every journalist hasn’t done just a bit of research on this. They rave about the brembo brakes and traction button but they don’t exist in the UK! Although we do get the DCC
Waw I didn’t expect that from a VW fan. There’s something about the R though and let’s face 99% of people drive on the road and have a bit of fun at the traffic lights with mates or strangers doing a drag and the R would rip them apart. I know because I have one 😂
Kids do drag races because they only know how to launch a car with launch control and push the gas pedal. Thats all. My grandma can beat everyone in a car like that. Real drivers race over 10 km of road full of corners. There you can see real driving skills. Not in a stupid drag race.
@@johnkisch240 in the real world with your lil 10km road full of corners the R will start ahead and finish ahead. 99% of people will not track their hatchback.
Did the GTi CS have Good Year Eagle F1 Super-sports on? If so, they’re an incredible tyre. They are on par if not better than the Michelin 4S in terms of feel/grip (from all the reviews I’ve seen).
90% will never see the track, given the amount of rain in Ireland/ England, the R is the car to have. Also tyres make A massive difference, so not really a fair comparison.
Steve the testing beast One thing to note the Civic Type R and Sport Line Type R - no big wing - have become almost impossible to order new in the UK since Honda Swindon closed it's doors. Does this make the Cupra Leon the new benchmark hot hatch?
The difference is negligible and the question that I have is : would the lap time improve on the 3rd lap given that you would know the track better on the 3rd time compared to the 1st lap - therefore would the result have been different if the Golf R went in 3rd place?
The result would be the same - our lap times are set after extensive testing of each car around the track, and Steve knows Llandow like the back of his hand! The Leon was the quickest car on the day.
As with the previous generation the Cupra is the quickest and by all means the better car. Especially when considering the price, spec and the vanishing interior quality difference after VWs cuts. However, the CS still is the Best Buy I suppose? The badge and heritage cannot be underestimated
Sutters is a ledge no doubt.... but you need the 19's on the golf r with the Goodyear eagles... the standard 18's have Bridgestone which aren't up to the job on track. And ideally either all pan roofs or all non pan roof... alot of weight in the worst possible place that for the R and the Cupra. And yes.. im biased...i have a Mk8 R on 19's with no pan roof.... But when there's 100ths in it its gotta be a level playing field. That said... top vid
That was a but unfair, the R miss the Performance Pack, that the other two has standard. That include the 19" with the "same" tires. With that the R would be as fast....In rain 10sec faster ;).. But great Video :)
The whole world was waiting to see the track race between Golf R vs Clubsport and Cupra Leon too..Thank you for making this video...Great reviewer
When the difference is just 0.2 0.3 0.5 the tires can make the difference
Tyres can make more difference than that!
That's true. Yet strangely VW has a tyre lottery system where the Mk8 Golf GTI and R come on one of three summer tyres: Goodyear Eagle F1 Super Sport, Bridgestone Potenza S005A (Auto Express say Potenza Sport for the R, so maybe this has changed) or Hankook Ventus S1 evo3. So you don't even know which tyre you will get.
@@BlackFlag94 more and less
@@BlackFlag94 it is not just the tyres, the golf clubsport and gold R are all-wheel-drive and the cupra just front wheel. All in all i think the cupra is faster and stronger even with this "handicap"
@@snipers2914 clubsport is front wheel drive
We want more of Steve on the channel.
indeed! He's awesome.
Definitely.
He is the most passionate motoring journalist.
Second that!
Here here!
What a difference can Steve make to a car review. A true legend!
I love all the Videos that are now appearing with Steve driving. He seemed to go missing for a couple of years to a large degree. It's brilliant that he is now back, showing us how it's done :)
Always great to see Steve on this reviews!
I'm tired of the 1/4 mile tests...
1:20 Golf R specs
4:08 GTi ClubSport specs
7:03 Cupra 300 specs
9:25 results
Hero
Looks like you've lost weight. Great job.
like a whole bunch of weight holy moly
Steve Clubsport edition :)
Helps the cars post better times too!
Win-win..!
😆🤣
Cupra faster around a track than a Golf R. The same thing happened with the last generation.
