Of the six models to which SEAT attaches its FR (for "Formula Racing") tag, the petrol turbo León tested here is by a significant margin the quickest. The two Ibizas are less powerful, and although the Alteas use the same petrol and diesel engines as the León, in the same state of tune, they are more than 100kg heavier.We dealt with the turbo diesel León FR in a previous article. Compared with the T-FSI, it has a lot going for it, such as greatly superior fuel economy and thundering low-rev performance. But the gulf between turbocharged petrol and diesel engines - once large enough to swallow the lost city of Atlantis without it touching the cliffs on either side - is a lot narrower than it once was. The days of no action to speak of below 3000rpm, followed by a thump of power once the turbo came on boost, are well behind us.So the 30bhp bias in favour of the petrol FR does not involve as big a compromise as it might have done. SEAT speaks of "diesel-like tractability", and while this is a slight over-emphasis on the merits of the T-FSI, the fact remains that with this unit under the bonnet the León can operate quite happily at little more than double its tickover speed.Maximum torque is 206lb/ft, and it stays at that figure all the way from 1800 to 5000rpm. Ultimate power - 198bhp - comes in shortly afterwards, at 5100rpm, so it's clear that this engine is in no way a screamer. (It also follows that it doesn't need six ratios in the manual gearbox; five would do, but marketing people being the way they are it gets six anyway.) The 168bhp diesel is quick, but the T-FSI is significantly quicker, and - big compliment here - is nearly as useable in everyday driving.This engine has already appeared in many other Volkswagen Group products, and in every case it has been one of the most appealing features of the car in question. Here, the claim can be enlarged: the engine is by far the best part of the León, or to put it another way everything else about the car fails to live up to the promise of the T-FSI.I've said before that my opinion of the León seems to differ from that of most other writers. I have colleagues who think the car is wonderful, and that's fine. But I just can't get my head round what seem to me to be key failings, and since I've already mentioned them in other tests I'll be quick about it now.First of all, the León is an astonishingly difficult car to see out of. The windscreen is shallow, nearly half of it is obscured by a badly-placed interior mirror, the front pillars are too thick, the triangular windows cut into them are too small and the rear pillars block so much of the rear view as to be worthy of a national scandal.Second, the amount of road noise is just ridiculous. The T-FSI engine itself, for all its potency, is relatively hushed, so you would be conscious of this in any case, but that doesn't alter the fact that far too much tyre roar gets into the cabin, making conversation difficult and spoiling the enjoyment that can come from enthusiastic driving.Third, the León is any case not suited to enthusiastic driving. It remains a mystery that anyone in a position of authority at SEAT spent any time in this car, experienced its ride and handling, and then sprang from it crying, "Yes, this is just what we want - let's go into production as soon as possible." Even in town the FR moans and bitches over uneven surfaces, and while other performance cars redeem themselves by becoming taut and precise in faster motoring, this one simply doesn't. Body control is never good, and using the engine to anything like its full effect just adds to the confusion.SEAT has been promoting itself as a sporting manufacturer virtually since it was taken into the Volkswagen family (you may remember that at one time it described itself as "the Spanish Alfa Romeo"). Its true heritage, however, is based on building small, cheap runabouts, and it can still do this very successfully, as with the Ibiza 1.2 Reference we tested recently. The León FR demonstrates that, after some years of trying, SEAT still hasn't got the hang of hot hatches. Engine 1984cc, 4 cylinders Power 198bhp Transmission 6-speed manual Fuel/CO2 35.8mpg / 190g/km Acceleration 0-62mph: 7.3 seconds Top speed 142mph Price £16,995/span> Release date 15/05/2010
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