I can’t believe it’s been a year already since I took ownership of Cupra. I thought it was only right to post a quick video summarising my experience with the car.
Bit of a tip for the windows here. Hold the window switch down until the window goes all the way down then press and hold whilst the window is down for 2 secs. Repeat for putting the window back up. Sometimes the door control modules forget the max and min position of the window regulator. Hope it helps
I have a 65 280 6 speed manual, cupra estate, with all the same problems you have had, front and rear DCC shocks weeping / misting, all brake discs / pads, front and rear bushings all needed replacing and just last week my window buttons stopped working too! I paid £23,000 for mine today it's worth apparently £12,000 with 40,000 miles.. I won't be selling it anytime soon, the used market for seats just isn't there, they are underrated and under appreciated. That said always fun to fly past a badge snob in thier £60,000 saloon :)
Seem to be very common issues! Yes the residuals have dropped like a stone in terms of trade in value. It’s causing me issues in potentially moving the car on so I may just keep it too. They are great cars though, very quick for what they are too!
My drivers window switch plays up on our Mk2 VW Tiguan R Line def a vag issue. I know where you're coming from, hence why i don't own an RS yet. A nice house and family holidays etc will always come 1st. Looking foward to see this new daily. All the best.👍
When I see you putting your hands together Gary, it always reminds me of the time you got stung by a wasp 😅 Still loving the colour of your Cupra and I hope you get the warranty work done without issue
Just over a year in I’ve owned my 2017 focus st now covered 40k. I’ve added the Draamscience cat back on and mapped it just shy of 300hp. No issues with it whatsoever.. just come back from the east coast it was doing 45 to 50 miles to the gallon at 65 to 70mph.. can’t fault it. Was thinking of the Leon/Cupra but glad I didn’t!
Hey! I have a 13 plate focus ST and I’m mapped by Dreamscience. Does the catback exhaust drone on the motorway? And did you opt for the screamer pipe? Thanks!
@@killimanjaro9548 Hi , at higher speeds you get the drone just like all other cat backs. Got used to it now didn’t opt for the screamer pipe thought that would be too loud mate.
Have you tried the reset function on the windows? Restoring one-touch opening and closing - The automatic open and close function will not work if the battery has been temporarily disconnected. The function can be restored as follows: - Close the window as far as it will go by lifting and holding the electric window switch. - Release the switch and then lift it again for one second. This will re-enable the automatic function. If you push (or pull) a button to the first stage, the window will open (or close) until you release the button. If you push or lift the button briefly to the second stage, the window will open (one-touch opening) or close (onetouch closing) automatically. If you operate the button while the window is opening or closing, it stops at this position.
Hi mate yes I’ve tried this - you can actually feel that the switch is broken as it’s now a bit rattly. The garage have tested it and confirmed it needs a new switch. Thanks though 😊
Will be interesting to see what’s coming up. I’m in a similar situation I have an RS like yours and an ST for a daily, cracking car but don’t want 2 similar, Im thinking suv something like that for daily. Good luck with it 👍
Thanks mate. Yea sometimes we just have to appreciate having one hot hatch , does make sense to mix it up and try something like an SUV for the daily hack. I’d keep this if life wasn’t starting to take the piss in terms of the cost of living 😂
I've had mine now for about 3 yrs ,same colour and also 18 plate ,had a few issues similar to you. But in general been a great car,and as you say on open road not much can keep up with it . I went Stage 1 only as I had it on my previous mk2 Cupra R and it made such a difference all round . It pulls so well in all gears ,and the DSG is so good ,although service was quite expensive but now done for 4 yrs I think . I did have the coolant pump fail ,but done under warranty. Good luck whatever you go for in p/x.
@@CarFocused I can do 330 bhp and 400 lb torque on my vrs. But I'm afraid it would upset it balance, been in a few cars with 350hp but they're all over the road
Hi Gary, I seem to be having the same issues as you, weeping shocks and my drivers window switch is very intermittent on auto down only, if you exercise the window up and down a few times it then starts working properly, an MOT tester told me that VAG shocks are a very common issue across the board with weeping, and has seen many 3 year old first MOT VAG cars with the issue, never had these kind of issues with any of my Ford cars, just rattles!!!
