2026 Cupra Tavascan review: Barcelona blast

In online media, do you ever really switch off?

The answer usually is ‘no, not really‘. My recent self-funded trip to Europe embodied that somewhat, given I ended up getting a last-minute ticket to the Goodwood Festival of Speed with Aston Martin, and then booking myself a media car for review whilst I visited family in Spain.

Said car was a familiar one – the Cupra Tavascan VZ. It’s always been a goal of mine to drive different vehicles in their home regions, to see how they behave in their natural habitats, and to get a feel for differences in calibration or specification relative to the Australian market.

The Cupra team greeted me at their very grand head office in Martorell, just outside of Barcelona, giving me a quick tour of their media function space as well as a presentation of the Spanish Tavascan range as if I was attending a local media launch.

I didn’t realise this until it was mentioned in the presentation, but the Cupra ‘VZ’ badging is short for the Spanish word ‘veloz’, which means ‘fast’. Fitting.

While manufactured at the VW Group’s Anhui facility in China, Cupra maintains the Tavascan has been designed and engineered in Barcelona, for Europe. Being of Chinese and Catalan heritage myself, I guess we have something in common.

Its design is unmistakably Cupra, and it draws upon the same MEB toolkit as a number of other Group EV products – like the VW ID.4 and ID.5, as well as the Skoda Enyaq.

The biggest difference between the car I drove in Barcelona and the ones you can buy here were really the steering wheel – which is on the opposite side in Spain – as well as the inclusion of Cupra Connect services, which adds online functionality for the infotainment and navigation systems, as well as enabling remote functions via a smartphone app.

So how did the Spanish brand’s driver-focused rival to the Tesla Model Y fare on home soil? Well, read on and you’ll find out!

How much does the Cupra Tavascan cost?

As with other parts of the world, the Tavascan is available in two distinct trim levels in Australia – Endurance and VZ.

Pricing is unchanged for 2026, meaning the single-motor Endurance starts from $60,990 plus on-road costs, while the VZ spec on test sells in Australia from $74,490 before on-roads.

For reference, the Tavascan starts from €44,010 (A$76,449) in the Spanish market, with the as-tested VZ spec kicking off from €53,080 (A$92,205) before options and on-road costs – and the standard spec is lower than here.

As tested, the car I drove was closer to the €60,000 (A$104,226) mark, which really puts into perspective how cheap cars in Australia are relative to the rest of the world when you take our weak currency into account.

That said, the Tavascan’s Chinese production makes it subject to import tariffs in Europe, which isn’t the case here.

To see how the Cupra Tavascan lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool

What is the Cupra Tavascan like on the inside?

Cupra’s design team went to town with the Tavascan’s cabin, with eye-catching details and interesting colour flourishes that make it truly unique in from an aesthetic perspective.

Our VZ test car was finished with the ‘Dark Night’ microfibre that comes standard on Aus-market Tavascan VZs, which adds dark blue accents for parts like the door armrests and centre console, rather than the standard grey.

I love the skeletal-insured central motif on the dashboard, which extends towards the doors like ribs. Cupra’s signature copper accents likewise add some razzle-dazzle, augmenting the rib cage-effect design as well as accenting the doors incorporating the door handles.

On first impression, it’s lovely. Poke and prod a little closer though and some of these trimmings – namely the sternum’s textured plastic – fills a little cheap and brittle for a vehicle posing as somewhat premium.

I also found that the dual-lidded centre console bin had a mechanism that tended to squeak and shift when leaning on it, which doesn’t scream €60,000 or around $75,000 in Australia.

Gripes aside, it’s certainly one of the more visually engaging cabins in the mid-size electric SUV segment, which tends to trend more towards minimalism and sparseness by comparison. The Tavascan does fall slave to the tack-on iPad trend though, with its massive 15-inch touchscreen sitting proudly in the centre of the dash, angled to the driver.

The Spanish model I drove had a fully-featured infotainment system compared to Australian models, boasting online navigation and connected car services. While the VW Group in Australia has historically struggled to make a case with its global parent for investing in connected services Down Under, Cupra is looking to fix that.

“We feed back a lot of the local market needs [to global] and what we hear from customers. It’s an issue that exists at a Group level, not just a Cupra level, but we’re pushing really hard. I don’t have timing I can share right now, but things are moving in a positive direction,” Jeff Shafer, head of product for Cupra Australia, told CarExpert in August.