Tires.
@@upload9595 I wonder how these would do on cup 2’s.
Tires do make a huge difference
but no one buys a cupra. and they will line up to get the Golf ,R
@@MrRonan3
I bought one mate👍
@@Tpviper Excellent. i am not going to dis it.because i have not driven or seen one.
if you get as much enjoyment out of it as
i have with my 2 Golf R and my TCR then
happy times for you driving it!,
Steve lost some weight huh, lookin healthy, good for him. One of the best reviewers out there imo.
Yea I thought that too, defo lost some
Totally trust Steve's views
More Steve please! Could listen to that guy all day. Really enjoyed that group test and Steve’s enthusiasm
So it’s a golf vs a golf vs a golf!
I mean, I have the 1.0l 110hp 6spd manual Seat Leon and even that feels fun and light on its feet. It’s responsive and when it’s safe to, you can really throw it in to a corner. Granted the electric power steering really doesn’t give me too much feedback but it’s really fun to drive and for a 110hp 1.0l 3 cylinder turbo, once you’re on boost, it’s just gets up and goes. The only bad part of the whole Leon range is the infotainment as there are a number of errors and bugs and glitches that occur
I've been waiting for this for a long time! Thank-you!
Whenever Steve comes he's just the best. Awesome!!! job man.
Steve loves a surprise result, so do we!
A few tenths between each car? Doubt you can say anything conclusive other than they're all about as fast as each other. It's not that the CS is better than the R, and the Cupra is better than the CS on the track - it's that they're all pretty good.
Wise words
but considering the R is supposedly running more power than the other two says a lot as well (I don't believe for a second that A. the R has 360 (people reckon it's more) and B that the Cupra is 296 (I bet it's almost the same as the R)
@@dannb0dge the R has been on rolling roads and comes out 340 - 350. It's rated at 316bhp.
The other problem is that Steve doesn't have the performance pack on the R. Which gives proper manual control over the gearbox
Agree that is like a miss shift ;)...But next time they must use the same tires, between the 18 and 19 is probably 0,5sec.. :)
Another brilliant test drive from the master Steve !!!
The Cupra is the real drivers choice
GTI Clubsport all the way...as said the difference maybe it’s on the rubber..and it looks obviously better than the Cupra and the Golf R. All great cars!! Nice comparison!
I agree, rubber makes a big difference
Agree re the tyres but golf better looking then Leon lol no chance
So considering the R weighs more it's only .2 secs slower than a gti. Very impressive id say
Might have missed it, but would have been great to know if the Golf R was equipped with active dampers, or not and what “mode” it was placed in. I’m sure Steve would have set it up as best as possible, but mentioning its state of config would have been a good addition to the vid. I wish VW South Africa had not bungled the Seat offering in SA; it was never going to sell well against the VW Golf / Polo equivalent at a similar price point. Such great handling cars.
Goes to show, it's not always about AWD...or auto for that matter: Steve set a faster lap in the Type R than all of these and that's FWD and Manual.
Add to that the engagement and “fun” factor. That’s what makes people love cupras. At least here in the uk. Too bad they got rid of the lux option and instead used vz configuration. The cupra with a vz2 is now over 40 grand 😢
Yet another Golf-beating Golf from Seat. I could see why Seat were given better options in the early days with the original Leon having the 180bhp 20VT lumps from the TT compared to the GTI’s 150bhp (in non-Anniversary form) to boost their reputation, but even with exactly the same engines Seat show they’ve got some kinda engineering voodoo. It’s all money in the same pot to VAG but it’s still slightly surprising given the GTI’s status as a “halo” product.
Seat make the TCR chassis
it comes stock on all fast seats
Lean n mean Steve! More of those videos,please!
Track battle of the week
That Cupra is a stunning hothatch
such a cool car. And more unique.
Would be perfect if not for the interior lacking any buttons.. shame
@@Joshua-uq9zw bro you want them Touch Buttons on the Golf steeringwheel?! You serious?
So in the the real world all pretty much the same, great review 👍😎
This is the best I have seen you in a long time. You have lost 10 years.
