Seat Leon review

You sit lower down in the Seat Leon than the Ford Focus – something to bear in mind if you have a particular preference for how high up you like to be. 

The Leon’s driving position is fundamentally very good, thanks to pedals that line up neatly with the seat and steering wheel, and a driver’s seat that’s comfy on long journeys and supportive through corners. All trims come with adjustable lumbar support, which certainly helps.

Powerful LED headlights come as standard on all versions of the Leon. From FR trim and up, the lights dip automatically to avoid dazzling other drivers.

The Leon's entry-level SE trim includes an 8.3in touchscreen, a DAB radio, a seven-speaker sound system, two USB-C ports, and Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone mirroring (so you can run phone apps through the screen). Higher trim levels have a bigger (10in) touchscreen, and add built-in sat-nav and natural voice recognition. SE Dynamic models bring a couple of extra USB-C ports, while FR and above get wireless phone-charging.

The 10in screen (we haven’t tried the smaller one yet) is bright and clear and the operating system it runs is far more intuitive than in the Volkswagen Golf. The fact that it’s a touchscreen inevitably means that, when you use it, some of your attention is diverted away from the road, but at least that's kept to a minimum.