“We’re definitely looking to go with a factory-backed solution – it’s a really hot topic.”

Now while these features would be good to have – and I know there’s a lot of debate in various comments sections on our site about this – I spent my entire time with the Tavascan using Apple CarPlay, which in itself brings connected navigation, music streaming and so on.

Like we’ve said before, the central touchscreen boasts Cupra’s latest software which keeps the digital climate controls permanently at the base of the screen, with the touch sliders for temperature and volume illuminated at night unlike early versions of Volkswagen’s ID. products.

It’s well thought-out, offers attractive graphics, and generally responds quickly to inputs. Then again, I personally would prefer physical switchgear for key functions like climate control and infotainment volume, especially when the steering wheel buttons are fiddly touch-capacitive ones.

Unlike some rivals, the Tavascan has an (admittedly small) 5.3-inch digital instrument cluster which shows speed, driver assist, navigation and trip computer information as desired. Our test car also featured the trick head-up display with augmented reality graphics, with cool animations for turn-by-turn navigation prompts or assistance features.

Other cool details include the copper-coloured perforations in the seats, as well as the perforated ambient lighting patterns in the doors which complement the almost organic lighting that peeps out the vent slats in the dashboard. At night or in tunnels, the Tavascan’s configurable lighting adds a really cool and space-age vibe.

Storage is decent, with a deep cubby under the aforementioned centre armrest lids, large-ish door bins and a slot behind the central sternum for your phone with a wireless charging pad.

Further back the Tavascan offers good room for at least two adult occupants, with sufficient head-, leg- and knee room for six footers despite the sloping rear roofline. I had two average-sized adults back there a number of times and they quite enjoyed it, complimenting on the space on offer.

The dedicated EV platform lends a flat floor in the rear, and there’s a third zone of climate with air vents and digital controls at the rear of the centre console.

Our test car’s fixed panoramic sunroof let plenty of light in from the Spanish summer too, which added to the feeling of airiness and space in the back, and the retractable shade is a nice touch given we were enjoying a hot summer in Spain – it was mid- to high-30 degrees for the entire time.

As you’d expect, there are things like ISOFIX child anchors and a fold-down centre armrest with cupholders, in addition to door bins and pockets behind the front seats. It’s worth noting the chunky front buckets can obstruct forward vision from the rear bench, meaning nausea-prone kids (or adults) may not love it.

Despite the ‘coupe SUV’ silhouette the Tavascan offers a healthy 540L of boot space with the rear seats in use, more than enough for me and my partner’s luggage heading from Barcelona to the airport.

You can fold the second row down for more space and an almost flat load bay, though Cupra doesn’t quote a figure with the seats down.

To see how the Cupra Tavascan lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool

What’s under the bonnet?

There’s no ‘frunk’ storage in the Tavascan – or any other MEB-based products for that matter – with power in the VZ coming from a pair of electric motors (one front, one rear) fed by a 77kWh lithium-ion battery.

To see how the Cupra Tavascan lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool

How does the Cupra Tavascan drive?

Funnily enough, this was my first time driving a production-spec Tavascan on public roads – having tested a pre-production VZ with Extreme Package in Sydney in 2024.

Spain’s hot and dry summer conditions were a good test of the Tavascan’s overall performance against the sort of heat we regularly get during Aussie summers, while the very varied road network would be a great test bed for the Tavascan’s high-speed performance, efficiency, as well as how it handles city traffic in a major European city.

Most of my time was spent on the highway, given my relatives live in a town called Balsareny which is about an hour inland from coastal Barcelona. To get there, there are a mix of speed zones typically ranging from 80 to 130km/h, with sweeping bends thrown in as well as plenty of gradual uphill ascents.

Leaving Cupra HQ in Martorell, the Tavascan VZ had more than enough grunt to briskly make it to the signed freeway speeds, and once there happily settled into a quiet, planted cruise. The VZ’s massive 21-inch alloys and thin rubber let in a bit of road noise from rougher road surfaces at higher speeds, but it’s otherwise very calm.

The Tavascan maintains Cupra’s excellent steering feel, which is very quick and direct helping this near 2.3-tonne EV shrink around you and feel more wieldy than it ought to, while being very secure on the straight-ahead.

