IN THIS FEATURE Not-so-super Cupra High-performance oil-burner Good on price Hang on for the petrol

This is by no means a unique decision, of course: fellow VW Group brands Skoda and Volkswagen have their Fabia vRS and Polo GT models with the 130bhp version of this same 1.9-litre diesel engine, though neither are exactly at the hottest end of the hot hatch league, and Peugeot its 206 GTi with the 2.0-litre (136bhp) HDI diesel. Ford is going to launch a diesel Fiesta Zetec-S, and no doubt there'll be plenty more of this ilk on the market within the next few years. Diesel technology has come so far this decade that high-performance oil-burners are increasingly accepted as credible alternatives to their nearest petrol equivalents - just look at the "better in real-life driving than an M3" BMW 330 Cd coupe (my words, and those of numerous other, more esteemed road-testers). Yet Seat has hedged its bets by continuing to offer a petrol Ibiza Cupra as well, with the ubiquitous VW Group 20-valve 1.8-litre turbocharged engine, tuned for 180bhp as in the Audi TT. Both come with the requisite sports seats, body kit, touched-up interior and 17-inch alloys, as well as upgraded brakes, ABS with traction control, remote central locking, deadlocks and alarm, climate control and a single-slot CD player; just three paint colours are offered: Ebony Black, the familiar Seat-corporate Emocion Red and lairy Ovni Yellow.