A performance electric vehicle is Born

Originally the performance sub-brand of SEAT the Volkswagen Group’s Spanish arm, Cupra became a full design and manufacturing entity in 2018 and since then has produced more that 300,000 cars for global markets.

Now Cupra is leading the charge in New Zealand (and Australia) being the only two markets outside of Europe which will market the Born electric performance hatchback which shares the same MEB electric platform as the Volkswagen ID.3.

The Born heralds the forthcoming arrival of yet more plug-in hybrid and battery electric cars from Cupra in the next 24 months.

Cupra New Zealand general manager James Yates says given the current state of the market he is happy with the forward orders for the new electric hatch, but he says in comparison to the market a year ago the numbers are modest.  

Yates was not willing to publicly announce the exact number of orders received.

The Born will still qualify for the newly revised rebate under the Clean Car Discount restructure on July 1. First deliveries are expected in September and Yates says this is purely due to delays with shipping vehicles through Australia thanks to fewer ships and port congestion.

Thanks to some financial support from the factory the Cupra Born has been repriced at a driveway price of $77,990, some two thousand dollars less than was announced when pre orders opened in March 2023. There are five free colour choices, but Aurora Blue is an additional $850.

Yates says the 511km range offered by the Born’s 77kWh battery is conservative and he has seen up to 525km on a fully charged vehicle. The rear-wheel-drive performance hatchback is powered by a 170kW/230Nm electric motor offering more than adequate off the line performance.

As the Born is a connected car in European markets, this functionality is not available in New Zealand (or Australian) market vehicles, and therefore buyers will need to plug in their own Apple or Android phone for navigation. 

Heated seats are also not a standard feature in the New Zealand market cars, instead they are part of an upholstery option pack which makes the car a four-seater and takes it over the $80,000 threshold for the CCD rebate. 

At the same time as the Born arrives, so too will a plug-in hybrid version of the Cupra Formentor V with a drive away price of $78,500.  

The plug-in hybrid version of the Leon Sports Tourer is due to arrive in market at the end of 2023 and the drive away price will be confirmed closer to arrival.

In the first quarter of 2025, New Zealand can expect to see the arrival of the all-electric all-wheel drive dual motor Cupra Tavascan Coupe-SUV which shares the same MEB platform as the Volkswagen ID.5.

The 4.5 metre long Cupra Terramar SUV which will be the last ICE vehicle to be produced by the brand will arrive in mid 2025 and will offer two plug-in hybrid options according to the distributor.