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First Drive Review: Cupra Formentor

Monday, 21 June 2021

Cupra's sexy new Formentor small SUV has landed in New Zealand.
The first car designed exclusively for Cupra, the brilliantly-named Formentor, has now arrived in New Zealand.
The first car designed exclusively for Cupra, the brilliantly-named Formentor, has now arrived in New Zealand.
Cupra is Latin for ‘copper’, so there are lots of copper-coloured badges inside and outside the Formentor.
Cupra is Latin for ‘copper’, so there are lots of copper-coloured badges inside and outside the Formentor.

Cupra used to be the performance badge on hot Seats (ie: Seat Leon Cupra), then it became a separate performance arm with hot versions of existing Seats being rebranded as Cupras (ie: Cupra Leon) and now Cupra has launched its own car that won’t be a Seat – the sexy looking Formentor SUV.

Make me an instant expert: what do I need to know?

The Formentor VZ packs the brilliant VW Group 228kW four-cylinder turbo petrol engine.
The Formentor VZ packs the brilliant VW Group 228kW four-cylinder turbo petrol engine.

While the Formentor is definitely its own thing and will not be a Seat, it still dips heavily into the VW Group box of bits (as all VW Group cars do) and it wouldn’t actually be terribly unfair to call the Formentor a sexier version of the Seat/Cupra Ateca, as the two are basically the same under the skin.

**READ MORE:

Even the entry level V 4Drive boasts an impressively high quality interior.
Even the entry level V 4Drive boasts an impressively high quality interior.

* Road test review: Cupra Ateca VZ

* Sunday Drive: Seat Ateca FR 4Drive

228kW and AWD makes the Formentor VZ an dominant force on a rainy day.
228kW and AWD makes the Formentor VZ an dominant force on a rainy day.

* First drive review: Seat Ateca and Cupra Ateca

* A short history of Cupra road cars

The Formentor has a range of copper-highlighted wheels available. Which you really just have to have...
The Formentor has a range of copper-highlighted wheels available. Which you really just have to have...

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That means the Formentor is actually smaller than it seems to appear in pics, basically being a ‘coupe’ version of the Ateca. Thankfully Cupra don’t try to describe it that way though. At least not here…

You can never have too much carbon fibre and copper highlights.
You can never have too much carbon fibre and copper highlights.

And, yes, that means the hottest version of the Formentor – the VZ – gets the Cupra Ateca’s fantastic 228kW/400Nm version of the VW Group’s 2.0-litre turbo four-cylinder petrol engine that both also shared with the last Golf R.

But in an added twist to the ever-complex identity of Cupra, the Formentor is also getting some non-performance versions as well.

The sleek, sexy Formentor is actually much smaller than it looks in photos.
The sleek, sexy Formentor is actually much smaller than it looks in photos.

So – just to keep that straight – Cupra is Seat’s performance arm, but it will now be producing non-performance versions of its own car that is heavily based on Seat products. Got that? Good.

Why? Reasons. The main one being that there was more value expanding Cupra’s brief than selling the Formentor as a lesser-powered Seat. Your head is probably hurting by now.

It’s best to not get too tied up in all the reasons and names and just go with the fact that the Formentor is only available as a Cupra, looks sensational and will be available in a number of different guises. The first two of which are here now – the aforementioned VZ and the 140kW/320Nm V 4Drive.

Like the VZ, the V 4Drive is AWD and powered by a 2.0-litre turbo four hooked up to a seven-speed DSG and aside from the power output, the big differences between the two are wheels, exhausts and seats. That’s the things you sit in, not the brand…

That means you get the sexy looks whichever variant you go for, with the V 4Drive coming impressively well-equipped for its $54,900 asking price, with things like 18-inch alloy wheels, a 12-inch infotainment touchscreen with Android Auto and wireless Apple CarPlay, Cupra Drive Profile with four driving modes, a 10.25-inch configurable digital dash display, triple-zone climate control, partial leather sports seats, LED lights all round with high-beam assist, tyre pressure monitoring and rear parking sensors, as well as the full complement of expected safety tech and driver assists.

For $69,900, the VZ adds the extra grunt to the V’s specification, as well as 19-inch alloys, a top-view 360 degree camera, wireless phone charging, a BeatsAudio sound system, Cupra sports suspension with dynamic chassis control, speed sensitive power steering, sportier electrically-adjustable and heated sports seats, a heated steering wheel, sports pedals, park assist with front parking sensors and a rear diffuser with quad exhausts.

Where did you drive it?

South of Auckland down the winding rural roads around the border between Auckland and the north Waikato. So, familiar roads in appalling weather.

At least the persistent rain showed off the Formentor’s formidable ability in treacherous conditions, something we would have expected from something on the VW Group’s MQB platform with AWD anyway.

The VZ is indeed a seriously quick and even more seriously composed thing, feeling pretty much like the Cupra Ateca – which again you would absolutely expect, and this is in no way a bad thing as the Ateca is truly superb on a winding road.

As is the Formentor VZ. While its internal sound is a little artificial (again, as it is in all recent hot offerings from the VW Group), it is still a pleasant enough companion when you are getting into it, and the sheer joyousness of the superbly accurate chassis utterly delightful. It also somehow manages to offer up a wonderfully composed and comfortable ride into thin gs as well, although if you wind it up to full Cupra mode in the DCC settings it can get a bit harsh for local roads – luckily the “Individual” setting gives you a slider to adjust the sports suspension.

The “lesser” V 4Drive may not get the extra sporty settings of the extra grunt, but it too was a delightful thing to chuck down a winding road. It may not have the hefty punch the VZ packs out of corners, but it can be almost as much fun and just as comfortable for less money.

What’s the pick of the range?

While you would be correct in thinking that the VZ is the easy pick here, don’t discount the V 4Drive’s ability to offer 90 per cent of what the VZ does for 80 per cent of the price.

If you want the ultimate Formentor with the most grunt, then the VZ is a no-brainer, but if you want the superb looks, most of the equipment and the same comfortable ride and supremely capable handling, the V 4Drive offers up a compelling argument indeed.

And it is also the cheapest way to get into a Cupra. Well, at least until the next members of the Formentor family arrive – namely a hybrid version and an intriguing 110kW FWD version that will cut the price of entry into the Cupra family to under $50k.

Why would I buy it?

Because you want one of the best looking, best handling, most fun small SUVs on the market today. Because you appreciate Cupra’s slightly obscure enthusiast appeal (that Skoda used to have) and, in the case of the V 4Drive, you want all of that, but don’t care about the extra grunt and want to save yourself a tidy sum instead.

Why wouldn’t I buy it?

Because you are waiting for that extremely awesome Leon Sportstourer wagon that isn’t too far away now…