Any major problems to look out for on cupra 280?

[Mcdoodlz]

Hi all,

I recently placed a deposit on a 2015 cupra 280 with the manual gearbox due to pick up next week but just thought I’d ask around and see what things I should be careful of/look out for. The cars done 21,000 miles and everything seems okay from what I could see which is why I so quickly placed the deposit!

Only issue was how stiff the clutch pedal was but I’m guessing that’s normal in this car? Anyone’s opinion would be grateful

Sorry if this is in the wrong place I’ve only just signed up but I look forward to hearing from anyone who has any knowledge of these cars

Thanks

 

[Wings988]

I've had a 2015 registered (2016MY) 280 manual from new for 2 1/2 years, now on almost 27,000 miles and the only problems I've had were cracking outer rear lights and wheel nut caps falling off, both sorted under warranty. Check the rear light lenses for cracks, it happens on the lights fitted to the car body not the tailgate and usually occurs at the outer edges. Otherwise I'm not aware of any major issues, there might be the odd squeak or rattle from the interior trim. At only 21,000 it should be in good mechanical order for anything that's expensive to fix.

 

[Mcdoodlz]

I've had a 2015 registered (2016MY) 280 manual from new for 2 1/2 years, now on almost 27,000 miles and the only problems I've had were cracking outer rear lights and wheel nut caps falling off, both sorted under warranty. Check the rear light lenses for cracks, it happens on the lights fitted to the car body not the tailgate and usually occurs at the outer edges. Otherwise I'm not aware of any major issues, there might be the odd squeak or rattle from the interior trim. At only 21,000 it should be in good mechanical order for anything that's expensive to fix.

I noticed the missing wheel caps the dealer told me he’d sort it out it’s no big issue as I bet they’re relatively cheap on eBay. I’ll have a quick check at the lights before I hand over the full amount. I’ve had Ibiza’s and Leon’s in the past with no issues whatsoever. Can’t fault Seat hence the purchase of the cupra. Next week is going to drag waiting for pickup!

 

[Deleted member 103408]

I have had a 280 with no issues and very very happy with it and will keep it for the long run.

However the issues that have been reported on this site are:

Front Lights (LED) plastic lens can be covered in what looks like dust
The white seat edging has been know to crack
Make sure you have a good set of rubber as the Cupra needs it to keep the power on the road
Rear Lights cracked and also leaking
Diamond cut wheels look good but can suffer (number of threads on this site about it) with curbing and the top coat looking bad (I think they call it white worm rot), these wheels are not cheap to fix

one thing that is mentioned a lot, when its cold the MIB unit can play up, once the car warms up all ok.

Check the front radar box (its the black square in the middle of the front grill) if its damaged make sure the adaptive cruise control works, its expensive to replace and re configure.

Also ask if the windscreen has been replaced, if it has the sensors have to be re aligned so again make sure the fancy stuff works ok.

Great cars, enjoy you will have lots of fun with it.

 

[kiddo]

I've got a 2015 280 dsg and it's been a cracking car. The only negative, and this is being picky, are the diamond cut multispokes I have on my car. Lacquer starting to peel in places. Other than that no issues. No rattles, no rips in white section of seat, no issue with HU locking up in cold weather, no issue with front or rear light clusters. As others have said get decent rubber on as getting the power down can be fun. I fitted pilot sports and a dog bone insert which got rid of the nasty wheel hop. Im sure you'll love it

 

[MrJohn91]

I, and a few others before me had to insulate the door cards as when you crank the music up (if you're a loud music lover) they rattle to varying levels.
Also common problem when it's cold is the auto levelling headlights motor tends to stick and so (in my case) the drivers side headlight does not return up on the cold mornings.

Sent from my G8141 using Tapatalk

 

[Chudders]

I've also had the PCV (Oil Seperator) i think they call it in VAG Terms replaced, and when i called for the part they said they had sold multiple this week as it is; They also revised both the Valve & Breather pipe about 8 months ago because of it - definitely checking it for oil leaks/vaccum leaks, white smoke etc. seems a common fault

 

[Major Tom]

The manual clutch is made of cheese.