At 130km/h, the ride settles beautifully with our test car’s adaptive dampers offering a tight but composed ride in all modes – from Comfort through to Cupra.

Rolling response at these speeds is also good, particularly when you have it in Cupra mode. Quick overtakes are a cinch, and the suite of assistance systems mean you can lean on the Tavascan to do the heavy lifting on the highway while also lending an extra pair of eyes if you’re trying to make a gap in traffic.

Another thing I noticed was the performance of the VZ’s matrix LED headlights, which out where my family lives come in very handy. At night the high-speed freeways offer no illumination, meaning the adaptive high beams got a regular workout when heading out to dinner in neighbouring towns.

Speaking of, navigating regional Catalan municipalities made me realise how ‘big’ the Tavascan is relative to the Spanish car fleet. Parking one in Australia would usually be a non-event, but European parking spaces and adjusting to a left-hand drive vantage point occasionally proved challenging.

Surround cameras helped, though the resolution isn’t as good as I’d like, as well as surround parking sensors so you don’t have to use the European touch park method (scoffs). Perhaps part of the challenge was my aversion to curbing those big ol’ 21-inch alloys, which I managed to keep scuff-free. Phew.

Visibility is alright out the front and sides, and the big mirrors also help, though the coupe-like roofline, rising shoulder line and chunky pillars mean you will lean on the camera and sensors when parking, as well as the blind-spot monitor when rolling for over-the-shoulder visibility.

That tight steering I mentioned earlier does, however, help the Tavascan feel smaller than it is for general driving in town, and in Barcelona’s CBD it helped it make the big Cupra feel easily manoeuvrable.

I also got the chance to give the Tavascan a more spirited and windy run up and down Montserrat, the famous picturesque serrated mountain range just out of Barcelona.

The Tavascan certainly lives up to its driver focus in these sorts of conditions, with that lovely steering tune really dialling up in Cupra mode, with instant torquey response from its powerful dual-motor drivetrain. It sits surprisingly flat in corners too, despite lateral forces trying to shift its 2.3-tonne weight.

On this sorts of tight, twisty mountain roads, I felt the standard front buckets could use more bolstering. You can option the racier Cup Bucket seats with the Extreme Package, but that’s another $8000 in Australia plus it adds forged alloys with performance tyres that kill range.

Also, Cupra hasn’t done much from an ‘engine’ sound perspective with the Tavascan, meaning unless you enjoy the soft whirring of electric motors, there’s not a whole lot of audible drama to go with the handling and pace. This will be down to personal preference, but I kind of wish it gave me a bit more in this regard.

Many of you will comment on the brake package too, given the ventilated front rotors with two-piston calipers are combined with drum rears. Given the weight I would have liked more bite from the VZ’s stoppers in dynamic situations, but in normal driving they’re fine and it doesn’t feel like its underbraked like some EVs are these days.

While my time with the Cupra was enjoyable, and a good display of its all-round abilities, I came away once again with the mindset that I tend to gravitate to non-performance electric SUVs rather than dual-motor go-fast ones.

After driving a standard Tavascan Endurance back in Melbourne some months later, the base package retains the sweet steering and dynamics of the VZ while offering more range and a little less weight. The rear-drive layout also had a more classic sports-luxury feel and lightens up the front end.

And, while the ‘Veloz’ version is pretty quick, it’s not quite fast enough given the price positioning and the straight-line performance that’s on offer from numerous rivals – think Tesla Model Y Performance and Zeekr 7X Performance, for example.

I know some will disagree, but I really don’t see the need for anything more than the base car with the Interior Package box ticked, which gives you the same interior as the standard VZ.

To see how the Cupra Tavascan lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool

What do you get?

Tavascan Endurance equipment highlights:

• 19-inch Vulcano alloy wheels – black and silver
• Illuminated front and rear Cupra logos
• LED headlights
• Light Assist – auto high beam
• LED daytime running lights
• LED ‘coast to coast’ tail lights
• Cupra logo puddle lights
• Power tailgate incl. kick sensors
• Smart entry incl. proximity lock/unlock
• Sit-to-start keyless start
• Drive profile selection
• Soul Black fabric upholstery
• Sports bucket front seats
• Supersport steering wheel incl. regen paddles
• Heated steering wheel
• 6-speaker audio
• 3-zone climate control
• 5.3-inch Digital Cockpit
• 15-inch touchscreen infotainment
• Wireless Apple CarPlay
• Wireless Android Auto
• Ambient lighting
• Auto-dimming interior mirror
• Wireless smartphone charger

Tavascan VZ adds:

• 21-inch Katla alloy wheels – black and copper
• DCC adaptive suspension
• Fixed panoramic roof incl. power blind
• Matrix LED headlights
  • incl. cascading high beams
• Interior Package – see below

Options

Each trim level in Australia is available with one optional package.

