Follow your impulse: the CUPRA Born on a head-turning trip across the UK

With a range of up to 340 miles in the range-topping all-electric 77KW CUPRA Born, there was only one thing to do. A road trip around the UK to showcase the advanced tech, head-turning design and confident performance of the latest model from CUPRA (which you can watch in full above)…

With that much range available – plus a lightning fast charging time of 38 minutes from 0-80% on a 135KW charger (now readily available across the UK) – the CUPRA Born covered 450 varied miles, exploring exactly what makes this car so special. First up, a motorway drive to London from  CUPRA Bolton in Range mode, where the 70 mph limiter, Connected car features, smartphone integration on the 12-inch touchscreen heads up display  and ample range for the journey meant a perfect long-distance cruise.

On arrival in London, the Born headed to Hackney’s RAEBURN LAB where renowned fashion designer and leader in renewable technology Christopher Raeburn ran his expert eye over the design and interior, including the cutting-edge Sequal® Yarn seating, made from recycled marine plastic. 

“My company is all about what we call the three Rs, remaking, reducing and recycling. As a business here at Raeburn, we really believe that if we are able to reuse as much as possible, that’s a really good step forward. If we can think about recycled materials as well, and circularity, again that’s a really good way that we can reduce our impact on the environment.

“I was really impressed when I was looking over the car, at the level of detail and refinement throughout the whole car, particularly the upholstery for the seating the Sequal® yarn. It’s really compact, with the most beautiful laser-cut or die-cut detailing with patterns that come through, that you then see reflected on the exterior on the car.

“You have this balance as you look externally and internally, and these are all elements that don’t necessarily need to be there, but they are, and it’s what makes it so special.”

Dynamic inside and out, there was still time to head into the Hackney Wick night and find out exactly what the denizens of London’s up-and-coming district made of the CUPRA Born’s eye-catching silhouette…

An overnight charge and change of pace, as the CUPRA Born headed the 50 miles from London to Dunsfold – home of the Top Gear TV track and also a visit from a driving legend.

Jutta Kleinschmidt is the first and only woman to win the gruelling Paris Dakar race, as well as a long career racing motorbikes, rally cars and her current role as a team driver in the globe-trotting Extreme-E series. Jutta knows all about harnessing accessible electric performance and she was the perfect candidate to take the CUPRA Born – with a 0-60 time of seven seconds and 50/50 weight balance thanks to the battery layout – onto the testing spaces of the Dunsfold track in CUPRA mode.

“This car puts a real smile on your face, mostly down to the low battery position. Electric cars have proven themselves on track these days, and you can really feel that knowledge and engineering has helped to make this an impressive road car. I also loved the heads-up display, I felt like a fighter pilot.” 

Design, technology and performance – across a week and 450 effortless miles in the UK, the all-electric CUPRA Born proved itself in the hands of experts and passers-by alike.  With on the road prices starting from £36,475, you can head this way to find out everything you need about the CUPRA Born here, and watch the full film of the road trip above.