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With the Born presents the sporty Seat-Daughter Cupra their first fully electric Volkswagen. A stylish guy who speaks fluent German.
The playing field is still bumpy on which the new superstar should score. When the Cupra Born arrives on its home market from November, it will encounter - let's say - rather holey charging infrastructure. As far as the number of public charging stations is concerned, the Iberian Peninsula is undoubtedly still one of the developing countries of e-mobility in Europe. Spain's new power star is now set to change the plug culture. It is only a minor flaw that the Cupra Born player pass does not say “Born in Barcelona”, but “Made in Saxony”. The 4,32-meter-long compact car has recently been rolling off the assembly line at the VW plant in Zwickau parallel to its electric brother ID.3 and is taking us on a test drive for the first time today.
Starts with over 200 hp
The Cupra Born shares the MEB modular electrical construction kit with the ID.3. That means three performance versions, three different battery sizes and only rear-wheel drive. The Cupra Born starts with a 58 kWh battery and an output of 150 kW / 204 PS for 37.220 euros. After deducting the state subsidy, 27.650 euros remain. This means that it is hardly more expensive than the ID.3 with significantly better equipment. The range of this version according to WLTP is given by Cupra with 424 kilometers, the top speed with 160 km / h.
The basic version with a 2022 kWh battery and 45 kW / 110 PS will then be submitted at the beginning of 150. There are also two e-Boost versions with 170 kW / 231 PS. They tense their muscles at the push of a button on the steering wheel or by kickdown for around 30 seconds and loosen up an extra portion of performance. These performance variants are available in conjunction with the 58 kWh battery and a 77 kWh battery, which is supposed to carry the electric Matador up to 540 kilometers.
Visually not an electric car
The body, interior and set-up differ fundamentally from the ID.3. If the German brother looks pragmatically correct, the Spanish counterpart can relax. Especially from the front, the Born is significantly cooler, with stylish LED lights and a large radiator grille, almost as if a combustion engine were panting for fresh air behind it. The copper-colored trademark in the center, including the Cupra lettering. Modeled rocker panels stand out on the side, the typical continuous light band (called coast-to-coast rearlights) and a stately diffuser at the back. The fact that the Born crouches a little lower in the direction of the road than the ID.3, lowered by 1,5 centimeters at the front, 1,0 at the rear and the roof lowers earlier at the back, fits in with the dynamic concept of its fathers.
That looks faster, but leaves the backbenchers around two fingers less headroom over the top. Overall, you feel a bit more constricted at the back than in the electric VW, but nobody is haunted by claustrophobia here. Not even the luggage. 385 liters - that's even a little more than in the longer Seat Leon.
That special something
The cupras of this world embrace their passengers more passionately than the mostly airy VWs. The Cupra world is not about tickling the last few inches out of every corner. The Seat subsidiary wants to create a special atmosphere. Sportier, more stylish, more attractive - and in the case of the Born, also more sustainable. The seats have covers made from recycled marine plastic, other details such as the hat shelf are also made from recycled material, and leather is no longer used except on the steering wheel. Most of the surfaces in the interior, many with three-dimensional embossing, also look much higher quality than in the ID.3, which has already taken a lot of criticism for its plastic yogurt tub.
Incidentally, the standard bucket seats are excellent. You sit completely and full in the shaped chairs, not somehow on top. The seat cheeks clamp your back and bottom in curves without constricting or torturing you with hard wooden bench comfort. The driver and front passenger are separated by a wide center console. We are largely familiar with the cockpit with the two displays from the ID.3, as well as the heads-up display, which uses augmented reality technology to throw three-dimensional directional arrows onto the road that are close enough to touch. This is how you navigate today.
VAG Group swears by the touch fields
On request, up to eleven assistants take care of the well-being and safety of the passengers, four driving modes can be set, and there are even five in the performance versions. Each program changes the steering and responsiveness of the electric motor. Unfortunately, the many sensor fields and sliders as well as the operating concept of the multimedia unit also come from the Wolfsburg hereditary assets. Again we ask ourselves: What is more practical about it than switches and buttons?
The Born wants to be more than “just” a sporty ID.3. Larger brakes at the front, on request 20-inch with 235 tires, the adaptive chassis control DCC and the progressive steering give an idea of where the electric journey is headed. The debutant wants to be the good-mood bear in the Stromer class. And he succeeds in doing this with astonishing aplomb. Born draws his driving skills from the MEB modular system, which provides an electric drive that is beyond any doubt. The Spaniards add the seasoning.
Perfect for sporty rides
The Cupra Born is certainly not a vicious dog that licks blood when the streets get twisty. At 1,8 tonnes, it is not exactly the ideal weight. But the low center of gravity, due to the battery, combined with the sports suspension and an almost balanced 50:50 weight distribution, help the Spaniard to achieve a performance that comes very close to the definition of driving pleasure. If you want, you can really mess with the centrifugal forces.
The steering is surprisingly communicative, the brakes grippy and the suspension - even in sport mode - never brushed into riot. So well presented and visually dazzling in shape, the Cupra Born could become the pretty pike in the carp pond of the compact e-mobile. Thanks to Born, Cupra is aiming to double its sales of 1,2 billion euros next year. Even if the playing field is bumpy, the prospects for success are electrifying.
Cupra Born - Technical Specifications
Five-door compact car with electric rear-wheel drive, length: 4,32, width: 1,81 meters, height: 1,54 meters, wheelbase: 2,77 meters, trunk volume: 385 liters, drive with an electric motor, system output 150 kW (204 hp) , maximum torque 310 Nm, one-way automatic transmission, battery with 58 kWh. 0-100 km / h: 7,3 s, Vmax: 160 km / h (regulated), power consumption: 15,5 - 16,7 kWh / 100 km (WLTP combined), max.range 395 - 424 km (WLTP) .
In brief
Why: because he is the charismatic among the Stromers
Why not: because you lack the courage to buy a Cupra instead of a VW
What else: VW ID.3, Hyundai Ioniq 5, Renault Megane E-Tech
When does he come: from November on
