What's a Cupra? We Drive Fun EVs That Could Hit U.S. Roads Soon

• Cupra — a spinoff of the Volkswagen Group's Seat brand — is coming to the U.S. by 2030.
• The Born EV is a 322-horsepower rear-wheel-drive hot hatch.
• The Tavascan is a 335-horsepower electric crossover.

There's a new brand coming to the United States in a few years — a European marque known for its fresh, youthful designs and playful cars. No, I'm not talking about Renault, which has perennially been pipped for a return. It isn't Alpine, either, which is still supposedly on the docket, yet I'm left admiring the A110 from afar.

The brand is Cupra, part of the Volkswagen Group, and it's expected to arrive in the U.S. before the end of the decade. To spoil the surprise and get an early sense of just what we're in for, I headed all the way to the corporate heart of VW — Wolfsburg, Germany — for a go in the company's two electric models. Turns out, we're in for a treat.

Intro to Cupra

Cupra is a spinoff of the Spanish brand Seat, which has been around since 1950. Before its 2018 breakaway, Cupra was effectively Seat's performance division. It'd be like if Volkswagen made GTI its own brand. Today, Cupra offers seven models ranging from hatchbacks to SUVs with a mixture of combustion, plug-in hybrid and fully electric powertrains.

It's the latter group that grabs my attention, starting with the Cupra Born in racy VZ trim. The four-door hatch's style is delivered by a series of organic shapes cut by dramatic lines and creases to create something that looks fantastic. Dip it in a subtle green with cool copper highlights, then throw on a set of wheels with center caps that seem to nod toward Audi's turbofans of the '80s, and you have an epic-looking EV.

The interior is just as good. The Born's deep racing-style seats with funky upholstery look great and are super comfy. The copper highlights continue, and while some of the plastics are a bit harsh, and the contrasting geodesic patterns are perhaps a bit much with the faux carbon-fiber embossing, the fresh, youthful vibe is nevertheless strong.

Touch-forward

The Born borrows the Volkswagen ID 4's control experience more or less wholesale, including sliders for volume and temperature embedded beneath the infotainment screen. You'll also notice the same set of unfortunate touch controls on the steering wheel stalks. 

What's new are a set of drive mode toggles, offset on the lower left and lower right à la Porsche's Sport Response knobs. These cycle through the Born's four modes: Range, Comfort, Performance and Cupra in order of increasing aggression, with a bonus Individual mode for the Goldilocks among us.

Easing out into traffic in Range and then dialing up to Comfort, the Born is chill to an extreme, with a relaxed throttle and light steering. Ride compliance is generally good, but there is some harsh compression noise from the suspension over bigger bumps. I blame the 20-inch wheels and low-profile tires.

Performance to Cupra

Things start to come alive in Performance mode, but the experience really transforms in Cupra. The Born gets properly eager, with sharp throttle response and a good amount of pull, even at highway speeds. The car has 322 horsepower, all delivered to the rear wheels. Yes, this is a rear-drive hot hatch, but don't expect lurid tail-out antics. The Born's handling is reasonably responsive and fun but far from aggressive, while the vague steering picks up too much weight. Thankfully, you can dial that back down in Individual mode.

Sadly, you can't fix the brake pedal. It's soft and extremely vague, again like the ID 4's, making deceleration difficult to modulate cleanly. It's anything but sporty. I'd also like more regenerative braking, as even on maximum (toggled by the wheel-mounted paddles), the Born falls well short of one-pedal.

Tavascan time

Those same complaints carry over to Cupra's other EV, the Tavascan SUV, which shares the same murky brake pedal and steering feel. It's much less aggressive with its power delivery despite actually being the quicker car; Cupra estimates 5.5 seconds to 62 mph compared to 5.6 seconds for the Born. That's thanks to a little more power: 335 hp from a pair of motors. It's the Born that goes significantly farther on a charge, though: 372 miles on the European WLTP scale from a 79-kWh battery. The Tavascan does 324 miles from a 77-kWh pack. 

That range delta is likely down to the Tavascan's bigger dimensions, space that can be mostly found in the comfortable rear seats. The front feels cramped, though, due mostly to the wild dragon scale-covered flying buttress flowing out of the center console. I'm not sure it serves any purpose other than giving the car a weird alien lizard vibe.

The Tavascan's controls are similar to the Born's, but the overall funky factor is even higher. The copper highlights still look good, and the materials are slightly better, with lots of microfiber surfaces and a cool neoprene-like covering in the door cards. 

Not everybody will like the Tavascan's dashboard, but the exterior is undeniably charming. Sitting in the fading Wolfsburg sunlight, the Tavascan looks great. That's especially so from the rear. The roofline sweeps down to form a pert posterior with a dramatic faux diffuser and a slender, sweeping taillight that's full of fun details.

Here's hoping

While a few elements of the Born and Tavascan could use improvement, both left me smiling. They drive well and look great, delivering the kind of personality and curb appeal still lacking in many modern EVs.

Given everything going on in the industry right now, it's hard to imagine what the American auto market will look like in five years, when VW has said Cupra will arrive in the U.S. I hope the company finds a way, though, because I'd love to see many of these zipping through traffic.

Photos by Tim Stevens