 

[Mcdoodlz]

Cheers for the responses guys I’ll have a quick check over on everything mentioned on my next dealer visit before the big cash handover! I may check this door card rattling as I do like my music, I take it’s a pretty simple bodge?

As for the clutch being made of cheese I opted for manual as I prefer manuals and also there’s more to go wrong in a dsg in my opinion and the cost to replace is more, that’s my theory behind it anyway.

Nevertheless I’m looking forward to owning one of these, I chose dynamic grey and can’t wait to drive it away!

 

[Mcdoodlz]

Also can anyone confirm that all cupra 280’s come with the ambient led door light strips? I’ve got them in my courtesy car and I love them

 

[Chudders]

First of all dynamic grey is absolutely beautiful, probably my favourite.

The Door card job is very simple, just buy some VW/Audi Clips on eBay for about £4, Pop the door card off with some pry tools, undo the connections to the door controls, put some sound deadening foam/anti-vibration matt underneath and on the metal and use the new clips to pop it back on (You do break a few removing it) - I found the main vibration was a plastic grommet which is used to protect the glass on the inside, there's a big hole basically which it fills, i taped it on to stop it moving.

Yes there is Ambient lighting along the door card, but only in the front, It's White when in comfort, and red when in Sport/Cupra mode however you cannot see it during daylight at-all for obvious reasons... (You cannot change the colours, and the radio/thermostat dials etc are always red)

I also opted for a manual like you, although do wish i'd gone DSG - but hey ho, i love the car.

Also can anyone confirm that all cupra 280’s come with the ambient led door light strips? I’ve got them in my courtesy car and I love them

 

[MrJohn91]

I've also had the PCV (Oil Seperator) i think they call it in VAG Terms replaced, and when i called for the part they said they had sold multiple this week as it is; They also revised both the Valve & Breather pipe about 8 months ago because of it - definitely checking it for oil leaks/vaccum leaks, white smoke etc. seems a common fault

Can you please give me some more detail about this? I have noticed white smoke out of mine and was curious why it smoked so much. Have a brief Google but didn't see much on there.

Sent from my G8141 using Tapatalk

 

[Deleted member 103408]

First of all dynamic grey is absolutely beautiful, probably my favourite.

The Door card job is very simple, just buy some VW/Audi Clips on eBay for about £4, Pop the door card off with some pry tools, undo the connections to the door controls, put some sound deadening foam/anti-vibration matt underneath and on the metal and use the new clips to pop it back on (You do break a few removing it) - I found the main vibration was a plastic grommet which is used to protect the glass on the inside, there's a big hole basically which it fills, i taped it on to stop it moving.

Yes there is Ambient lighting along the door card, but only in the front, It's White when in comfort, and red when in Sport/Cupra mode however you cannot see it during daylight at-all for obvious reasons... (You cannot change the colours, and the radio/thermostat dials etc are always red)

I also opted for a manual like you, although do wish i'd gone DSG - but hey ho, i love the car.

Just a small update on the ambient light, You are correct you can't change them using the car menu (like you can with the new facelift ones) however you can make changes using OBD11 that make them work differently to how it comes from the factory.
Lots of info on the OBD11 Thread if you are interested.

You can also turn off the cupra button going yellow when in Cupra so all the switches stay red if you so desire.

 

[Chudders]

Can you please give me some more detail about this? I have noticed white smoke out of mine and was curious why it smoked so much. Have a brief Google but didn't see much on there.

Sent from my G8141 using Tapatalk

When mine failed the breather pipe was proper full of oil, which subsequently the engine burned off and produced white smoke consistently, had to replace the actual pcv valve & breather. - don't take it as gospel but I think the cupra 280 does smoke a little and uses a bit of oil anyway, I noticed because my dipstick was showing half after filling it up 3 months prior, popped off the engine cover and could see a bit of a misting of oil around the rear on the pcv valve, so got it checked out & needed replacing.

 

[Mcdoodlz]

Just a small update on the ambient light, You are correct you can't change them using the car menu (like you can with the new facelift ones) however you can make changes using OBD11 that make them work differently to how it comes from the factory.
Lots of info on the OBD11 Thread if you are interested.

You can also turn off the cupra button going yellow when in Cupra so all the switches stay red if you so desire.

I’ll have a read of the OBD11 thread it sounds quite interesting