I don’t know about you, but I’m not a massive fan of coupe-style crossover SUVs.
But sheesh, after a few hours behind the wheel of the Cupra Tavascan in Spain recently, I have to say… I’m a bit taken by it.
Not only is this electric SUV a design to behold from the outside, it’s glorious inside, more spacious than you’d think, and is shaping up to be more value-packed and lower-priced than a fair few of its main competitors.
I can also tell you that it has its own character in terms of the drive experience, as I found out during a few spirited stints in the top-spec dual-motor variant.
Read on to find out more.
How does the Cupra Tavascan compare?
View a detailed breakdown of the Cupra Tavascan against similarly sized vehicles.
Cupra
Tavascan
How much does the Cupra Tavascan cost?
The Spanish brand hasn’t confirmed exact Australian pricing for the Tavascan, but you can expect the two versions to be priced as follows.
| Model | Price before on-road costs |
|---|---|
| Cupra Tavascan Endurance RWD | Expected under $70,000 |
| Cupra Tavascan VZ AWD | Expected around $80,000 |
If you’re thinking, “wait a second, so the Cupra could be cheaper than the Skoda Enyaq?”, you’d be right. It’s also shaping up to be more sharply priced than many established players, including the Hyundai Ioniq 5, Kia EV6, and Subaru Solterra.
This is largely due to sourcing for this car – it’ll be produced by Volkswagen Anhui in China. The Enyaq on the other hand is made in the Czech Republic, which adds to the costs involved and leads to a higher price – even though Australia gets a comparatively good deal on pricing for that car.
To see how the Cupra Tavascan stacks up against it rivals, use our comparison tool.
What is the Cupra Tavascan like on the inside?
It is, frankly, gorgeous. Better than that, it feels special inside, and that’s enough to set it apart from many other EVs on the market.
But that’s a Cupra trait, right? The brand is about design, aesthetics, finishes, trims, lighting, and darkness. Seriously, if you haven’t sat in a Cupra, do yourself a favour – the brand has its interior game on target.
However, follow me on this tangent. Whoever designed or approved the exterior door handles should have a good think about what they’ve done, because they’re terrible.
They’ve got a sensor that is supposed to trigger them to open, but if you’re not used to the handles you’re going to flick it open and it will snap back loudly, or worse, you’ll get the edge of your finger pinched when it springs back, as I did. Ouch.
Once you’re inside, the VZ with the Dark Night interior theme is exceptional to behold, with a glorious mix of finishes and feelings to the materials used.
There’s a massive blade-like element that runs the width of the dash, gill-like finishes on the doors, and a spine centre piece that divides the cabin between the driver’s zone and the passenger area.
The latter offers a massive storage trench below, with a wireless charger and a place for your keys or wallet.
On the centre tunnel there are open cupholders between the seats, and a centre console bin that’s a useful size. So it’s both form and function.
Sitting proud at the top of the dashboard is a 12.9-inch touchscreen that takes some acclimation because there are a few menus upon menus – but it’s definitely better than the earlier examples of software design from Cupra.
Indeed there are some handy shortcuts you can set up in the home bar section at the top of the screen, plus there’s a fixed climate area at the bottom.
That’s where you can tap to turn on your seat heating or adjust the fan speed. However, you need to enter another menu to change the rear climate settings, air flow and steering wheel heating. Just below the screen there are sliding haptic interfaces for the temperature, and a central slider to control the volume.
I had my iPhone connected to wireless Apple CarPlay and it worked without hassle. There’s also wireless Android Auto connectivity, plus an array of USB-C charge ports.
We’ll dwell more on the screen in our Australian review, but there are smart charging options so you can set a timer for the EV to fill its battery up once plugged in, and there are heaps of other menus available.
The biggest annoyance in the cabin for me is the inclusion of haptic steering wheel controls, which are easy to bump – especially if you’re driving with intent.
Speaking of steering wheel controls, there’s a drive mode selector button on the tiller, as well as a dedicated Cupra button to quickly access the most assertive drive mode.
