Cupra R ABT issues

[Peter Puttock]

I bought one of the ABT ST R's in August and love it. I was intrigued about what bhp it was meant to produce, I had seen claims of 245, 250 and even 370 via various road test reports. I took it to Surrey Rolling Road and they found:
323 bhp, which is down on spec.... but 350 ft/lbs of torque (more than 470 Nm), which is above spec.
So, the power was low and the curve falls off at 5,500 rpm. I wondered whether it might be that the engine was still tight. i haven't thrashed it and it was only 2500 miles.
As I left I noticed that the gear indicator said D3, D4 etc, not S3, S4, which it does when you put into Sport or Cupra mode. I also notice that, when you start the car, it always does this. If you then select Cupra mode the indicator changes to Sx.
So, I am wondering whether the system resets itself each time you stop the engine, and then you have to re-select Cupra mode?
I am over the moon with the car.... it is all things to all men/women(PC correctness for you!).... I drove to Bergerac and got 38 mpg (and still got a speeding ticket!), and if I want to drive like a loonie, it is very fast. I ride bikes so 0-60 in 2.4 seconds is my normal experience.
I have had 3 Porsche 911's and this is far faster.... and doesn't try to kill you at the first opportunity!
I will, some time, check out my theory and retest the car after making sure that Cupra mode is re-selected after starting the car but before starting the dyno test. The 350 ft/lbs of torque explains the genral "drivability" of the car.
The ABT is obviously doing something........ And it is worth retaining the warranty, for the sake of being .2 second slower to 60.

 

[motty225]

I bought one of the ABT ST R's in August and love it. I was intrigued about what bhp it was meant to produce, I had seen claims of 245, 250 and even 370 via various road test reports. I took it to Surrey Rolling Road and they found:
323 bhp, which is down on spec.... but 350 ft/lbs of torque (more than 470 Nm), which is above spec.
So, the power was low and the curve falls off at 5,500 rpm. I wondered whether it might be that the engine was still tight. i haven't thrashed it and it was only 2500 miles.
As I left I noticed that the gear indicator said D3, D4 etc, not S3, S4, which it does when you put into Sport or Cupra mode. I also notice that, when you start the car, it always does this. If you then select Cupra mode the indicator changes to Sx.
So, I am wondering whether the system resets itself each time you stop the engine, and then you have to re-select Cupra mode?
I am over the moon with the car.... it is all things to all men/women(PC correctness for you!).... I drove to Bergerac and got 38 mpg (and still got a speeding ticket!), and if I want to drive like a loonie, it is very fast. I ride bikes so 0-60 in 2.4 seconds is my normal experience.
I have had 3 Porsche 911's and this is far faster.... and doesn't try to kill you at the first opportunity!
I will, some time, check out my theory and retest the car after making sure that Cupra mode is re-selected after starting the car but before starting the dyno test. The 350 ft/lbs of torque explains the genral "drivability" of the car.
The ABT is obviously doing something........ And it is worth retaining the warranty, for the sake of being .2 second slower to 60.

If the car is in Cupra and you turn it off when you restart everything will still be in Cupra except the the engine, this reverts to comfort, but all it effects is throttle response, you get no more/less power in any mode

 

[Maypack]

So, I am wondering whether the system resets itself each time you stop the engine, and then you have to re-select Cupra mode?

It does reset each time the engine is switched off and you do have to re-select CUPRA mode when you restart the engine to get the “full” package.


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[Peter Puttock]

It does reset each time the engine is switched off and you do have to re-select CUPRA mode when you restart the engine to get the “full” package.


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Thanks for the info guys. That means that my R is giving 323 in normal mode, which is over spec and what one would expect from VAG. The torque is way higher than standard spec 470 vs 400.
As I said, it is a brilliant car... mainly because it is so useable. (I also got it new at a silly price!)

 

[Blade]

I have set my preferences in individual mode which includes valves open. If I turn it off then on again it starts with the valves still open..... is this correct.


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[Peter Puttock]

Is that the exhaust valves? That is there really to give the throaty exhaust note and backfiring on overrun. (I have mine set to Eco mode on the engine which gives mega mpg when one is pootling around behind other cars and on the M25.)

 

[Maypack]

I have set my preferences in individual mode which includes valves open. If I turn it off then on again it starts with the valves still open..... is this correct.


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CUPRA models don’t have valved exhausts.


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[Damo H]

Cupra driver profile mode doesn’t give you any more power. It just improves the throttle response.

They’d of had to put it in manual mode gearbox wise, to make sure it held the gear all the way through the rev range of the run, otherwise it would of dropped a gear when floored at low revs.

There are also no valves on the Leon Cupra exhausts, only the Golf R hatch. The Golf R estate exhaust on the R and Carbon also doesn’t have a valve.

