[Auto] Test Cupra Formentor VZ 2.0 TSI 310 CV 4Drive

[#Steeven.™]

More than two decades separate us since Cup Racing, which we all know as Cupra, launched its first preparation. It did so on the basis of the Seat Ibiza mk2, an Ibiza Cupra that paid homage to the Rally Champion of that same year and that reached up to 150 hp, remarkable power for a car in its segment. More than two decades have passed since it appeared on the market in 1996, 24 years in which it has been transformed as much as our main car reflects. To test the Cupra Formentor 2.0 TSI 310 CV, an exclusive and exclusively Cupra car.

Let's start by explaining the "exclusive" and the "exclusively". Before, of course, thank the Gedauto Group for giving us this unit, the first to arrive at its Seat and Cupra dealership in Mérida. The Cupra Formentor 2.0 TSI 310 CV is an exclusive car due to its configuration, although we will delve into that topic later, and it is created exclusively by and for Cupra. No, there will not be a Formentor in Seat. It is the first car created by the brand and here it will stay, only in the Cupra range and in no other.
And with that let's review the current Cupra range. If we do not fall into confusion, they currently have the Cupra Ateca, the first model that the company sold as an independent brand and an SUV that has been updated. They also sell the Cupra Formentor and the Cupra León, the latter still in full disembarkation. They presented an electric SUV concept, the Tavascan, but it's still just that, a prototype. The main idea that we can get from all this is that, from having a single model in practically two years of the brand's launch, to having two more on the bill and a prototype in just months.

 

Cupra Formentor: SUV? CUV? High tourism?

But let's go back to Formentor. In 2019 it debuted at the Geneva Motor Show as a preview to the final production model. Little by nothing changed with respect to this prototype that a year later would become a reality. It is not at all easy to fit it into the segment. SUV? CUV? High tourism? It does not matter. Now, in some cases, it is more difficult to catalog cars than to win the EuroMillions. And this one, like others, is not easy to position.

What is easy to fit are its measurements, since we are talking about numbers and not interpretations. It measures 4.45 meters in length, about eight centimeters more than the Seat León, 1.84 m in width, about four centimeters more, and 1.51 m in height, five more than the compact but about eight less than the Ateca. With this it is lower than the Ateca SUV and also longer, with a similar width, somewhat smaller.

Where he nails the Lion is in battle, exact measurements that make us think of his platform. They share the same, the MQB-EVO, the evolution of the well-known MQB used by other models of the group such as the Volkswagen Golf 8 or the Audi A3 8Y. We are talking about 2.68 m., A battle that combines with a 450-liter boot. Despite this, the Cupra Formentor seems more spacious than the León, although if we analyze its design and the path taken by its rear window, doubts emerge like flowers in spring.

 

Of the most attractive «SUVs» sold

And speaking of design, what can we say about the first product that only Cupra will sell? In general, congratulations, it's that simple. They have completed a car of measures and aesthetics quite appealing. And, I like it more than the Cupra Ateca and infinitely more than the Cupra León. Perhaps, the new grill is better in this volume, although we also have to emphasize that the sharpened optical group is more attractive in this and the resource of the position of the fog lamps very successful.

If we put everyone in line, the Cupra Formentor would look like the "thug of the family", it would be him who would be blamed for the mischief. Its hood, with ribs included, accentuates a character that is still highlighted in its wheel arches, especially in the rear. The air intakes, the rising beltline and the wide C-pillar further qualify the whole on the sporting level. And its rear, with attached headlight, beefy bumpers and quad exhaust on this version, emphasize the idea.

The rear and profile are the areas that highlight the sporty SUV approach. They stand out for the position taken by the rear window, very horizontal. Although, equally, its optical group adds making them a small spoiler that accompanies the first one that shows above. I do not like the fashion of joining the rear lights and I will be one of the few, but in this case ... ok yes, I like it.

Modern, this is the interior that he shares with his cousins
With this it is necessary to analyze its interior, an area that it shares almost completely with the Cupra León. To begin with, the dashboard shows right in the middle a 12-inch touch screen, the largest we find in the new generation of models mounted on the MQB-EVO platform. I haven't been able to “fiddle” too much with it, but at first glance, I can tell that it has a suitable size and easy handling. Of course, I think it needs prior learning so that you can deal with it intuitively and take advantage of its interface

This infotainment team brings together, in touch control with its screen, the vast majority of the functions that we can perform. And yes, the design of the cars is oriented towards this point, few buttons and large screens. But no, I still don't see it safe to let everything be controlled through a screen that forces you to lose your eyes on the road and focus your vision to point at the exact place. With a button, on the other hand, the action is carried out with more intuition. I'm not looking to find the interior of a Porsche from the past decade, but neither do I find that of a Tesla Model S.

Following the view down the center console and reaching the transmission tunnel, another detail that does not convince me is the design of its gear selector. It is true that this type of joystick helps to give a feeling of spaciousness and even provides a certain interesting approach to design, but as I said when I got into the Volvo XC40 I prefer a "traditional lever", more if it fits in a sports car. If I have to stick with this way of making gear selectors, I prefer the Jaguar and Land Rover ones. Posts to give space ...

Looking towards the instrument panel we find the second interior screen from which we will also receive a lot of information relevant to driving and the car and that we can customize, giving priority to certain information or making the traditional speed and rpm spheres disappear. Closer to our eyes we have the steering wheel, with the Cupra signature, flattened and with two very interesting buttons that do invite us to think that we are dealing with a “real sports car”. Start button on the right side and driving mode selector on the left.

