Cupra Formentor VZ5

THE intention for Cupra to establish itself as a high-performance operator in the Volkswagen Group just took a substantial step forward with the new Formentor VZ5. The brand might be deep into electrifying its range, and cars like the family-friendly Terramar and Tavascan both bring valuable scale. But Cupra’s ‘soul’ is found in cars like this.

- Jordan Katsianis

The Formentor is Cupra’s midsize crossover, and is available with a range of petrol and plugin hybrid powertrains. As it stands, there’s a range-topping four-cylinder petrol with around 330bhp. But to give the brand a true performance flagship, even Cupra recognised it needed something with more gusto. Enter the VZ5: it’s limited to just 4,000 units globally, and UK numbers have yet to be confirmed. We expect it to arrive in the middle of next year.

The model has one key upgrade over lesser variants - a turbocharged five-cylinder petrol engine. The 2.5-litre unit is borrowed from Audi, and produces 385bhp and 480Nm of torque. This is driven through a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox to an all-wheel drive system, and has the same torque-vectoring rear differential as the Audi RS 3 and Volkswagen Golf R. The 0-62mph time stands at 4.2 seconds, and it’ll top out at 173mph.

The chassis has also been given an overhaul, with a 10mm drop in ride height, standard fitment of the variable adaptive dampers (DCC), unique 20-inch forged alloy wheels and a set of six-piston Akebono brake calipers gripping 375mm front discs.