CUPRA's new ABT pack has all the aggression and none of the extra power
Put ABT and CUPRA in one sentence and you expect fireworks, not a body kit
ABT and CUPRA together should be a promise of madness. This is the partnership that gave us the gloriously silly 635 hp Formentor VZ5, after all. So a new CUSTOM CUPRA by ABT pack, revealed at the Red Bull Ring no less, sounds thrilling. Then you read the small print, and it turns out the one thing this pack does not touch is the engine.
Plenty of show
As a styling exercise, the pack is comprehensive. The Leon, offered in hatchback and Sportstourer forms, gains a front splitter, side skirts, a roof spoiler, rear winglets, C-flap mouldings and a redesigned lower diffuser, sitting on 19-inch alloys in sport black matt. The Formentor gets its own splitter, air-curtain frames, roof spoiler, C-flaps and door mouldings. Both wear dark-chrome CUPRA logos and ABT lettering in place of the brand's signature copper, a deliberately moodier look. On the hotter Leon VZ versions there are wider 245mm performance tyres and Akebono brakes, while the range-topping Formentor VZ5 swaps to exclusive 20-inch gloss-black wheels.
No go
Here is the crucial bit. Across every version, from the 150 hp base cars to the 300, 325 and 333 hp Leon VZ models and the 390 hp Formentor VZ5, the pack adds exactly zero horsepower. There is no ECU tune, no exhaust, nothing mechanical beyond the wider tyres and brakes on select versions. This is aero and appearance only, which is quite a thing to say about a product with ABT's name on it.
How to get it, and for how much
The upside is accessibility. The pack is hand-assembled at the CUPRA Racing Factory and fully homologated, so it is a proper factory-backed option rather than an aftermarket bolt-on, and it can be ordered with a new car or retrofitted later through a CUPRA dealer. The complete pack, wheels and aero included, costs around 2,000 euros. It is available now, and CUPRA executive Sven Schuwirth framed it as the newest chapter in the brand's collaboration with ABT.
AutoNext Take
There is nothing wrong with a looks pack, and at around 2,000 euros for homologated, factory-fit aero and a set of wheels, this is fair value. Plenty of owners simply want their Leon or Formentor to look sharper and stand out from the identical lease cars in the car park, and this delivers exactly that. The dark-chrome makeover is genuinely handsome too, even if killing CUPRA's signature copper feels like throwing away one of the few things that make the brand instantly recognisable.
The problem is only the badge on the box. When ABT lends its name to something, enthusiasts expect more power, not just more plastic, and calling an appearance kit a CUPRA by ABT pack sets an expectation it cannot meet. Do the same thing and call it a CUPRA Design pack and nobody would blink. As it is, it is a smart, keenly priced way to make a fast Leon or Formentor look the part, sold under a name that quietly promises something it does not deliver. Buy it for the looks, just do not expect it to go any quicker.