Had to pause the video and also comment on how trim Steve is looking nowadays. Great job mate!
Steve, you look younger and more clubsport yourself too
Cupra is slightly faster but looks a lot better which would be the reason I’d have it over the vdubs.
Looking trim Steve 👏
When I have the money... Clubsport will probably be the one.
More Steve he’s the Car guys, guy.
And this léon has got the sun roof 😂
Wow was not expecting that result!
Shame they are all on different tyres, suspect the results would be different if they were all on identical tyres.
Weird to be watching a car review and then him name the track like 5 mins from my house haha
Steve is the best ,
His style, is his own ,
Dont ever change ......
Hold tight Sutcliffe, been pumping out quality automotive content since I had hairs on my sack.
Ok then big boy.
I'd take the Cupra
What a dude 👍🏼 love his reviews
Hello Mat Watson here from carwow, I recon you should go right ahead and buy the Cupra Leon.
From many previous generations too, the Cupra's always seem to be the sharper instruments for carving up the track when compared to the equivalent VW models.
The general VW focus tends to be vanilla and middle of the road, while the Cupra models are a little more eccentric and special.
Thanks for a great comparison!
😎👍🏼
I think Steve is very underrated. I enjoy his videos a lot
Who’s underrating him?
He is not a social media maniac just honest reviews.
Interesting - love the fact the Cupra feels more fun, sick of hearing about the Golf R! How does the M135i compare?
How come the Golf R's torque vectoring system doesn't seem to be working in this test? Seems odd. :)
Great to see Sutters back more regularly! So there we have it, Golf R for 95% of the time (as a daily), Clubsport or Cupra if you do track days (or even better, a Type R or a Focus RS)
The three amigos are back..😎
Love this! More track battle please.. ✌❤
Goodyear Eagle F1 is not a specific tyre. It is a family of tyres. Eagle F1 Asymetric 1 to 5 or Eagle F1 Supersport are all specific tyres. Poor reporting!
As the previous generation, the best sporty golf is the léon cupra.
This one will remplace my 5f in few years for sure.
It is what tudor is for Rolex. 👌
Golf Rs have almost no discount. The Clubsport does offer decent discounts, hence the difference in cost new is possibly £6K. The Clubsport also avoids extra tax as even the list price (which nobody should pay) will come in (with sensible options) at under £40K
Cannot believe people are paying 45k for a Golf 😀
@@relentlesspursuit6894 can’t believe people are paying £35k for Yaris. But I did - on both.
@@gaycha6589 because it's not a Yaris is it - The Golf is just a Golf
@@relentlesspursuit6894 I have both and see no probs with the man maths. The 7.5R is a special car
@@gaycha6589 it's a Golf = nothing special
Leon looks a good value.
Thanks Steve!
You just like your dark horse which is the SEAT. I've always like the respect you give the car. Great test you had with them... At least the SEAT wasn't the best lawnmower today lol.
WE NEED A DRAG RACE
Why?
Stability control off button on the middle console is an option the UK does NOT have access too. Instead start stop is on the centre console. FYI
Wow. Great. *Steve* Looking *Lean* and Mean. More Suttie!
Steve Sutcliffe is the best....together with Chris Harris....absolutely top class.
A Mk1 Cupra R v Mk2 v Mk3 v M4 feature would be great.
The uk spec cupra doesn’t have the brembo brakes, dcc, that paint, or the switchable drive modes on the steering wheel. No wonder they sent over a left hooker
Really annoys me every journalist hasn’t done just a bit of research on this. They rave about the brembo brakes and traction button but they don’t exist in the UK! Although we do get the DCC
Great video! Congratulations
Waw I didn’t expect that from a VW fan. There’s something about the R though and let’s face 99% of people drive on the road and have a bit of fun at the traffic lights with mates or strangers doing a drag and the R would rip them apart. I know because I have one 😂
Kids do drag races because they only know how to launch a car with launch control and push the gas pedal. Thats all. My grandma can beat everyone in a car like that. Real drivers race over 10 km of road full of corners. There you can see real driving skills. Not in a stupid drag race.
