Leaked: 2019 Cupra Ibiza

TopSpeed

By Kirby Garlitos

Published Feb 22, 2018

Looking good, Cupra!

Like a teenager that had to navigate through rocky adolescent years, the Seat Ibiza Cupra has evolved from an ugly duckling to a fierce swan, if such a thing existed. The hot hatch's impressive evolution shouldn’t come as a surprise, though, because Cupra is now going at it alone after breaking off from the Seat mothership to become a standalone performance brand. As far as first impressions go, Cupra is on the right track because leaked photos of the Cupra Ibiza reveal a hot hatch that looks ready to steal some thunder from its rivals.

There are a few notable elements about the Cupra Ibiza that are worth mentioning. Up front, let’s start with the new bronze Cupra logo that already looks like one of the best badges in the auto industry. If there’s one thing that Cupra nailed soon after it broke off from Seat, it’s the logo. It’s attention-grabbing, but it also doesn’t drown its surroundings. We see it here because just as quickly as you see the new logo, you realize that the hot hatch’s front grille is also new. The headlights again look eerily similar to the ones Audi uses, but that’s ok. The two companies share a parent, so there’s nothing wrong with sharing between each other. The large alloy wheels also stand out, as do the aero kit that apparently includes a roof-mounted carbon fiber spoiler.

It’s hard to make out how the body lines affect the hot hatch’s profile, but there are a few elements of its design that Cupra could’ve have done better. One is the bumper. Maybe it’s because of the photo’s angle, but that looks like a flat and bland bumper that doesn’t do enough to highlight the Cupra’s sporty and aggressive personality. You can see it too by how flat those wheel arches look. The other glaring issue with the Cupra Ibiza is how small those taillights are. Seriously, look at them. Notice how much black space there is between the tip of the lights and the Cupra logo? What are owners going to do with all that space? Put stickers there?

All that said, it’s hard not to like what we see here, at least if you look the design as a whole. There were a few missed opportunities to make the Ibiza stand out, but for the most part, it looks like a proper hot hatch. Hopefully, it’ll receive performance abilities that can match its looks. There are no details on the engine it’s getting, but reports have said that it will receive the same 2.0-liter turbocharged engine that the Volkswagen Polo GTI has. That engine will produce 197 horsepower and 236 pound-feet of torque.

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