Overview

The SEAT Leon is proof positive that there’s still lots of life in the estate car format – and that not everyone wants an SUV as their family car. It’s well priced, has an excellent loadbay in terms of sze and shape, and is good to drive.

As you can tell, we like it a lot – we rate it as one of the best hybrid estates on sale and it won the Best Medium Family Car in the 2022 Parkers Awards. It’s clever, sharing most of its engineering and tech with the wagon versions of the Volkswagen Golf and Skoda Octavia but comes across as more appealing in the process.

That means you get LED headlights as standard, a high-tech interior that does away with most of the old car’s physical controls, and a raft of driver assistance systems as well as online connectivity and integration of your phone with the car’s infotainment system. It has all the tech demanded by family car buyers today.

Most importantly for an estate car, despite its curvaceous styling, the loadbay is amply sized. You get 620 litres in petrol or diesel form, with the hybrid and its associated electrical components weighing in with a reduced 470 litres, and that increases to 1,620 and 1,470 litres respectively when the seats are folded. Reason enough to choose it over and above the Leon Hatchback. 

It has plenty of rivals to choose from. Other wagons like the Ford Focus Estate, Toyota Corolla Touring Sports and Peugeot 308 SW should be on the same shopping lists, but smaller SUVs like the Skoda Karoq, SEAT Ateca and Kia Sportage are very capable SUV-shaped alternatives. But, it’s good value, but with added visual appeal for those looking for more stylish lines than many of its rivals.

The trim structure follows the Leon hatch, so you can have an SE, SE Dynamic, FR and FR First Edition model, all of which come with keyless start, an electronic parking brake, Apple CarPlay or Android Auto connectivity, and SEAT’s connected features app. Top of the tree FR and FR First Edition cars get a sportier look thanks to 17-inch wheels and a firmer ride with more performance-focused suspension. The top model also adds keyless entry and adaptive suspension.

Click through the next few pages to read everything you need to know about the SEAT Leon Estate including its practicality, its interior, how much it costs to run, what it’s like to drive – and whether we recommend buying one.