@@johnkisch240 Totally agree, finally some common sense words 👏🏻👏🏻
@@johnkisch240 in the real world with your lil 10km road full of corners the R will start ahead and finish ahead. 99% of people will not track their hatchback.
So once again the Cupra is faster.
Probably like the previous gen, the book figure power of the Cupra is less than the R but in reality it's not.
When you consider that you get a Cupra fully loaded for under 40k which is same price as Golf R stock.... wow.
It's certainly great value!
Did the GTi CS have Good Year Eagle F1 Super-sports on? If so, they’re an incredible tyre. They are on par if not better than the Michelin 4S in terms of feel/grip (from all the reviews I’ve seen).
90% will never see the track, given the amount of rain in Ireland/ England, the R is the car to have. Also tyres make A massive difference, so not really a fair comparison.
And the quickest IS ...Leon Cupra 280 sub 8 from 10 years ago 😅
There seemed to be more enthusiasm for the GTI and Cupra over the R, hence the results.
Leon Looks so much better. And performs better too :o nicely done SEAT!
Leon 300 is a GTI with some flair
Interesting comparison! I still wouldn't swap my 7R tho
Too bad they don't give us the cupras here in the states !😡🤦🏾♂️
Steve the testing beast
One thing to note the Civic Type R and Sport Line Type R - no big wing - have become almost impossible to order new in the UK since Honda Swindon closed it's doors. Does this make the Cupra Leon the new benchmark hot hatch?
Get the pcp deals out lads........
The difference is negligible and the question that I have is : would the lap time improve on the 3rd lap given that you would know the track better on the 3rd time compared to the 1st lap - therefore would the result have been different if the Golf R went in 3rd place?
The result would be the same - our lap times are set after extensive testing of each car around the track, and Steve knows Llandow like the back of his hand! The Leon was the quickest car on the day.
What sort of mpg do people get from golf r?
As with the previous generation the Cupra is the quickest and by all means the better car. Especially when considering the price, spec and the vanishing interior quality difference after VWs cuts. However, the CS still is the Best Buy I suppose? The badge and heritage cannot be underestimated
I love the Cupra Leon... just a very nice powerful car!!! 😉👍
New top gear - Chris Harris, harry metcalfe & Steve sutcliff
it would ve been fair for clubsport to have a sunroof aswell. Maybe the time would have been the same as golf R.
Spain 1 : Germany 0
Leon is German Too. Except Design.
It will ne interesting to compare with golf R with R performance pack!!!
Great video
Now it's the Cupra vs Type R vs the facelift i30N and find out which one most fun 😊😊
Plus the Megane 300 Trophy.
Great comparison. Also looks like Steve lost a lot of weight
Wanted to watch the video but then saw mph and left
I'm not much of a fan of the latest generation golf's looks, but it's still better looking than the Cupra..IMHO
Golf R will always win in a straight line. It’s not exactly built for track racing, hence why it has 4wd.
I subs because of this pro driver.
Well, I think you will always faster on 3rd car, because of you warm up
Cupra has 4piston brakes...
Sutters is a ledge no doubt.... but you need the 19's on the golf r with the Goodyear eagles... the standard 18's have Bridgestone which aren't up to the job on track.
And ideally either all pan roofs or all non pan roof... alot of weight in the worst possible place that for the R and the Cupra.
And yes.. im biased...i have a Mk8 R on 19's with no pan roof....
But when there's 100ths in it its gotta be a level playing field.
That said... top vid
Absolutely!
Bottom line is on same Tyres with similar spec, there is nothing in it. In the dry at least.
You forgot the best. Megane Trophy is not interesting to compare three of the same cars ...
A few tenths... Is an epic gap ! Wow Cupra! Not available in North America (Seat also)
If you drive the golf r after than the cupra again probably you will improve the lap time
That was a but unfair, the R miss the Performance Pack, that the other two has standard. That include the 19" with the "same" tires. With that the R would be as fast....In rain 10sec faster ;).. But great Video :)
Please test the octavia vrs on this track
Should have taken an 8 R with the R Performance Pack. Different world
Yeah the spoiler would make loads of difference
🙄