Interior Package: $4500 – Endurance

• 20-inch Heckla alloy wheels – black and silver
• 360-degree cameras
• ‘Dark Night’ deep blue microfibre upholstery
• 12-way power front seats with memory function
• Heated front seats
• 12-speaker Sennheiser sound system
• Ambient interior lighting – enhanced
• Illuminated front scuff plates
• Smartlight

Extreme Package: $8000 – VZ

• 21-inch Etna forged alloy wheels – silver and copper
• Performance tyres – 477km WLTP range
• Enceladus Grey leather-appointed upholstery
• Cup Bucket front seats
• Ventilated front seats

Additionally, the VZ in Australia can now be had with Century Bronze matte paint for $3150. Metallic finishes incur an $800 upcharge.

One thing I’d like to see the local outlet do is offer the Adrenaline Package that is offered in the home market, which effectively lifts the Endurance to VZ specification minus the drivetrain – namely adding Matrix LED headlights and the DCC adaptive damping.

Given the wide berth between the two trim levels, I imagine there are plenty of potential customers that would happily take a fully-loaded single-motor car rather than shelling out for the VZ.

To see how the Cupra Tavascan lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool

Is the Cupra Tavascan safe?

While the Cupra Tavascan achieved a five-star Euro NCAP rating, it was only rated four stars by local crash tester ANCAP due to some omitted features on local models.

The reason? ANCAP dinged the Cupra for the lack of an intelligent speed assistance system or speed limit information function, which saw it miss out on the five-star rating given to it by sister authority Euro NCAP in 2024.

Vehicles must receive 80 per cent in adult and child occupant protection, and 70 per cent in the vulnerable road user protection and safety assist categories to get a five-star rating from the independent auto safety authority.

“Speed sign recognition and an intelligent speed limiter are standard in European models but have not been made available to current Australian Tavascan buyers,” said ANCAP CEO Carla Hoorweg.

“While some improved performance across the Safety Assist pillar could have enhanced its score, the absence of an advanced speed assistance system primarily contributed to this four-star result.”

Standard safety equipment in Australia includes:

• 7 airbags
• Autonomous emergency braking (AEB)
  • Pedestrian, cyclist detection
  • Turn Assist
• Blind-spot monitoring
• Lane-keep assist
• Rear cross-traffic alert
• Travel Assist
  • Adaptive cruise control
  • Lane centring
  • Traffic jam assist

To see how the Cupra Tavascan lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool

How much does the Cupra Tavascan cost to run?

The Tavascan is covered by Cupra’s five year, unlimited kilometre new vehicle warranty; while the lithium-ion battery pack is covered for eight years or 160,000 kilometres.

To see how the Cupra Tavascan lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool

CarExpert’s Take on the Cupra Tavascan

It was good to try the Tavascan properly on its home turf, and it remains a solid option in the sprawling mid-size EV SUV segment, if not quite a standout in VZ trim.

Both in Spain and in Australia, the Tavascan VZ is priced in line with a Tesla Model Y Performance, which is both much quicker in a straight line and also offers around 80km more driving range per charge.

Now those metrics aren’t the be-all and end-all, but in the EV space a lot of buyers are focusing a lot on these numbers, particularly the EV enthusiasts. However, the Tavascan isn’t trying to cater to the broader EV market.

Cupra has always been a brand that focuses on driver enjoyment and design, and the Tavascan goes hard on exactly that. It looks and feels like a flagship Cupra product that just happens to be electric, and it’s a fun and engaging drive despite the absence of a combustion engine under the bonnet, and surprisingly practical.

That said, it could be better value both back home in Europe and here Down Under, and some of the quality niggles we had in our test cars (the squeaks were in the local-spec Endurance too) aren’t great in what is pitched as a premium-leaning product.

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MORE: Explore the Cupra Tavascan showroom