 

[Steve T71]

I bought one of the ABT ST R's in August and love it. I was intrigued about what bhp it was meant to produce, I had seen claims of 245, 250 and even 370 via various road test reports. I took it to Surrey Rolling Road and they found:
323 bhp, which is down on spec.... but 350 ft/lbs of torque (more than 470 Nm), which is above spec.
So, the power was low and the curve falls off at 5,500 rpm. I wondered whether it might be that the engine was still tight. i haven't thrashed it and it was only 2500 miles.
As I left I noticed that the gear indicator said D3, D4 etc, not S3, S4, which it does when you put into Sport or Cupra mode. I also notice that, when you start the car, it always does this. If you then select Cupra mode the indicator changes to Sx.
So, I am wondering whether the system resets itself each time you stop the engine, and then you have to re-select Cupra mode?
I am over the moon with the car.... it is all things to all men/women(PC correctness for you!).... I drove to Bergerac and got 38 mpg (and still got a speeding ticket!), and if I want to drive like a loonie, it is very fast. I ride bikes so 0-60 in 2.4 seconds is my normal experience.
I have had 3 Porsche 911's and this is far faster.... and doesn't try to kill you at the first opportunity!
I will, some time, check out my theory and retest the car after making sure that Cupra mode is re-selected after starting the car but before starting the dyno test. The 350 ft/lbs of torque explains the genral "drivability" of the car.
The ABT is obviously doing something........ And it is worth retaining the warranty, for the sake of being .2 second slower to 60.

Hi Peter,
Hows things going with the car ? I literally live 10 mins from Surrey Rolling road, We have the same car mine is minus the ABT though, interesting read ur report, Iam gonna use there facilities once they re-open do a stock run, then go from there What colour and spec u get and are you local ?
Cheers Steve T.

 

[Steve T71]

For comparison here is a 2019 ST with jb4 still at the dialling stage!
View attachment 12513

@Nora2004 Hi any extra engine mods on this, or just stock with a JB4?

 

[Peter Puttock]

CUPRA models don’t have valved exhausts.


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A number of commentators have mentioned that the R does have exhaust valves. In fact I am sure I have seen it in the Seat documentation. It is like the Porsche system.

 

[Peter Puttock]

Hi Peter,
Hows things going with the car ? I literally live 10 mins from Surrey Rolling road, We have the same car mine is minus the ABT though, interesting read ur report, Iam gonna use there facilities once they re-open do a stock run, then go from there What colour and spec u get and are you local ?
Cheers Steve T.

Hi Steve,
I am still a very happy bunny.... although that might also be because I bought a Suzuki GSX-R1000 on March 1st.... 93mph in first, 0-60 2.4 secs and 0-150mph in 10!!!
Surrey Rolling Roads do a "come and test" booking service and charge £40.00, so it is good value. Mine is the R (as in the picture) and that only came in Blackness Grey with the copper wheels and inserts. The car also has lowered suspension and negative camber on the wheels. Mine has the sunroof which is great. It is one of the limited edition of 150 sold in the UK. If you want to see a review of the same model Stef ABT did one. He kept on giggling during the review. And that is what I love about the car..... it makes you giggle, especially when you put it into Cupra mode. My only slight gripe is that, sometimes, the kick down is slow when you are in comfort mode, so I have almost been embarrassed when pulling onto a roundabout.
With regards to the dyno test.... I believe that it is churning out more than the 350 bhp. It is deceptively quick and did see a test that had 0-60 in 4.1... that is fast enough for everyday driving! I got £8k of the rrp and bought the car new! A lot of car for £31.5k.

 

[Damo H]

A number of commentators have mentioned that the R does have exhaust valves. In fact I am sure I have seen it in the Seat documentation. It is like the Porsche system.

The Golf R hatchback and S3 have exhaust valves...

...the Cupra Carbon Edition and Cupra R ST that all have the Golf R Estate based system, don't have valves...

 

[Damo H]

Hi Steve,
I am still a very happy bunny.... although that might also be because I bought a Suzuki GSX-R1000 on March 1st.... 93mph in first, 0-60 2.4 secs and 0-150mph in 10!!!
Surrey Rolling Roads do a "come and test" booking service and charge £40.00, so it is good value. Mine is the R (as in the picture) and that only came in Blackness Grey with the copper wheels and inserts. The car also has lowered suspension and negative camber on the wheels. Mine has the sunroof which is great. It is one of the limited edition of 150 sold in the UK. If you want to see a review of the same model Stef ABT did one. He kept on giggling during the review. And that is what I love about the car..... it makes you giggle, especially when you put it into Cupra mode. My only slight gripe is that, sometimes, the kick down is slow when you are in comfort mode, so I have almost been embarrassed when pulling onto a roundabout.
With regards to the dyno test.... I believe that it is churning out more than the 350 bhp. It is deceptively quick and did see a test that had 0-60 in 4.1... that is fast enough for everyday driving! I got £8k of the rrp and bought the car new! A lot of car for £31.5k.

Also available in white and black

https://usedcars.seat.co.uk/en/used-cars/seat/leon/estate-20-tsi-cupra-r-300-jqb8kb6

 

[Steve T71]

The Golf R hatchback and S3 have exhaust valves...

