The next gen SEAT Leon Cupra 300 is on its way and was announced at the LA motor show.

The brand confirmed that it will be available in dealership stores by 2017.

The current generation model delivers about 286 horsepower while the new edition will offer a slight increase up to 296 horsepower. A surprising announcement was made during the reveal. The new Cupra 300 ST estate version offers four-wheel drive system for the first time. Offering tough competition to its closest models, the car will go against the Volkswagen Golf R with a similar powertrain. It has good acceleration capability as the model can go from 0 to 62 miles per hour in about 5.1 seconds. The acceleration is expected to increase slightly with a tweaked powertrain.

The hatchback version of the SEAT Leon Cupra will not feature the all-wheel drive setup. The new upgrade has been designed specifically for the Leon X-perience model and will work only with the estate. While some of the design aspects and power elements are retained in the car from the current edition, there are some significant changes made to make the car appealing to buyers.

Prominent changes are made to the front bumper and the grille. They are sleek yet sports an aggressive look combined with brand new LED headlights. The infotainment system can readily be controlled using the large 8-inch touchscreen display. The chassis remains the same in the ST edition but it will be altered slightly to match the AWD implemented in the car. It is expected to offer better grip on the road and sometimes may be an ideal choice to go for off-road driving as well.

Official pricing for the SEAT Leon Cupra 300 ST version was not confirmed by the manufacturers during the auto show reveal. Based on the price of the existing model and the upgrades, we speculate that it could be somewhere in the range of £29,000 while the four-wheel drive system could cost about £32,000 in the United Kingdom. The price point is very competitive and has some great potential to undercut sales from the Volkswagen Golf R Estate.

As the model was showcased first at the Los Angeles auto show, it will most probably find its way to dealership stores in the United States first. The estimated launch period is on May 2017 and the brand may bring it to other regions at a later date.