I’ve had my 280 for a year n a half now. Amongst many other things, one of my front shocks went last year, and now the other front one is weeping. Both the result of potholes unfortunately… My chain was bad shortly after I bought the car. Garage said it needed replacing with a new chain. Warranty company wouldn’t cover it cuz it hadn’t completely failed. And they said if you don’t fix it now, and let it fail, we won’t fix it then either cuz you know there’s an issue now… I paid just shy of £15,000 for mine at 80,000 miles. It’s on ~104,000 miles now. There are a lot of mk3 Cupras on AutoTrader at the moment so that doesn’t help their value. I’ve thought about selling mine too.
@harisrafiq6832 it's alot of money for a car that's high mileage. With 80,000 on the clock the car will want parts soon such as bushes etc. These are prone to damper issues.
Hello Gary that year has certainly flown by hasn’t it? I really enjoyed the two Golf GTIs I owned (especially the mk5) but they did have niggling faults, nothing major but still annoying! Realities of life at the moment mean we’re all aware of our finances too! You can still take comfort in that 5 pot sound mate. 👌🏻 Looking forward to seeing what you get next. 👍🏻
@@markb68that’s it mate. Just hard to justify having two hot hatches in this climate. Had a great year so far with the Cupra though. Always a treat to get the Mk2 out though 😊
@@CarFocused I think we all know exactly where you’re coming from. I’d love a mk2 ST but already have the ST180 so I’ve found a few top quality mods for that on a budget. EBay is my friend. Haha.
I have the same but then 4drive ST version. Honestly the car is pretty good, but goddamn the comfort is so bad. Ive had multiple GTI’s and some different “faster” cars but this one takes the crown. On a straight good road its really amazing. But if you come into a residential or worse roads everything feels like falling apart. The suspension squeaks, pano roof cracks, doors squeak going over bumps etc. Honestly i dont know how long i can ‘ignore’ all these things since I am using it as a daily and we dont have the best roads here. My €600 fiesta has less sounds driving with it.
Question- thanks for the honesty and talking through the pitfalls. I’ve been really interested in buying one. 2018 onwards model. Do you recommend the DSG version over the manual? And yes- how did it fair insurance wise????
Weird how you only commented an hour ago and I've just stumbled on this video lol. But my own experience with a DSG Cupra 290, living in North London, is my most recent renewal cost me £750. That's also with max no claims bonus. I need a gearbox service as there's some minor seepage around the casing, but otherwise the car has been brilliant.
I’ve still got the car and it’s been really good. I would recommend DSG as it makes living with it every day so much better, plus the manual car has quite a weak clutch which isn’t great for handling any more power. Insurance for me is around £360 per year but I’m sure it’ll go up soon when I’m due to renew as prices have gone silly haven’t they!
Hey mate not sure if I’ll get a reply, I’ve been looking at this car for years and finally in the right space to get one, was wondering overall is the 290 or 300 version better is there any major differences (other then hp of course) like tune ability, insurance, fuel. Much appreciated!
Hi mate, the 290 has a 7 speed DSG box, copper badging with black Cupra badge on the rear, a GPF on the exhaust and an updated infotainment system. Other than that they are the same 👍🏻
I want to say Thankyou for your review I wanted one of these and we have one but one thing your helped with was making me think about buying extended warranty luckily we got it and on day one there’s a wheel bearing noise now. Cheers man Nice car we’re twins 🤣
Haha! Always worth having warranty for peace of mind. Hopefully the sound you hear is the tyres like it was for me. As soon as I replaced the rears it stopped 👌🏻
@@CarFocused I would mate. Even if you try to get evidence of the misting. Any car at our dealership that has warranty would be covered as long as we have a photo of the misting. One of the guys that works for our seat dealer had a misting strut on his cupra, he replaced his under warranty no problem.
I'm after a cupra now and this is literally exactly what I'm looking for! Is this a black edition? Styling just looks slightly better then others iv seen.
@@CarFocused cheers for the info, im test driving one this morning. It will be interesting to see how much of a difference there is to my 190 FR sport.
@@CarFocused loved it, felt like a totally different animal to mine, really put a smile on my face like my f55 cooper s did. I am going to try and find one through SEAT if I can but I'm in the same boat as you, being offered silly prices in part ex for mine.