Another haptic control that doesn’t make sense to me is that instead of having four window switches for the driver to operate, there are only two, and a haptic button to switch between the front and rear windows. Why? Seems like simplicity for complexity’s sake!
If you’re wondering, the car will start up when you sit on the seat and put your foot on the brake, and turn off when you hop out. That can be annoying, because the seat sensor is pretty sensitive to movement.
Sitting behind my own 182cm driving position, I had inches of leg-room and toe-room, and even a decent amount of head-room – a surprise for a coupe-style SUV, especially one with a panoramic glass roof.
There’s also decent width to the back seat, with enough space for three across. If you have little ones there’s a set of ISOFIX child seat anchors in the window seats, and three top-tether points.
Amenities include directional air vents, heated outboard seats, rear climate controls, ambient lighting, map pockets on the seatbacks, bottle holders in the doors, as well as a flip-down armrest with cupholders and a ski-port.
Boot space is commendable at 540 litres, and there’s an adjustable floor section that can be used to partition away a hidey hole for your charging cables.
It also has a pair of shopping bag hooks, storage trenches on the sides, and a light.
No spare wheel, though. Instead you get a tyre repair kit. Other omissions include a front trunk and a rear wiper.
| Dimensions | Cupra Tavascan |
|---|---|
| Length | 4644mm |
| Width | 1861mm |
| Height | 1597mm |
| Wheelbase | 2766mm |
| Cargo capacity | 540 litres |
To see how the Cupra Tavascan stacks up against it rivals, use our comparison tool.
What’s under the bonnet?
Cupra has confirmed specs for the new Tavascan line-up, and like its sibling model from Skoda there will be two different versions on offer – one with rear-wheel drive; and a range-topper with dual-motor all-wheel drive.
| Specifications | Tavascan Endurance | Tavascan VZ |
|---|---|---|
| Drivetrain | Single-motor rear-wheel drive | Dual-motor all-wheel drive |
| Battery | 77kWh lithium-ion | 77kWh lithium-ion |
| Power | 210kW | 250kW |
| Torque | 545Nm | 545Nm |
| Driven wheels | RWD | AWD |
| Weight (EU-spec) | 2178kg | 2273kg |
| 0-100km/h (claimed) | 6.8 seconds | 5.5 seconds |
| Power consumption (claimed) | TBD | TBD |
| Power consumption (as tested) | N/A | 25.6kWh/100km |
| Claimed range (WLTP) | 534km | 499km |
| Max AC charge rate | 11kW | 11kW |
| Max DC charge rate | 135kW | 135kW |
Further specifications including weights, towing capacity are yet to be made available for Australian models.
The energy consumption figures for our market are also to be confirmed, although data online suggests a figure ranging from 16.5-18.1kWh per 100km for the flagship VZ.
On test, I saw a significantly higher 25.6kWh per 100km over a few hundred kilometres of varied driving, including a long stint of mountain pass testing – not to mention a number of different drivers behind the wheel.
To see how the Cupra Tavascan stacks up against it rivals, use our comparison tool.
How does the Cupra Tavascan drive?
As you would expect, the VZ dual-motor all-wheel drive model is impressively fast.
The 0-100km/h time mightn’t be as blistering as some rivals out there, but in practice it flings you at the horizon with surprising ease, especially considering the heft of the thing.
The Tavascan VZ weighs up to 2273kg, according to the brand, and you can feel that in corners, but it does have a more dynamic personality than many of the other EVs in this segment. A fair bit of that can also be attributed to the drive mode selection system.
There are multiple different modes to choose from – including the aforementioned Cupra mode – which basically turns it from a silent and relatively smooth commuter SUV into a dramatic one with a different temperament.
There’s a natural progression to the steering, meaning less of that super darty on-centre fakery that you get in some other EVs out there, with more of an intrinsic responsiveness to the driver’s hands.
