Should you buy an electric hot hatch? (2025 Cupra Born long-term review)

Uploaded 6 months ago by Chasing Cars

Video Summary

Here's the summary of the YouTube video review:

The Cupra Born is a design-driven Spanish brand from the Volkswagen Group. It's the brand's first dedicated electric car and is pitched as a hot hatch, and uses the MEB electric architecture, underpinned with a whole range of VW's.
The long-term cost is $59,990 (RRP), which is about $63,000 on the road, but other rivals are between $54,000 and $74,000.
MG4 is cheaper at about $55,000. Tesla Model 3 is also cheaper at just under $60,000.
Standard: 170kW/310Nm, the 511km WLTP battery range may not be matched.
The two optional packages available are reasonably priced. A sportier VZ variant is coming out around March/April 2025.

The long-termer comes in an optional Aurora Blue paint.
Cupra is renowned for its copper signature highlights around its cars: badge, logo, grill, wheel rims.
The C pillar has an interesting design feature with a textured pattern.  The logo on the boot lid is carbon fiber.

The interior includes:
Standard 12-inch infotainment touchscreen,
5.3-inch digital driver display pod,
Wireless phone charging,
Leather steering wheel,
Dynamic suede seats in Aurora Blue come as part of the Interior Package,
Heated massage front seats, and a 395W beats audio system also come in the Interior Package,
The quality is excellent.

However, there is:
No panoramic sunroof,
Manual tailgate,
No wireless Apple CarPlay or Android Auto,
No integrated factory navigation.
The rear seat features:
Hard plastics,
No rear vents,
Center armrest and cup holders,
and generous rear seat space.  
Selecting an Interior Package reduces the car to a two-seater.
Boot volume quoted at 385 liters, a little bit more than a Golf. There is a charging cable, a light, a ski port, and a 12V socket. No spare tire.

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