Australians will soon be getting their hands on cars from Cupra – the Spanish performance brand that is part of SEAT, S.A. and, thusly, the Volkswagen Group. Cupra in Australia will be accepting orders for models from its three-vehicle range in June, while a handful of Launch Edition specials were available to order from earlier this month.

The local line-up will initially include three models – the Ateca SUV, the Formentor crossover SUV, and the Leon hatchback. Plug-in hybrid variants of the Formentor and the Leon will be available, and Cupra Australia has also confirmed that the company’s fully electric Born hatchback will be available locally too from early 2023.

Cupra was launched as a standalone brand in 2018 and has made quite a splash with its range of stylish vehicles.

In 2021, according to the SEAT, S.A. annual report, Cupra managed 79,327 delivered (with the Formentor making up the great majority of that number), tripling its sales from the previous year.

Globally, the company has announced it will grow its electrified vehicle line-up with a new SUV, scheduled to appear in 2024. A road version of the company’s UrbanRebel Concept is also expected at some point.

In Australia, meanwhile, the interest in the brand and the soon-to-be-available range has been strong with more than 9,000 expressions of interest registered by the first week of May – the majority for the Formentor range.

“This is a remarkable response to a brand that is entirely new to Australia and which is barely four years old,” said Ben Wilks, Director of Cupra Australia.

It was back in March last year that the decision for Cupra to start operations in Australia was announced, and the brand clearly sees a solid market here. At the time, the company’s President Wayne Griffiths said, “Australia is a young market and Cupra is a young brand. Customers are looking for new brands, there is a high middle-class income and it is a progressive society. We are confident that Cupra can be successful in this country.”

The company will have agents in NSW, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia and the ACT, and it will be interesting to see the brand’s progress.

In the meantime, here is a rundown of the models that are, and will be, available to Australian customers to order this year.

Cupra Leon

The Leon hatch will be available in four variants – the V (which will be available to pr-order later this year) is powered by a 140kW/320Nm 2-litre, 4-cylinder turbo; the VZ, with a 180kW/370Nm 2-litre, 4-cylinder turbo; the VZx, powered by a 221kW/400Nm 2-litre, 4-cylinder turbo; and the VZe hybrid, which pairs a 1.4-litre, 4-cylinder turbo developing 110kW/250Nm with an 85kW/300Nm electric motor.

Pricing for the variants is:

• Leon V: $43,990 (Drive away pricing to come)
• Leon VZ: $52,590 ($56,990 drive away)
• Leon VZe: $59,990 ($63,990 drive away in Qld)
• Leon VZx: $60,990 ($64,990 drive away)

Cupra Formentor

Like the Leon, the Formentor SUV will be available immediately in four variants, including a hybrid.

The Formentor V will be powered by a 2.0-litre turbo 4-cylinder petrol engine developing 140kW/320Nm; the Formentor VZ gets a 2.0-litre turbo 4-cylinder petrol engine developing 180kW/370Nm; and the VZx receives a 2.0-litre turbo 4-cylinder petrol engine developing 228kW/400Nm. The hybrid VZe pairs a 1.4-litre turbo 4-cylinder petrol engine developing 110kW/250Nm with a 85kW/300Nm electric motor.

Pricing for the variants is:

• Formentor V: $50,690 ($54,990 drive away)
• Formentor VZ: $53,790 ($58,490 drive away)
• Formentor VZe: $60,990 ($64,990 drive away in Qld)
• Formentor VZx $61,490 ($66,490 drive away)

Cupra Ateca

The Cupra Ateca SUV will, unlike the other models, be available in one top-spec model, the VZx.

Power will come from a 221kW/400Nm, 2-litre, four-cylinder turbo engine mated to a 7-speed DSG transmission with 4Drive all-wheel-drive (AWD). Reaching 100km/h will take, the company says, 4.9 seconds.

Pricing for the Ateca VZx is $60,990 ($65,990 drive away)

Source: Motor Trader e-Magazine (May 202) 

26 May 2022