Another curious detail that this model mounts is the light band that runs along the dashboard in its rearmost area and that reaches the pillars. Its function is not only decorative. In case of encountering traffic approaching us on the appropriate flank, it will light up and warn the driver to proceed with caution. An interesting resource that broadens the feeling of quality of the whole and that we are in a last generation car.

Separate mention are the seats, seats that could practically go through a few buckets and that have the logo of the firm on the headrest. They, which grip the body quite well, leave you in a more sporty position than in the driving position of a Cupra Ateca, with a more horizontal view of the road and not as vertical, as we would have in an SUV.

As for the space, being usual, in the front area we will not have problems and in the rear, if we do not occupy the central square, either. My 1.86 m. He entered the back row with relative ease, I was not afraid of cutting my throat on the roof when I entered and sitting down my head was far from hitting the roof and my knees from doing the same with the front seat. It is surprising for the fact of being a sporty focus SUV, although it is true that the tested unit did not mount a panoramic roof.

 

2.0 TSI 310 hp engine, the most powerful
Before we talk about driving sensations, we have to re-immerse ourselves in the context in which we find ourselves. The Cupra Formentor that we have tested has the most powerful block served in the model, a 2.0 TSI with 310 hp and 400 Nm of torque. It is not the only engine available in the range, and here we find to date the decision, let's put quotes, more "controversial" of the brand. Its range will finally be articulated, and I quote in strict order of descending power, a PHEV version of 245, another of the same configuration with 204 and two of 150 CV, one with a 1.5 TSI engine and another with a 2.0 TDI engine. The range being crowned, as we have mentioned in the previous lines, by the 310 hp engine that concerns us.

The "controversy", of course, does not refer to the brand having perpetrated an unforgivable attack on sportsmanship, values that have been pursued with nobility in these more than twenty years. Although, it refers to the fact that it has been and continues to be a topic of debate among journalists, as fans or anyone who follows the current market. Much of it, and I include myself, we think that these versions would go to the Seat Formentor range. But since there will be no Seat Formentor, Cupra has taken them.

And I must admit that the Formentor will keep its essence in part if it is only sold by Cupra, and I also recognize that if you want to make a competitive brand, you have to expand the range offered in your models. But with a Leon Cupra with engines from 245 hp, an Ateca of only 300 and a past so close to sportsmanship, having in your range a 150 hp gasoline SUV that does 0-100 km / h in almost nine seconds ... it follows me without square.

Likewise, and being another advantage, is that of the 46,920 euros that the Formentor costs that I have climbed to, we go to 31,670 euros of the access model car with manual transmission without discounts. And all this contained in a bottle that you like, that is attractive and that will surely appeal to the clientele who are looking with copious desire for an SUV in which the design is a differential weapon.

Out of controversy, and focusing on the unit that brings us to this point, we find the most powerful version of the range. Both this version and the PHEV of 245 will receive the surname VZ, thus differentiating themselves from the rest. The 310 horsepower declares a 0-100 km / h in just 4.9 seconds, 0.1 seconds slower than a 300 hp Audi SQ2 and faster than a Leon Cupra 290, and an electronically limited top speed of 250 km / h. Mounts seven-speed DSG gearbox and all-wheel drive.

 

You find what you are looking for
Although, I have to say that the ride with the Cupra Formentor was not so long as to draw valuable conclusions. In the same way, I can conclude that the sensations were pleasant. And they were because I found what I was looking for, a dynamic SUV, with a sporty feel thanks to its block of more than 300 hp and a truly extraordinary chassis. To tell the truth, I did not expect less from them, they know how to make sports cars and I hope they continue to do so for a long time to come.

In tight turns and changes of support it is stable. You are not afraid of hard braking and decisive steering wheel bumps. Its bodywork does not follow paths not expected by the driver, turning very flat at all times of the test. The all-wheel drive is to blame for you shooting out of every corner without demands on grip, a well-known 4Drive traction that always accompanies the model.

There are different driving modes. In my test I have not been able to test them with time, taking most of the time the Cupra mode activated. We have the Comfort, Sport, Cupra, Off Road and Eco modes. The latter we will have to look for in a different button than the one we find the rest. Depending on the brand, these driving modes affect damping stiffness by regulating dynamic chassis control, all-wheel drive, steering, engine response and engine sound. It will also make changes to the active cruise control and climate control system, as in other models.

If you are looking for an exhilarating sound, like that of a Hyundai i30 N, for example, I am sorry to disappoint you. Although, it is true that activating the most dynamic driving modes and driving in a sporty way you will have that melody that we look for in cars with this character. Of course, the sound floods the cabin largely thanks to the speakers, being a resource used by a large part of the modern cars of this approach. On the other hand, the steering has a mechanical progressive reduction, so it will not change from one mode to another.

The Cupra model is offered in 9 different body colors: White, Urban Silver, Midnight Black, Magnetic Gray, Desire Red, Graphene Gray, Dark Campouflage, Matte Magnetic Gray and Matte Petrol Blue. The special launch edition ‘Launch Edition’ features Petrol Blue leather bucket seats, Brembo brakes, panoramic roof, exclusive 19-inch Copper alloy wheels, or Beats Audio. The equipment catalog also has a three-zone climate control or electric tailgate with Virtual Pedal, among others, and a Full Link connectivity system, in which we have Android Auto via cable and Apple Car Play with wireless connection.