Sorry for my English, I have a windscreen washer leak under the car, behind the front wheels, and under the heat shield of the exhaust and only the car is rotating. can you help me please friend
@@CarFocused I've got a vrs 245 and I can't spot it and hope the stupid thing isn't there. I'll be keeping my vrs, I absolutely fkn love it. Same torque but a little as power than cupra, but very balanced. My other drive is a low mile dc5
The last video on the Cupra;
ruclips.net/video/E2aEgFkUFdQ/видео.html
Bit of a tip for the windows here. Hold the window switch down until the window goes all the way down then press and hold whilst the window is down for 2 secs. Repeat for putting the window back up. Sometimes the door control modules forget the max and min position of the window regulator. Hope it helps
Hi mate, I’ve tried this and it’s also been to the dealer for diagnostics who confirmed a new switch is needed. Thanks anyway 😊
Great catch up with the Cupra really enjoy your input and time on the camera bro 👏👏👏
Thanks 👍
I have a 65 280 6 speed manual, cupra estate, with all the same problems you have had, front and rear DCC shocks weeping / misting, all brake discs / pads, front and rear bushings all needed replacing and just last week my window buttons stopped working too! I paid £23,000 for mine today it's worth apparently £12,000 with 40,000 miles.. I won't be selling it anytime soon, the used market for seats just isn't there, they are underrated and under appreciated. That said always fun to fly past a badge snob in thier £60,000 saloon :)
Seem to be very common issues! Yes the residuals have dropped like a stone in terms of trade in value. It’s causing me issues in potentially moving the car on so I may just keep it too. They are great cars though, very quick for what they are too!
Weeping shocks should be a feature in the brochure of any vag cars.
😂😂
My drivers window switch plays up on our Mk2 VW Tiguan R Line def a vag issue. I know where you're coming from, hence why i don't own an RS yet. A nice house and family holidays etc will always come 1st. Looking foward to see this new daily. All the best.👍
Hi mate, thank you for passing by 😊
When I see you putting your hands together Gary, it always reminds me of the time you got stung by a wasp 😅 Still loving the colour of your Cupra and I hope you get the warranty work done without issue
That was painful 😂😂
Such a nice car - we really need to get our Cupras together!
Mate it’s so underrated! Brilliant daily, fast, comfy and flies under the radar 👌🏻
Just over a year in I’ve owned my 2017 focus st now covered 40k. I’ve added the Draamscience cat back on and mapped it just shy of 300hp. No issues with it whatsoever.. just come back from the east coast it was doing 45 to 50 miles to the gallon at 65 to 70mph.. can’t fault it. Was thinking of the Leon/Cupra but glad I didn’t!
Hey! I have a 13 plate focus ST and I’m mapped by Dreamscience. Does the catback exhaust drone on the motorway? And did you opt for the screamer pipe? Thanks!
@@killimanjaro9548 Hi , at higher speeds you get the drone just like all other cat backs. Got used to it now didn’t opt for the screamer pipe thought that would be too loud mate.
Petrol or diesel st?
Have you tried the reset function on the windows?
Restoring one-touch opening and closing
- The automatic open and close function will not work if the battery
has been temporarily disconnected. The function can be restored
as follows:
- Close the window as far as it will go by lifting and holding the
electric window switch.
- Release the switch and then lift it again for one second. This
will re-enable the automatic function.
If you push (or pull) a button to the first stage, the window will open (or
close) until you release the button. If you push or lift the button briefly to
the second stage, the window will open (one-touch opening) or close (onetouch
closing) automatically. If you operate the button while the window is
opening or closing, it stops at this position.
Hi mate yes I’ve tried this - you can actually feel that the switch is broken as it’s now a bit rattly. The garage have tested it and confirmed it needs a new switch. Thanks though 😊
@@CarFocusedah never mind. It was worth a suggestion 👍
@@jimmyjt16 appreciate it 😊
Will be interesting to see what’s coming up. I’m in a similar situation I have an RS like yours and an ST for a daily, cracking car but don’t want 2 similar, Im thinking suv something like that for daily. Good luck with it 👍
Thanks mate. Yea sometimes we just have to appreciate having one hot hatch , does make sense to mix it up and try something like an SUV for the daily hack. I’d keep this if life wasn’t starting to take the piss in terms of the cost of living 😂
I've had mine now for about 3 yrs ,same colour and also 18 plate ,had a few issues similar to you. But in general been a great car,and as you say on open road not much can keep up with it . I went Stage 1 only as I had it on my previous mk2 Cupra R and it made such a difference all round . It pulls so well in all gears ,and the DSG is so good ,although service was quite expensive but now done for 4 yrs I think . I did have the coolant pump fail ,but done under warranty. Good luck whatever you go for in p/x.