It’s a properly sporty electric SUV – to the point that if you’re cross-shopping it against a Toyota or Subaru electric SUV, it’s on another level.
The braking is probably the least enjoyable element during harder driving, with the regen system interrupting things a bit. The pedal just doesn’t have the same level of trust that I would like for an SUV of this size.
But in ‘B’ mode (selectable using the column shifter), the response and progressive nature of the regenerative braking system is lovely in urban driving.
In addition to B mode there are three different regenerative braking levels to choose from, by using the paddle shifters on the steering wheel.
Another pleasant part of the drive is the ride comfort and body control. The VZ comes with Adaptive Chassis Control, so the dampers are adjustable to make it more cushy if you wish, or more focused in feel.
While there is no escaping the physical size of the car, nor the fact it has 21-inch wheels and low-profile Hankook Ion Evo SUV tyres that feel sharp bumps, it was very comfortable in slower speed traffic snarls, and a mix of other road situations.
What do you get?
Two variants of the Cupra Tavascan will be offered at launch.
Tavascan Endurance highlights:
- 19-inch black and silver ‘Vulcano’ alloy wheels
- Illuminated Cupra logos front and rear
- Hands-free power tailgate
- Tri-zone climate control with rear control
- 15-inch touchscreen infotainment system
- Paddle shifters for regenerative braking adjustment
- Black fabric upholstery
Optional Interior Package adds:
- 20-inch ‘Heckla’ alloy wheels
- Surround-view camera
- Power-adjustable, heated front seats with memory
- Sennheiser sound system
- Dark Night deep blue interior
- Microfibre upholstery
- Ambient lighting
Tavascan VZ adds:
- 21-inch black and copper ‘Katla’ alloy wheels
- Dynamic Chassis Control (DCC) adaptive suspension
- ‘Cascading’ Matrix LED headlights
- Fixed sunroof with power sun blind
If you wish, there’s the Extreme Package for the VZ, which adds ventilated Cup Racing front bucket seats finished in Enceladus Grey leather, as well as stickier performance tyres.
Equipped as such, you pay a price in terms of driving range, which drops to 463km (down from 499km).
Is the Cupra Tavascan safe?
There is no Euro NCAP or ANCAP safety rating for the Tavascan yet, and full specification details for the safety suite to be offered locally are still to be confirmed – but as standard the “full suite” of active technology will be offered, according to the brand.
Expected standard safety equipment:
- Autonomous emergency braking (AEB)
- Pedestrian, cyclist detection
- Junction and head-on detection
- Lane keep assist
- Adaptive cruise control incl. speed limiter
- Traffic jam assist (braking, accelerating and steering assistance)
- Blind-spot monitoring
- Rear cross-traffic alert
- Safe exit assist
- Active bonnet
- Driver fatigue monitoring system
- Traffic sign recognition
- Intelligent park assist (semi-autonomous parking)
- Connected services with emergency calling (TBC for Australia)
The base model comes with a reversing camera, while the optional pack adds a surround-view 360-degree camera – standard on VZ. There are dual front, front side, front centre, and full-length curtain airbags.
How much does the Cupra Tavascan cost to run?
There’s a five-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty for all Cupra models in Australia, and you can expect the Tavascan will have that same level of cover.
Battery warranty will span eight years/160,000km, and it will guarantee a 70 per cent state of health by the end of that period.
There will be a prepaid servicing option for buyers, likely with three- and five-year terms. Pricing hasn’t been finalised yet. You get five years roadside assistance with a new Cupra in Australia, too.
To see how the Cupra Tavascan stacks up against it rivals, use our comparison tool.
CarExpert’s Take on the Cupra Tavascan
Stylish and special feeling – that sums up what I felt about the Cupra Tavascan after a short stint driving it in Spain ahead of its local debut.
Stay tuned, because this could be a really impressive offer in the Australian EV market, where it’s due to arrive before the end of 2024.
Interested in buying a Cupra Tavascan? Get in touch with one of CarExpert’s trusted dealers here
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