The Cupra Born electric hatch is on the ground in Australia, and although it is still awaiting some minor tweaks before it is ready for RHD customer production, our first impressions are that it will fill a much-needed gap in the Australian auto market.
The smart, edgy electric hatch greeted media and the public on the outside entrance of the Spain-based brand’s new “City Garage” on O’Connell Street in Sydney on Wednesday.
@CUPRA launches first City Garage in Sydney, with all-electric Born outside front and centre pic.twitter.com/JXZATfzoYG
— 🚗⚡Bridie Schmidt (@BridieEV) July 20, 2022
It is the brand’s first showroom (or rather, experience centre, as is now the trend) in the Australian market and only its seventh worldwide.
Importantly, Australia will be the battery electric Born’s first market launch outside Europe.
Aiming to place itself somewhere between the volume and premium segments, the brand is painting itself an industrial, grungy image. Copper accents and unfinished concrete abound in the new experience focused salesroom, and the edgy feels are definitely reflected in the cars on site.
The Born itself however, has one distinction: it is for the moment the only all-electric vehicle from Cupra penned in for the local market for the short-term future.
And, it will fill a gap in the market in the form of a long-range hatch.
Just one variant is confirmed for Australia for the time being: the 82kWh (total capacity, 77kWh usable) with 170kW rear motor, 20″ alloys, and 548km WLTP range.
This last number is significant: it will mean in real-world terms that drivers will get in the high 400s of kilometres per charge depending on driving conditions.
To date, most electric hatches on the Australian market offer less than 300km at the most, and that’s being optimistic. The Nissan Leaf e+ offers 385km WLTP range.
But the Born is about more than just delivering a true long-range electric hatch to the market.
Having spent thousands of kilometres checking it out on Australian roads, Cupra is promising a fun but stable drive, with a sport handling option.
Every element of its interior and exterior design reflect the Cupra identity: assertive but not aggressive, something that stands out from the crowd and says “I am not just a hatch.”
On the outside, short overhangs combined with scooping air intakes flecked with arrow-like version of the Cupra logo, as well as ninja-star-like accents on the wheels and dispersing diamond-shapes on the C-pillar all speak to momentum and life in the zippy lane.
Inside, the cocoon-like seating invites the driver to take a seat and take control: spaciousness and a relaxed ride are not what this dynamic hatch is all about.
Cupra’s head of design Jorge Diez says his design team has incorporated body-like shapes into every surface possible, including a spine-like curve on the seating for maximum comfort. As the car was not open for media or the public yet, I didn’t get to sit in it so we’ll just have to take his word on that for now – stay tuned.
Production of the Cupra Born for the right-hand market is set to commence in October, with first deliveries to customers expected from early 2023.
Pricing is not yet set, though it is expected to be somewhere within the $50,000 to low $60,000 mark (we’re betting it will be at the upper end of this given rising costs of everything.)
Cupra says it will consider bringing other variants of the Cupra Born with smaller batteries to the local market in the future depending on appetite.
Bridie Schmidt is associate editor for The Driven, sister site of Renew Economy. She has been writing about electric vehicles since 2018, and has a keen interest in the role that zero-emissions transport has to play in sustainability. She has participated in podcasts such as Download This Show with Marc Fennell and Shirtloads of Science with Karl Kruszelnicki and is co-organiser of the Northern Rivers Electric Vehicle Forum. Bridie also owns a Tesla Model Y and has it available for hire on evee.com.au.