Thanks for watching mate. These must be super quick when mapped - be intrigued to try one!
What mileage was coolant pump fail and what was the costs
@@CarFocused I can do 330 bhp and 400 lb torque on my vrs. But I'm afraid it would upset it balance, been in a few cars with 350hp but they're all over the road
@@stevenvater8720 it hasn’t failed mate
it can only have been between 22 and 26 k miles .it's only done 31k now i'm 2nd owner and luckily done under warranty.e 3@@stevenvater8720
Hi Gary, I seem to be having the same issues as you, weeping shocks and my drivers window switch is very intermittent on auto down only, if you exercise the window up and down a few times it then starts working properly, an MOT tester told me that VAG shocks are a very common issue across the board with weeping, and has seen many 3 year old first MOT VAG cars with the issue, never had these kind of issues with any of my Ford cars, just rattles!!!
Haha yes apart from rust and rattles, things like shocks and switches are generally pretty solid on the Fords 😁
Great video some good point and detail in this 👌
Glad you think so!
I’ve had my 280 for a year n a half now. Amongst many other things, one of my front shocks went last year, and now the other front one is weeping. Both the result of potholes unfortunately… My chain was bad shortly after I bought the car. Garage said it needed replacing with a new chain. Warranty company wouldn’t cover it cuz it hadn’t completely failed. And they said if you don’t fix it now, and let it fail, we won’t fix it then either cuz you know there’s an issue now… I paid just shy of £15,000 for mine at 80,000 miles. It’s on ~104,000 miles now. There are a lot of mk3 Cupras on AutoTrader at the moment so that doesn’t help their value. I’ve thought about selling mine too.
15 grand with 80,000 on the clock. Asking for trouble.
@@redlineste4283 That was a good price back in Jan 2022. Full dealership service history, receipts and low owners.
It's done 80,000 though.
@@redlineste4283 Yeah. And?
@harisrafiq6832 it's alot of money for a car that's high mileage. With 80,000 on the clock the car will want parts soon such as bushes etc. These are prone to damper issues.
Hello Gary that year has certainly flown by hasn’t it?
I really enjoyed the two Golf GTIs I owned (especially the mk5) but they did have niggling faults, nothing major but still annoying!
Realities of life at the moment mean we’re all aware of our finances too!
You can still take comfort in that 5 pot sound mate. 👌🏻
Looking forward to seeing what you get next. 👍🏻
Thanks mate. Yes the year has gone very quickly, life just flies by!😢 It’s likely the next one will be a bit more of a Dad wagon haha.
@@CarFocused Well it comes to us all eventually mate and at least you’re fighting back with the mk2 RS! 👍🏻
@@markb68that’s it mate. Just hard to justify having two hot hatches in this climate. Had a great year so far with the Cupra though. Always a treat to get the Mk2 out though 😊
@@CarFocused I think we all know exactly where you’re coming from.
I’d love a mk2 ST but already have the ST180 so I’ve found a few top quality mods for that on a budget. EBay is my friend. Haha.
I have the same but then 4drive ST version. Honestly the car is pretty good, but goddamn the comfort is so bad. Ive had multiple GTI’s and some different “faster” cars but this one takes the crown. On a straight good road its really amazing. But if you come into a residential or worse roads everything feels like falling apart. The suspension squeaks, pano roof cracks, doors squeak going over bumps etc. Honestly i dont know how long i can ‘ignore’ all these things since I am using it as a daily and we dont have the best roads here. My €600 fiesta has less sounds driving with it.
Question- thanks for the honesty and talking through the pitfalls. I’ve been really interested in buying one. 2018 onwards model. Do you recommend the DSG version over the manual? And yes- how did it fair insurance wise????
Weird how you only commented an hour ago and I've just stumbled on this video lol. But my own experience with a DSG Cupra 290, living in North London, is my most recent renewal cost me £750. That's also with max no claims bonus.
I need a gearbox service as there's some minor seepage around the casing, but otherwise the car has been brilliant.