View attachment 14767
Hey Damo,
About right ish, dont forget twin GPF'S on front of Cupra R ST, no mid box delete available, just GPF back or Full system, GPF delete Milltek Full system etc...


...the Cupra Carbon Edition and Cupra R ST that all have the Golf R Estate based system, don't have valves...

 

[Damo H]

Hey Damo,
About right ish, dont forget twin GPF'S on front of Cupra R ST, no mid box delete available, just GPF back or Full system, GPF delete Milltek Full system etc...

Absolutely nothing wrong with what I posted The Carbon has the Golf R Estate system without valves, the Cupra R ST has a Golf R Estate system without valves. Wasn't over complicating it by getting into the whole GPF cars not having the mid resonator as I was replying about whether they had valves or not.

For the sake of clarity: GPF based Golf R Estate/Cupra R ST system, still no valves:

Edit - if you want to be picky, the Golf R comes with Polished tips, the Carbon/R ST Systems come with Black tips.

@Steve T71 You may want to work out how you reply to someone on the forum though, as it looks like you've just posted a blank post I managed to find your reply though.

 

[Peter Puttock]

The Golf R hatchback and S3 have exhaust valves...

View attachment 14767


...the Cupra Carbon Edition and Cupra R ST that all have the Golf R Estate based system, don't have valves...

The Golf R hatchback and S3 have exhaust valves...

View attachment 14767


...the Cupra Carbon Edition and Cupra R ST that all have the Golf R Estate based system, don't have valves...

Also available in white and black

https://usedcars.seat.co.uk/en/used-cars/seat/leon/estate-20-tsi-cupra-r-300-jqb8kb6

Also available in white and black

https://usedcars.seat.co.uk/en/used-cars/seat/leon/estate-20-tsi-cupra-r-300-jqb8kb6

The white does look a bit naff. The black would be nice. Through Europe there were originally 4 colours available, all left hand drive. Only the darkness grey was available in the UK. I notice that the example doesn't have that little ABT on the rear left hand side and is second hand, and is more expensive than mine, unregistered!!!!
On the valve issue.... then why is the exhaust tone completely different in Cupra?..... are they over feeding fuel in order to get the snarl noise? It is a party piece of the car to switch modes and listen to the change in the exhaust noise, right from tickover through to overrun.

 

[Seriously?]

On the valve issue.... then why is the exhaust tone completely different in Cupra?..... are they over feeding fuel in order to get the snarl noise? It is a party piece of the car to switch modes and listen to the change in the exhaust noise, right from tickover through to overrun.

Soundaktor? If it's fitted to the R?

 

[Peter Puttock]

Soundaktor? If it's fitted to the R?

No idea! One of the quite strange things about this car, right from the beginning has been the lack of detailed information. When I had Porsche 911's the technical infor available was far more forthcoming.
I do think that the ST, the carbon and the ST-R are more different than might be obvious.
I read various reviews and the Carbon was a dressed up 2.0TSI ST. The R has lowered suspension and negative cambered wheels. The car sits quite differently than the 2.0TSI ST.
There is a review of the carbon and the guy mentions the R and says the exhaust is completely different. (He also seemed to think the R was a far more preferable car....)
https://www.seatcupra.net/index.php/2018/08/23/seat-leon-cupra-st-carbon-edition-video-review/
One of his comments is that he wanted to take the R home with him. I think there is a big difference in the cars.
Does the carbon have active suspension?
The tailpipes on the carbon look to be carbon fibre. That is the same as the R.
Maybe the R is all kidology and it really is a 1.2TSi engine, and not really 4 wheel drive!!!
But it does have lots of warranty and that gives me peace of mind.

 

[Damo H]

The white does look a bit naff. The black would be nice. Through Europe there were originally 4 colours available, all left hand drive. Only the darkness grey was available in the UK. I notice that the example doesn't have that little ABT on the rear left hand side and is second hand, and is more expensive than mine, unregistered!!!!
On the valve issue.... then why is the exhaust tone completely different in Cupra?..... are they over feeding fuel in order to get the snarl noise? It is a party piece of the car to switch modes and listen to the change in the exhaust noise, right from tickover through to overrun.

For the UK the first ones only came in Blackness Grey, if you wanted the other colours you had to wait. Not sure why Seat UK did that, but you could always have the other colours if you were willing to wait. But UK didn't get the matt grey I think (same with 5 door).

Unlike the Cupra R 5 door, the Carbon Cupra R ST is not a limited edition, just a different model you can order. That's why you don't get a No XXX of XXX on your internal trim. However like the Carbon, Seat UK only decided only to bring a set number into the UK to give it some kind of exclusivity. For the carbon it was officially 50, although some say only 42 actually came across in the end.

As for the price on the white one, who knows?!

As for the valve. You have a soundactuator and change to fueling. Soundactuator is a speaker like device in the engine bay that makes the car sound louder (turned mine off). The fuelling is more to improve throttle response when the gearbox in sport mode. So that's why you get off throttle pops and bangs (depending on how loud your exhaust is/isn't).

So yeah no valves.