Cupra is back on the Nurburgring for another test session with the updated Leon in wagon form. The Spanish performance brand owned by SEAT takes its speedy estate for a few laps around the legendary track and our photographers capture a prototype of the model with less camouflage than before. While almost the entire front fascia is still covered in disguise, we can finally take a look at the new headlights of the refreshed Leon.
What we see here is a pair of slightly thinner clusters with three triangular LED daytime running elements. This setup replaces the outgoing design with C-shaped DRLs that followed the form of the headlight and brings the model more in line with vehicles such as the Tavascan and Terramar. There are also tweaks to the front bumper and the radiator grille. There don’t seem to be changes at the back where this prototype has a quad exhaust setup.
Gallery: 2024 Cupra Leon facelift new spy photos
Speaking of those four pipes at the back, they are a giveaway that this test car has a 2.0-liter TSI turbocharged engine under the hood. It’s the Cupra Leon’s most powerful powertrain offering a peak output of 300 horsepower in this application. There’s also a less powerful 190-hp variant of that mill, as well as a 1.5-liter TSI with 150 hp. If you want hybrid power, the 1.4-liter plug-in hybrid is available with either 204 hp or 245 hp.
There’s no launch date for the facelifted Cupra Leon confirmed yet but it is worth mentioning that the model was given an early preview more than a year ago at a dedicated SEAT / Cupra event. It seems that this will be the compact vehicle’s final update in the internal combustion engine era as the Volkswagen Golf won’t live to see a combustion-powered next-generation model. As a reminder, the Leon is based on the same platform as the Golf and shares many of its components, just like the Skoda Ocvatia, SEAT Leon, and Audi A3.