I’ve still got the car and it’s been really good. I would recommend DSG as it makes living with it every day so much better, plus the manual car has quite a weak clutch which isn’t great for handling any more power. Insurance for me is around £360 per year but I’m sure it’ll go up soon when I’m due to renew as prices have gone silly haven’t they!
Hey mate not sure if I’ll get a reply, I’ve been looking at this car for years and finally in the right space to get one, was wondering overall is the 290 or 300 version better is there any major differences (other then hp of course) like tune ability, insurance, fuel. Much appreciated!
Hi mate, the 290 has a 7 speed DSG box, copper badging with black Cupra badge on the rear, a GPF on the exhaust and an updated infotainment system. Other than that they are the same 👍🏻
I want to say Thankyou for your review I wanted one of these and we have one but one thing your helped with was making me think about buying extended warranty luckily we got it and on day one there’s a wheel bearing noise now. Cheers man Nice car we’re twins 🤣
Haha! Always worth having warranty for peace of mind. Hopefully the sound you hear is the tyres like it was for me. As soon as I replaced the rears it stopped 👌🏻
What you replacing it with? My Cupra 290 is going back in September and I really have no clue what to go for next
If we had shocks that were leaking under warranty we would replace them straight away. We wouldn’t wait for them to fail, that’s just stupid.
I’m hoping they’ll be done within the year. May have to try another dealer.
@@CarFocused I would mate. Even if you try to get evidence of the misting. Any car at our dealership that has warranty would be covered as long as we have a photo of the misting. One of the guys that works for our seat dealer had a misting strut on his cupra, he replaced his under warranty no problem.
@@PsychoPablo what dealership are you at?
@@CarFocused unfortunately I’m up north mate. But I work for a Bristol street motors garage. In Carlisle up in Cumbria.
I'm after a cupra now and this is literally exactly what I'm looking for! Is this a black edition? Styling just looks slightly better then others iv seen.
This is the Mk3 facelift mate. Some slightly different styling improvements over the earlier models.
@@CarFocused cheers for the info, im test driving one this morning. It will be interesting to see how much of a difference there is to my 190 FR sport.
@@sparko2012 they are quick cars. How did you find it?
@@CarFocused loved it, felt like a totally different animal to mine, really put a smile on my face like my f55 cooper s did. I am going to try and find one through SEAT if I can but I'm in the same boat as you, being offered silly prices in part ex for mine.
@@sparko2012 what are you driving at the moment? I’m assuming you tested a DSG car too? They do everything really well, understated cars for sure 👌🏻
Sorry for my English, I have a windscreen washer leak under the car, behind the front wheels, and under the heat shield of the exhaust and only the car is rotating. can you help me please friend
Mate does it burn oil like the Audi?
Haven’t noticed any excessive oil usage!
The problem with the windows switches. You have to recalibrate them. It’s not broken
No they are broken. The mechanism inside is rattling about and it’s been checked by the dealer who has confirmed new switches needed.
Great video !! But I definitely know your dilemma !!
I don’t want to let it go but I know I’ll be better for it 😕
Did you notice any loss in power with the Cupra over the time you had ?
None at all mate.
Is the next car going to be ford lol good car the cupra but as you say everything is going up gary
Possibly - have to wait and see 😁
What about the bag of silicon in expansion tank?
It’s in there still - but whilst it’s under warranty I won’t be removing it - and once the warranty is up I’ll probably sell it anyway!
@@CarFocused I've got a vrs 245 and I can't spot it and hope the stupid thing isn't there. I'll be keeping my vrs, I absolutely fkn love it. Same torque but a little as power than cupra, but very balanced. My other drive is a low mile dc5
I just cant trust any VAG products. They must make a fortune from parts and repairs.
Yea it’s not the cheapest to maintain, thankfully I have warranty if anything expensive crops up!
@@CarFocusedwould you say it’s cheaper to maintain than a bmw for example?
Better than any BMW. Infact a part from shock absorbers, I've had no issues with VAG cars.
You didn't clean the boot shut 👻
Mate this is the daily, it’s not quite as pampered as my RS 😂
Get a golf gtd or 3 series diesel
Will be something similar 😁
The missus got into his head 😆
Haha nah she’s happy to let me crack on 👌🏻
I’m trying to get my missus to get a Cupra
Good luck!hehe
Waffler