Cupra Born VZ review: electric hot hatch shines with speed, style and serious range
The new Cupra Born
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CUPRA BORN VZ |
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Rating |
★★★★☆ |
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Price |
from €42,295 - €47,585 as tested |
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Power |
Electric with 322bhp |
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Range |
an impressive 600km |
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The Spec |
not much missing in this, the VZ range-topper |
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Verdict |
very close to being a 5-star car |
Volkswagen is not generally known as a company that tends to take a rash punt on something – unless it’s trying to trick us all with an emissions scandal, of course.
Generally, though, it is a staid outfit where every decision is carefully measured and thought through. That being so, the creation of a new marque from scratch built on the foundations of one of VW’s subsidiaries – SEAT – has been something of an ongoing curiosity.
The new Cupra marque – despite the fact it has been with us since 2018 and was SEAT’s performance sub-brand forever – still elicits frowns and much head-scratching from the motoring public who don’t really know (or understand) what it is all about.
Coming to a decision to make Cupra an actual nameplate in its own right could be considered a massive gamble in VW terms, but one would have to presume that a corporation of its size and clout considered all the implications before doing so.
Those who reached the conclusion that Cupra was a wise road to travel may have kept to themselves the answers to numerous questions – not least wither SEAT?
It has also been decided that they are preparing the brand for a push to establish a greater VW Group foothold in markets unused to having anything other than Volkswagen or Audi products available to them.
One such market, of course, would be America. Some years ago, we actually tried to persuade several members of the management board at Skoda that they were mad not to put their toe in US waters and particularly so with their hugely successful SUV range. Needless to say, our thoughts on the matter were dismissed out of hand.
What we did not know was that they were planning such a move, but it would not be with the Skoda nameplate – it would be with Cupra and in March last year they announced they would do so by the end of this decade.
Of course, what nobody factored into the equation was Donald ‘Tariff’ Trump. His seemingly endless thirst for a deal has wracked world markets and upset pretty much everyone. It also unsettled those in Martorell, near Barcelona, who had been charged with readying Cupra for an assault on America.
Their plans might have had to be put on hold for a while as everyone trading with America tries to ensure they’re not tariffed out of business. You can be sure, however, that this dumb-ass idea to try and make America great again, will not put a stop to their intentions in the long-run.
From something of a standing start, Cupra has made steady ground across Europe as a sort of sub-premium car maker with ambitious plans. They have thus far come up with an impressive range of models and like Skoda (within the parameters they were allowed) have made a bunch of cars that – embarrassingly – often put their Wolfsburg equivalents well in the shade.
One such has been the Cupra Born, the company’s first EV which shares a lot with the VW ID.3, except it is a much better car. It is better looking, far more premium-minded and still reasonably priced. We’ve driven a few of them since they arrived in 2021 and recently we got our hands on another. We were, once again, impressed.
This time around we had the VZ version of the car, which is the EV hot hatch model – and quite the thing it is. Like its lesser siblings, it shares a lot with the ID.3, but in this case it is specifically twinned with the ID.3 GTX.
Interestingly, we will not be seeing that VW here for some time, so for the powers-that-be in Wolfsburg to allow the Cupra Born VZ to steal some of their thunder, is a measure of just how important the new brand is for the group right at this very moment and into the future.
Now, while the Born has been critical in growing sales for the new marque – along with the excellent Formentor, which we will be trying again soon. Across Europe it sold over 45,000 units last year and, it is obviously hoped that by sprucing it up, it will sell many more this year.
The VZ handle stands for ‘Veloz’ (speed in Spanish) and while the transition to hot hatch has not seen much development on the exterior look (some new colours and new 20” alloys), under the skin there is 40% more power and 75% more torque, as well as better range and charging times thanks to a new 79 kWh battery.
But that’s not all because the suspension has been tweaked, the anti-roll bars have been upgraded and the brakes and steering also given a going over. The interior has also been upgraded, with all manner of lighting systems and an excellent pair of Sabelt bucket seats for the driver and passenger.
The Born was always a nice car to drive or be driven in. Now, though, it has a new edge and the increase in grunt now sees 322 bhp being delivered, as well as a 0-100 km/h time of 5.6 seconds and a top speed just shy of 200 km/h. The range too has improved to a fraction under 600 km, which is pretty impressive for a small EV and even moreso when you factor in the power increases.
It is a rear-wheel-drive car, so with that extra power it might be a tricky wet weather companion, but upgraded steering and a host of electronic aids eliminate most of those downsides. The traction control system is excellent and while the ESC might be a bit intrusive for some, it keeps things sensible.
This is something unusual for an electric in that it likes to be hustled; many of them are simply quick, but don’t particularly like corners. This one does both satisfactorily and while the ride is a little on the stiff side, that’s for a good reason. Cornering and grip levels are top drawer.
One issue that rear its head was the relatively spongy brakes. While these have been upgraded, they are still too slow to react for my liking and you really had to jump on them to get a satisfactory response.
Overall, though, this was a car that impressed greatly and, to be honest, one which came very close to securing a valued (and rare) 5-star review. It did everything really well and was comfortable and practical while doing so.
The only thing that took the shine off somewhat was that issue with the brakes which were really not up to the standards set everywhere else in the Born design and took the gloss off an otherwise outstanding vehicle.
But we set a high bar here at Examiner Motoring and the Born just didn’t clear it satisfactorily, which is something of a blot on a pretty much blemish-free car from the marque.
And remember too that if you’re unfamiliar with all things Cupra, you’ll soon be wondering why that was ever the case. And, if you’re American, you can look forward to something new, fresh and exciting coming your way soon.
