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SEAT’s Cupra offshoot hit the ground running with the Formentor, a small SUV that can rival hot hatchbacks for both style and performance. It’s attractive inside and out, entertaining to drive but usable as a family car, and offers a useful range of engine options, including some cost-cutting plug-in hybrids.
All models are well-equipped too, so you won’t necessarily need to break the bank to find a car that suits your needs, particularly as even the basic engines are punchy enough to have fun with. As a relatively new car there are no true used bargains out there just yet, but you may still find a useful saving over a brand new car.
You might consider the regular Cupra Leon hatchback an alternative to the Formentor, but if SUVs are more your style then premium-badged models like the BMW X2 and Audi Q3 Sportback are closest in spirit, each also available with a range of engines, from the frugal to the potent. The Formentor still looks appealing even against these German premium models, though.
Once used to denote the performance models in SEAT’s car range, Cupra became a brand in its own right in 2018 and the Formentor was the first dedicated model in the brand’s portfolio, with no direct SEAT equivalent and not simply spun off an existing model, like the Cupra Leon.
As first efforts go, it’s a pretty good one. It’s one of the more dynamic-looking and attractive small SUVs on sale, with a low roof line to offset the extra ride height you get over a conventional hatchback, and sharply defined rear haunches that give it a muscular look.
Inside meanwhile it’s more or less identical to the Cupra Leon, which is no bad thing if you can get on with the reliance on touchscreen controls, and it’s spacious enough to handle family use, though the upswept rear window line can make visibility tricky for kids in the back. Both inside and out there’s liberal use of Cupra’s corporate colour, a hue Cupra calls copper, but looks more like bronze to our eyes…
The Formentor’s lineup of engines and gearboxes should be familiar to anyone who has driven a recent model from one of the Volkswagen Group’s brands, with a range of four-cylinder petrol and petrol hybrid engines, and manual or DSG automatics depending on the engine. Most power the front wheels, but there’s a range-topping 4Drive 310 that effectively uses the engine and all-wheel drive system from the Volkswagen Golf R, and offers serious performance.
It might have an SUV-style body, but the Formentor is definitely closer to a hot hatchback to drive, even if its taller stance means it’s not quite as agile as a regular hatch. It’s fun to thread down a twisty road but handles bumps too, and settles down on the motorway and in town, so it’s a car you can buy with the head as well as the heart - particularly the frugal e-Hybrid models.
Our only real reservation is over Cupra’s touchscreen infotainment system, which looks great at a glance but can be tricky to operate on the move, compounded by the air conditioning controls being touch-sensitive sliders beneath the screen. At least there are physical volume and track-skipping buttons on the steering wheel for operating audio functions.
If you’re looking for alternatives to the Formentor, the closest cars in spirit actually wear premium badges, such as the BMW X2 and Audi Q3 Sportback, and the range-topping 4Drive 310 undercuts the closest BMW and Q3 performance models on price, brand new at least.
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If you’re sold on the Formentor’s style then you’ll get a lot of joy even from the entry-level TSI 150 and lower trim levels. The basic engine is quick off the mark, the Formentor’s handling still feels sporty, and if you find a model in V2 trim with its larger 19-inch alloy wheels, you lose nothing in terms of styling, since the higher-specced models also roll on 19s.
The Nappa leather trim in V2 spec also looks very smart - particularly in the optional Petrol Blue colour, which helps brighten up the cabin from the standard black. We’d not dissuade you from hunting down the 4Drive 310 though - it really does have proper hot hatchback performance.
The Cupra Formentor’s trim level options are an arbitrary mix of letters and numbers, but are at least fairly easy to understand: basically, higher numbers and more letters mean higher trim levels, with V1 the entry point and VZN the range-topping model. TSI 150 engines and the e-Hybrid 204 are only available in V1 and V2 trims, the e-Hybrid 245 in VZ1 and VZ2, and the 4Drive 310 can be specified in the top three trim levels, VZ2, VZ3, and VZN.
The Cupra Formentor’s dimensions are:
The Cupra Formentor’s boot size is:
First-year VED or ‘road tax’ varies depending on the engine in the Cupra Formentor, with the two plug-in hybrid models being free thanks to their low CO2 ratings and alternative fuel billing. The TSI 150 models cost £155 in the first year, and the 4Drive 310 goes up to £1565.
This changes from the second year onwards. Several models, with list prices of over £40,000, are subject to the VED surcharge in the second to sixth years of registration, so these models cost either £560 a year for the plug-in hybrids, or £570 for the other engines. A few sneak below the £40,000 mark though - all V1 spec cars, and the TSI 150 models in V2 trim - so are much cheaper to tax, at £180 per year.
With a fairly wide variation in performance there’s a similar spread of insurance groups for the Cupra Formentor. The basic TSI 150 with the manual gearbox is cheapest, regardless of whether it’s in V1 or V2 trim, in group 19. DSG models rise one group, to 20. e-Hybrids start in group 24, while a top-spec 4Drive 310 in VZN trim is in group 33 - though that’s not excessive given the performance on offer.
Read our full Cupra Formentor review
What is the most popular colour for Cupra Formentor ?
What is the most popular gearbox for Cupra Formentor ?
What is the most popular fuel type for Cupra Formentor ?
What is the most popular engine for Cupra Formentor ?
What is the average mileage for Cupra Formentor ?
12756
How many Cupra Formentor cars are available for sale?
262